Medium format technical / view camera

Hi all,

Im curious about view camera options in medium format. I like the Arca-Swiss F 6x9 but it costs abit more than Im prepared to spend. The Fuji 680iii is also interesting, but bulky. Are anyone aware of any other options?

Cheers
Peter

There is always the Horseman 980/985/VH/VHR cameras. All cameras have tradeoffs.

I'm not sure if your concern is more camera size or film size but there is always the option of using a 120 roll film back in a 4x5 camera. I think they are generally 6x9. I can't remember what mine is 6x9 or 6x8.

Cambo SC-1. Uncommon, like the A-S a monorail. If you're considering a monorail, I'm surprised that you think the Fuji 680 is too bulky.

See https://www.largeformatphotography.info/roundup2x3.html and http://www.bnphoto.org/bnphoto/LFN/CamProf_Horseman1.htm and http://www.bnphoto.org/bnphoto/LFN/ViewNeedsEval2b.htm

I got an 8x10, not 4x5. I'll need a 6x7 back actually, (which I have used on a Fuji) to fit my enlarger. I only make contacts or scan 8x10s. Im not gonna bother with a medium format back on my 8x10.

Hello Peter, I believe you may get better response if you can provide more detail about how you will use the camera. What type of photography? Do you want full swings and tilts? Are you going to hike with it? More information the better for us out here to give suggestions. In 6x7 format I use a Koni-Omega 100, a Bronica GS1, a Pentacon Six, and a Galvin mono rail for different situations and reasons. I use a Linhof Technika and a Super Speed Graphic for 4x5 and both with 6x9 backs.

pkr1979 said:

Hi all,

Im curious about view camera options in medium format. I like the Arca-Swiss F 6x9 but it costs abit more than Im prepared to spend. The Fuji 680iii is also interesting, but bulky. Are anyone aware of any other options?

Cheers
Peter

Click to expand...

Here's one of the less common ones ~ the Silvestri Hermes architectural view camera.

It's very pocketable (image beside a 35mm rangefinder camera) and shoots everything from 6x6cm, 6x7cm, 6x9cm, 6x12cm up to 5"x4". Whereas they were more commonly used for medium format roll film architectural work, large format backs (like this one) is also possible making it a versatile street shooter too.

Mostly for wide angle lenses (Schneider Super Angulon 47mm XL) up to 120mm Apo Symmars, they avail of mostly rise and fall movements with cross shifts, as well as modular tilting lens bellows.

It has the advantage beyond ground glass viewing with portable hood/magnifying lens attachment, of a linked viewfinder showing the movements and correct framing for format.

The downside is they are less frequently found in the wild and might not be budget friendly.

GX680 250mm f5.6 Peco Junior Seiko LS23 by Nokton48, on Flickr


Here is a new one for me. Fuji GX680 250mm F5.6 mounted on Italian 3D Plaubel Peco Junior board. This one also has the #2 Seiko LS23, and with my uber sharp Ednalite Magnifier on the glass, it is shockingly RAZOR acute sharp. On this Mini-Me View camera on Leitz Tiltall Tripod with Leitz Ball Head, I can carry it around with ONE HAND. A small soft bag and I'm all set for 6.5x9cm Telescopic Photography. I love it!

Short and Long Peco Juniors 150 F9 and 58mm F5.6 by Nokton48, on Flickr

My Short and Long Plaubel Peco Juniors. On the left, the 150mm F9 Rodenstock Apo-Ronar, a GEM of a lens, a favorite. On the right, another favorite, a 58mm F5.6 Rodenstock Grandagon in Graflex XL Mount, I refitted it to a Peco Junior Board. Both of these are original lenses, pretty much as they were in the catalogs of the day. Ready to take out when it's warm around here. Both lenses have medium yellow filters, and proper hoods as well, ready to shoot! Camera on left takes Graflex Lever Wind Backs (kinda modern). Camera on right has a swiveling viewfinder which I love, takes 6x6cm and 6.5x9cm Plaubel Makina Backs, as well as Plaubel Glass Plate Holders and Planfilms of all kinds.

Nokton48 said:

GX680 250mm f5.6 Peco Junior Seiko LS23 by Nokton48, on Flickr


Here is a new one for me. Fuji GX680 250mm F5.6 mounted on Italian 3D Plaubel Peco Junior board. This one also has the #2 Seiko LS23, and with my uber sharp Ednalite Magnifier on the glass, it is shockingly RAZOR acute sharp. On this Mini-Me View camera on Leitz Tiltall Tripod with Leitz Ball Head, I can carry it around with ONE HAND. A small soft bag and I'm all set for 6.5x9cm Telescopic Photography. I love it!

Short and Long Peco Juniors 150 F9 and 58mm F5.6 by Nokton48, on Flickr

My Short and Long Plaubel Peco Juniors. On the left, the 150mm F9 Rodenstock Apo-Ronar, a GEM of a lens, a favorite. On the right, another favorite, a 58mm F5.6 Rodenstock Grandagon in Graflex XL Mount, I refitted it to a Peco Junior Board. Both of these are original lenses, pretty much as they were in the catalogs of the day. Ready to take out when it's warm around here. Both lenses have medium yellow filters, and proper hoods as well, ready to shoot! Camera on left takes Graflex Lever Wind Backs (kinda modern). Camera on right has a swiveling viewfinder which I love, takes 6x6cm and 6.5x9cm Plaubel Makina Backs, as well as Plaubel Glass Plate Holders and Planfilms of all kinds.

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I came here thinking about your posts on the plaubel peco junior and I was not disappointed.

The mamiya press system has several bodies with small rear movements. Depending on your use case they could work.

But like other folks here have said, I have preferred to standardize on my 4x5 kit and then use a medium format reducing back.

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

This all fits in the small Zone VI White Bag, looks like a picnic cooler. Restored Plaubel Peco Junior body with Jim Galvin Glenn Evans Graflex Roll Back modded to Peco Junior. Made to nicely hold Singer Graflex 120/220 Roll Backs. Two RH8 2.25x3.25, two RH10 6x7cm, one 220 RH20. Three Fujinon GX680 lenses modded to Plaubel Junior Boards. From the left, the 125mm F5.6 GX680, then the 50mm F5.6 GX680, then on the right, the 180mm F5.6 GX680. All three lenses work perfectly with the standard length Plaubel Peco Jr Rail. Film loaded is Ilford PanF+, Ilford Delta 100, Shanghai 220 EI 100, Maco ORT25, Ilford FP4+, Ilford HP5+. So this I'll be taking out this spring, on an olde Star-D tripod. The tripod has a shoulder strap for traveling, and the bag is HEAVY but has everything I need plus room for odds and ends. Apertures on the shutters fully correctly marked, and verified through direct measurement of the lens front irises. All now perfect ready for fully testing. Eight 120 test rolls have yielded perfect frames, some outside tests and some studio stuff. Will post photos soon. These lenses are sharp enough for digital medium format. Hmmmmmm

Getting There Set of GX680 Lenses Seiko Shutters by Nokton48, on Flickr

Getting there with my set of Fuji GX680 lenses, with Seiko #2 Shutters added. Mounted on PLaubel Peco Junior boards and Minolta SRT cable releases, Yellow Filters on each, and Hoods too. From the left front, the 50mm F5.6, then the 65mm F5.6, then the 80mm F5.6. On the far right front, the 100mm F4. Back Row, from the left, the 125mm F3.2, then the 150mm F5.6. Next the 180mm F3.2, and on the far right, the 210mm F5.6 Also adding the 250mm F5.6, should be tommorrow, got another Seiko Shutter coming. The 50mm front view reminds me of the HAL9000 fisheye in 2001: A Space Odyssey. It looks about the same LOL

Fuji GX680 50mm f5.6 Seiko Shutter by Nokton48, on Flickr

My Plaubel Junior restored with New to me 50mm F5.6 Fuji GX680 lens, purchased broken, at a good discount, from Adorama in NYC. They also included the Gelatin Filter Holder/50mm Hood, it's worth some Dollars so a great deal. The view through the 50mm is AMAZING. Can't wait to shoot some test 6.5x9cm Makina Back Film. EVentually I will buy some type of Digital Medium Format Back. The Peco Junior has a Leica-like smoothness and feel. Plaubel advertised as "The Rolls Royce of Cameras" in the day. Works smoothly and tightly in a Leica-type of way. Also looked through my 4x5" Sinar Normas with this lens. It's amazingly sharp-looking and nice and contrasty view. This will get some use now, rather than becoming an interesting broken ornament. BTW I should mention that I bought the camera for 70 Bucks from Adorama. Another great price. And it included a lens board with a #0 hole

There was a Linhof 'baby' Technika 2x3

How much movement do you need? I have a Speed Graphic 2 1/4 by 3 1/4, no rangefinder, ground glass, and a Topcon Super 105. It has a bit of front movement, rise, shift and tilt, but way short of a monorail or Horseman. Mine takes film holders which is why it inexpensive, the roll back version go for much more. As I generally use it for landscapes the front rise is helpful.

Everyone, don't forget there is no point mentioning anything that costs as much as an Arca Swiss F 6x9 or is even close to it price-wise. The OP stated this in his thread

OP, what might be helpful, if we are to help you, is to know is the upper range of purchase price that you are willing to pay

pentaxuser

APSC Sony Nex C3 JB Welded to Peco Rear Standard Plate by Nokton48, on Flickr

I bought this Nex C3 16mp Body for Fifty Bucks at World of Photography. Then I JB Welded it to a flat scrap black metal Plaubel Plate from my junk box. Then JB Welded the flat plate/APSC Back to a flat revesible Peco Junior Rear Plate. VOILA! "Poor Man's Medium Format Digital Back". Great for testing and trying different OLDE lenses. This one is historically interesting, it was on the cover of the Peco Junior literature I have. It's the Plaubel 150mm F4.2 Orthometar, it takes the stock Plaubel Makina Hood on the front. So fully tricked out for digital fun. I finished this with a rubber magnifying Nex 3 hood $10 from Ebay.

Baby Graphic?

I have a little Galvin 2x3 (6x9 roll film) monorail. It's very basic - no geared movements - with a lens range from 65 to 270mm on the 14" rail. I doubt that there are many in Europe, though. I'd be inclined to use a 4x5 with an International back for roll-film holders. More flexibility (6x12 down to 6x4.5 in roll film formats), at the expense of a bigger camera. Cost-wise the camera could well be cheaper, and roll-film holders for 4x5 are common.

Roll-film view cameras are not that much smaller or lighter than 4x5 because the materials, controls, lenses, etc do not scale down with the format.

I think price-wice I could pay whatever a Fuji GX680iii costs, as this is a possible option. If I could choose, also from non-existen solutions it would be tilt-shift lenses for my pentax 67ii. I would use a medium format view camera on occasions when I would usually use my Pentax 67ii instead of my 8x10 - this would be when hiking or being in crowded spaces where I need to be slightly mobile (not architecture - but some landscapes and of people). However, it is not often this will occur. Usually when my 8x10 is to inconvenient, it is not often I miss movements on the 67ii when I use that instead. But sometimes I do, and even though I probably would prefer to use a 'miniature' view camera like the ArcaSwiss2x3 (no batteries etc), what I 'need' is something with all front movements like the Fuji, but preferably less electric if that makes sense.

"Technical cameras" are a compromise between view cameras press cameras. The "Baby Technika" is a finely crafted triple extension bed example, and the Horseman version a superbly made double bed one, suited to a more conservative range of lenses. I personally find it more realistic to use 6X9 roll film backs in conjunction with my lightweight 4x5 Ebony folder, or even my fully-featured Sinar system. For handheld or quicker tripod shooting, I have both 6X9 Fuji RF's and the Pentax 6x7 system.

In general, simply adapting a 4x5 field camera to roll film back usage is going to be less expensive than purchasing a smaller dedicated roll film view camera, since those are a lot less common, and were often priced significantly higher even when new. Plus you still have a full image sized 4x5 camera when you need that primary option.

There are a few particularly small wooden roll film cameras out there, like the old Hansa model, or the non-folding Ebony and Shen-Hao ones with very limited bellows extension designed for wide-angle architectural photography applications. But you're only going to save a pound or half a pound versus lightweight wooden 4x5 folders. Super lightweight metal monorail cameras like the now rare Gowland and Toho are going to have compromised stability, especially in wind. Finding an old Galvin one still in decent condition would take a lot of luck.

The Fuji GX680 system is an outlier - needs its own lenses, is clumsy outside the studio, etc.

I've been eyeing an arca swiss A 6x9 on ebay for 450, you should buy it.
To prevent me from further hoarding

MTGseattle said:

Baby Graphic?

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The 2 by 3 Crown graphics with the Graflok back are great. Not too expensive, a fair amount of flexibility in lenses and movements, and not to heavy or bulky. I use mine a lot, with either a 6 by 9 or 6 by 6 roll-film back, a Grafmatic, or double-sided film holders. The one downside is finding viewfinders for the various focal lengths and formats, but that might go for a lot of the other cameras.

I 'need' is something with all front movements like the Fuji, but preferably less electric if that makes sense.

Horseman or Lindhoff MF would make sense. Roll back or film back, not sure if there is a 6X7 back, but you can shoot 6X9 and crop when printing.

The Horseman FA rear movements are just like the Technika - four extendable rods in the back, one at each corner. There is normal ground glass focussing,
plus a rangefinder on some models.

pkr1979 said:

Hi all,

Im curious about view camera options in medium format. I like the Arca-Swiss F 6x9 but it costs abit more than Im prepared to spend. The Fuji 680iii is also interesting, but bulky. Are anyone aware of any other options?

Cheers
Peter

Click to expand...

You can use a MF film back on a 4x5 view camera as an option.

The Hasselblad Flexbody, Arcbody and the Rolleiflex X-Act 2. Probably out of your budget range.

Flexbody, Arcbody, etc, are far less versatile than an actual view camera or technical camera, yet are ridiculously overpriced in terms of what they do, or even what they're made of.