Portrait and lens on 4x5 with imagon?

[Willie Jan]

Hi,
I am starting with shooting portraits on 4x5 on location from people in their environment. Probably waistlevel and head shots.

Did anyone use a imagon to get this?
I do not want to get the soft focus effect, but have the 250mm lens which i think is in the right length for it. So I want to use it open,no disks

 

[removed account4]

hi willie jan

from what i remember ( i might be wrong ) the imagon
is a single cell lens so you might have some softness
due to spherical aberration just the same ...

it sounds like a great project!

- john

 

[cowanw]

You could look at this
http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=64954&highlight=meniscus
If you stop down you can mitigate the effect of the soft focus, but your shutter probably does not have fstops marked ( assuming there is a shutter)
If no shutter then just use the discs with the peripheral holes closed.

 

[Willie Jan]

Bill,
it is inside a copal 3 shutter and I created my own f marks by measuring light with a special light meter. So that would not be a problem.

That is a very nice page you found for me. Thanks!

I am going to take portraits of windmill operators here in my province in there mill and eventually want to make a book out of it.
My wife is also a mill operator, so it's a little step towards thats....

 

[cowanw]

Bill,
it is inside a copal 3 shutter and I created my own f marks by measuring light with a special light meter. So that would not be a problem.

That is a very nice page you found for me. Thanks!

I am going to take portraits of windmill operators here in my province in there mill and eventually want to make a book out of it.
My wife is also a mill operator, so it's a little step towards thats....

Now there is an interesting post:
1. a wife, a mill and an Imagon. You are 1/2 way to making Art.
2. I am interested in your special meter; can you elaborate on that and the method to measure fstops.

 

[removed account4]

Now there is an interesting post:
1. a wife, a mill and an Imagon. You are 1/2 way to making Art.
2. I am interested in your special meter; can you elaborate on that and the method to measure fstops.

+!

 

[BrianShaw]

I've found it easier to use a Fujinon SF. It is marked in "regular" aperture markings. I generally use it with the diffusion disks, but sometimes without. I think it might be a "better" regular lens than the Imagon when used as a non-soft-focus lens due to its more sophisticated design.

 

[Jesper]

Just make sure that you have enough bellows extension. 12" is not enough for portraits with an imagon 250 (looked like a perfect combination to me for use on my Wista 45).
It is however a very nice lens for portraits on an 8x10.

 

[Willie Jan]

Now there is an interesting post:
1. a wife, a mill and an Imagon. You are 1/2 way to making Art.
2. I am interested in your special meter; can you elaborate on that and the method to measure fstops.

What I did was putting a 210 5.6 lens on a slideviewer with that white plastic where light comes through. Above it i made a holder from paper where i put my gossen f2 light meter in precisely above the center of the lens. With that i measured the light at 5.6 8 11 etc... The F2 goes until /10 of a stop.
Next i put the imagon, placed the paper holder above it and moved the diafragm until my meter gave the same value at 5.6 as the other lens. So that was 5.6 I marked it and worked the same at 8,11 etc...

For all lenses the diafragm has the same width at for example 5.6.

What I also did in the past was printing a paper with a black circle that has the width of the 5.6,8,11 etc.. opening. Next put it on the slideviewer, place the shutter without lens onto it and close the diafragm until it has the same opening as the black spot on the paper.

 

[cowanw]

What I did was putting a 210 5.6 lens on a slideviewer with that white plastic where light comes through. Above it i made a holder from paper where i put my gossen f2 light meter in precisely above the center of the lens. With that i measured the light at 5.6 8 11 etc... The F2 goes until /10 of a stop.
Next i put the imagon, placed the paper holder above it and moved the diafragm until my meter gave the same value at 5.6 as the other lens. So that was 5.6 I marked it and worked the same at 8,11 etc...

For all lenses the diafragm has the same width at for example 5.6.

What I also did in the past was printing a paper with a black circle that has the width of the 5.6,8,11 etc.. opening. Next put it on the slideviewer, place the shutter without lens onto it and close the diafragm until it has the same opening as the black spot on the paper.

very interesting and practical