New Shen-Hao Users Group Forum

dtomasula · Jan 18, 2005

Hopefully I'm not breaking any rules by posting this. If I am please delete.

I just started a new user group form for anyone interested in large format photography with Shen-Hao cameras.

Please take a look at:
http://www.phpbbforfree.com/forums/index.php?mforum=shug

Thanks
Dean Tomasula

George · Jan 20, 2005

What the heck is so strange about the Shen Hao cameras that you cannot discuss it on all the existing LF forums?? Are the lenses different? Is the 4x5 film format different? Are the movements different? Sorry, I think the whole thing smells of naivité...

Nick Zentena · Jan 20, 2005

Mine smells different. It's airing out right now.

You've got a line of cameras that only one model is imported into North America. Worse the factory website is at times not that informative. Emailing the factory takes awhile with the time zone differences. Add in the language differences.

roteague · Jan 20, 2005

George said:
What the heck is so strange about the Shen Hao cameras that you cannot discuss it on all the existing LF forums?? Are the lenses different? Is the 4x5 film format different? Are the movements different? Sorry, I think the whole thing smells of naivité...

Yeah. I'll stick with my Toyo 45AII. In fact, I'm going to replace it this year, with another Toyo 45AII.

doughowk · Jan 20, 2005

Dean, thanks for creating the forum. When a camera lacks a user manual & its company lacks web-site support, its nice that their users join for mutual support. I've only had my Shen-Hao for about a month. As suggested on the forum, I'll use the Ebony manual till a real one comes out.

Mongo · Jan 20, 2005

Regarding contacting the factory: I emailed the factory when I had problems with one of the metal springs on the back of my camera. (I suspect that there was a problem with the metal out of which the spring was made, because after about a year of use a small crack started to appear in the middle of the spring.)

I asked for price and availability of replacement parts. I got back an email in about a day telling me that they'd shipped out replacement springs free of charge. Although the language may not have been perfect, the customer service sure was. About a week later I got a package from China with a new set of springs and screws.

Nobody ever asked me where I bought the camera, how long I'd owned it, whether I'd bought it new...none of the warranty questions that you'd expect. Just, "Let us fix the problem for you."

Nick Zentena · Jan 20, 2005

My ordering of a 5x7 was painless and fairly quick. But you need a little stick to itness. Some times you need to ask a question a few times. It's best to not ask too many questions in one email.

noseoil · Jan 20, 2005

I'm happy with my Shen Hao. I'm happy with the LF forum on APUG. tim

George · Jan 20, 2005

doughowk said:
Dean, thanks for creating the forum. When a camera lacks a user manual & its company lacks web-site support, its nice that their users join for mutual support..

...
Now I see... the new forum is there so that those without a manual (!) could share their thoughts about how to use the camera! I've got a Wista, I've got an Arca-Swiss and wonder what - they both lack a manual! Well, well, at least now the unhappy owners of the Shen-Hao can have a forum where they can discuss how to operate their camera... Of course, that could never be discussed on the other LF forums. I wondered why there were no discussions about manuals for other LF cameras... Happy discussions!

mark · Jan 20, 2005

Hey george, take a breather.

Does this new forum threaten you in some way? I assume, of course, that since you took such offense at Dean's post you reported his awful crime to Sean.

No I don't own a Shen Hao

Good luck Dean. And have fun.

George · Jan 20, 2005

mark said:
Hey george, take a breather.

Does this new forum threaten you in some way? I assume, of course, that since you took such offense at Dean's post you reported his awful crime to Sean.

Hi Mark, you assume wrongly. There was no offense. I'm just curious why the heck the Shen-Hao camera cannot be discussed on the other LF forums. No answer to it, yet. Do you know it? Who's Sean by the way?

mark · Jan 20, 2005

Sean runs this place and is the heart and soul behind APUG's existence.

As for it's own place on the net I perfectly understand the reason. I do not discuss my FSU hasselbladski here, I do it on the forum dedicated to it. It has nuances not understood by the general MF community. I tried discussing FSU cameras on a mainstream forum and got a lot of "ditch the piece of junk and buy a real camera" BS comments, as well as "My (insert camera name here) works better" stuff. It is a more focused forum on what is of particular interest to my specific camera. Kind of like the Leica Forum.

SOrry I misunderstood you comments

Nick Zentena · Jan 20, 2005

You ever notice if somebody askes a question about say a crown graphic on the LF forum people point them to the Graflex website? Did you ever wonder why? People that actually use the cameras will often be better at answering question then those that have never seen them.

Not to mention Shen Hao makes some cameras that are relatively rare to the best of my knowledge. They still make large studio cameras. I don't mean mono-rails but things like this:

http://www.shen-hao.com/8and12.html

Or the new 7x17 camera they're working on.

dtomasula · Jan 20, 2005

George said:
I'm just curious why the heck the Shen-Hao camera cannot be discussed on the other LF forums?

George -

The Shen-Hao can be (and is) discussed on other large format forums. There's no reason why it shouldn't be.

I started the Shen-Hao Users Group as a place where Shen-Hao users can go and get some answers and have a sense of community. I'm sure all our members read APUG, Large Format and Photo.Net as well.

The reason there is a forum dedicated to Shen-Hao is the same reason there's one dedicated to Hasselblad and to Nikon. These cameras also are discussed on medium format and 35mm forums.

I invite you to visit the Shen-Hao Users Group anytime. It's not meant to replace any large format forum, just to supplement them.

Dean Tomasula

Eric Rose · Jan 20, 2005

The more happy places for LF people to hang out the better. this will insure a continued existance of LF products.

Now maybe I should start a forum just for Toko LF users. All two of us could join LOL.

George · Jan 20, 2005

Dean, I visited the SH forum when you announced it on the other forums. Not so much to read yet... I perfectly understand the need for a Hasseblad forum - there are hundred thousands of Hassy users with a lot of models and accessories. Something to discuss, even with manuals for the cameras. Have you ever wondered why there are no Wista, Arca-Swiss, Canham, Cambo etc. forums? I still think that the whole idea is over the top.

Eric Rose · Jan 20, 2005

George said:
Have you ever wondered why there are no Wista, Arca-Swiss, Canham, Cambo etc. forums? I still think that the whole idea is over the top.

George, there are forums for these cameras, we just didn't want to invite you LOL.

George · Jan 20, 2005

Eric Rose said:
George, there are forums for these cameras, we just didn't want to invite you LOL.

Never mind, I know how to operate my Arca-Swiss without a manual!

dtomasula · Jan 20, 2005

George said:
Dean, I visited the SH forum when you announced it on the other forums. Not so much to read yet.

The Shen-Hao Users Group is only 3 days old. So I wouldn't expect much discussion right from the beginning. Not to mention the fact that there probably aren't thousands of Shen-Hao users out there.

Hasselblads have been around a bit longer than Shen-Hao, and as you said, there are many models to discuss, so those forums get lots more traffic.

Many SH users are new to large format photography. Heck, the reason they got a SH to begin with is because they can't afford to buy a Wista, Ebony, Canham, Layton, etc. The SH is a cheap entry into large format. Naturally these newbies will have a lot of questions about the camera and LF in general. That's what the SHUG is all about. Helping them learn their camera and LF photography.

Dean Tomasula

BradS · Jan 20, 2005

George said:
...
Now I see... the new forum is there so that those without a manual (!) could share their thoughts about how to use the camera! I've got a Wista, I've got an Arca-Swiss and wonder what - they both lack a manual! Well, well, at least now the unhappy owners of the Shen-Hao can have a forum where they can discuss how to operate their camera... Of course, that could never be discussed on the other LF forums. I wondered why there were no discussions about manuals for other LF cameras... Happy discussions!

Dude,
Have another dektol cocktail and mellow out in a corner or something...sheesh.

George · Jan 20, 2005

dtomasula said:
....
The SH is a cheap entry into large format. Naturally these newbies will have a lot of questions about the camera and LF in general. That's what the SHUG is all about. Helping them learn their camera and LF photography.

Dean Tomasula

Well, I thought that exactly for these reasons there are already LF forums "about LF in general" - and that exactly for this reason it's just over the top to open a new one. Anyway, the missing manual is probably a reason good enough.

Tom Stanworth · Jan 20, 2005

George,

It is simple. He has started this site becasue he wants to. Shen Hao owners will be able to chat in broken chinese and discuss deviations from the Ebony blueprints....or how to fix certain things.....or constraints....specific accessories....anything they like, which would probably be too irrelevant for a general forum and get lost amongst the 'noise'. I wish the forum the best of luck and as I have consided Shen Haos on a number of occassions (I would rather not have known a 7x17 is in the pipeline) and would be grateful for a focal point if ever I consider it more seriously. Your comments could equally be applied to APUG, "why bother with an analogue site when there are plently of general photography sites, especially when you consider that X% of the members still use film.....". Feel free to set up a site on your collection of empty film cassettes if you want to! There's no such thing as overkill on the internet!

Tom

dtomasula · Jan 20, 2005

Tom Stanworth said:
Shen Hao owners will be able to chat in broken chinese and discuss deviations from the Ebony blueprints....or how to fix certain things.....or constraints....specific accessories....anything they like, which would probably be too irrelevant for a general forum and get lost amongst the 'noise'.

For the record, the main language of the Shen-Hao Users Group is English. But all broken-Chinese speakers are welcome to join in the discussion.

Dean Tomasula

Nick Zentena · Jan 20, 2005

dtomasula said:
Hasselblads have been around a bit longer than Shen-Hao, and as you said, there are many models to discuss, so those forums get lots more traffic.

Heck, the reason they got a SH to begin with is because they can't afford to buy a Wista, Ebony, Canham, Layton, etc. The SH is a cheap entry into large format.

The serial number on my camera is something like 40,000+. I know serial numbers don't mean much but with the size of China it wouldn't suprise me if the total of all the various cameras is pretty high. It also wouldn't suprise me if Shen Hao has more models then Hassleblad.

I've no idea what the 7x17 is going to sell for but I doubt it'll be real cheap. The 8x10 with shipping from the factory is only about 20% less then a Canham. Maybe a bit more then a triple extension Tachiara. About the same price that a Wista 8x10 seems to sell for.

The 5x7 and 4x5 are more reasonable but in both cases cheaper choices exist. People are choosing these cameras because of the value. Not a low purchase price.

The one thing that's low priced with the Shen Hao's is all the add on. Bag bellows,reducing backs or whatever.

roteague · Jan 20, 2005

Tom Stanworth said:
Shen Hao owners will be able to chat in broken chinese...

I have a Toyo and the owner's manual is absolutely laughable. Perhaps us Toyo owners can chat in broken Japanese (of course, I can't speak a word).

New Shen-Hao Users Group Forum

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