Tele lenses on a Toyo CF

[Craig]

I have a 4x5 Toyo CF and I'm looking for a tele lens for it. I'm specifically considering the Fujinon 400T, does anyone have any experience using that lens on a Toyo?

I currently have a Fujinon 450 C that I use with a tophat style lens board, and I can infinity focus at maximum extension, but it turns the camera into a sail and it can be difficult to get sharp shots when it's windy. I'd really like the 600mm focal length, but I think I'd run into the same problems using the extension lens board to be able to infinity focus. The Fuji 600 T is a heavy lens too, I'm not sure my front standard can support that without drooping.

 

[abruzzi]

I can't speak to the Fuji telephoto lenses, but also consider the Nikkor telephoto. I picked up the smaller set with both the 360 and 500 rear element (no 720). I don't know if your Toyo can focus the 500, but it works great for me.

 

[Craig]

I did consider the Nikon, but the 500 will require the extension lensboard, while I can get away with normal bellows draw with the Fuji. As a bonus the Fuji 400 is almost half the price of the Nikon.

 

[Huub]

I used a 360mm tele-Xenar on a Toyo 45a for years. Not the 400mm the Fuji is, but with the big advantage that the FFD is only around 21 cm.

 

[Steve Goldstein]

The Fujinon-T has a flange focal distance of 259.2mm (old version, lettering inside) or 252mm (new version, EBC, lettering on the barrel) so you'll have no trouble focusing either one. Since the 45CF has 356mm maximum extension it won't be overly extended so things should be fairly stable.

Another lens you might consider is the 400mm f/8 Tele-Congo. Mine is branded Osaka, which I think was a house brand for Bromwell Cameras. It's about the same length as the Fujinons and, like them, takes 67mm filters, but has an even shorter flange focal length of 236mm. It's also lighter - with caps and retaining ring my Osaka weighs 482 grams, my EBC Fujinon weighs 632 grams, and my old-style Fujinon comes in at 804 grams (yes, I have a 400mm lens problem). The Osaka's image circle is smaller, 200mm versus 220mm for the Fujinons, but it's plenty for 4x5 use. The Osaka is the one I carry when I'm going any distance.

The 360mm Nikkor-T weighs 835 grams (Nikon's literature says 800 grams for the 360 but I weighed one and it was 835), a little less in the 500mm configuration. It would work fine as a 360 but you'd need a top-hat lens board to use it as a 500 - otherwise it will just barely make infinity focus on a 45CF. Stability could be an issue because of the weight and extension.

There's also a 500mm f/9.5 Tele-Congo. 67mm filters, 515 grams, FFL 287mm (well within your 45CF's capabilities), but not very commonly seen.

 

[Craig]

Thanks for the info on the Tele-Congo's, I hadn't heard of them before. Based on the information from the manufacturer though it seems like it doesn't really cover 4x5 - lots of falloff at the edges. A discussion about the 500 over on LFF: https://www.largeformatphotography....500-9-5-feedback&p=19559&viewfull=1#post19559

Another candidate I saw was the Komaru 500/7, but that's a big heavy lens in a copal 3.

 

[Steve Goldstein]

Yes, the 500 is marginal at infinity. The 400 is fine, 200mm is plenty of coverage for a long 4x5 lens.

 

[Craig]

I'm going to be using this for landscape work, so infinity is where I'll be using it. In the past I've had problems with wind and the camera near maximum bellows extension, so there have been times where I'm shooting wide open or only a stop down to get a fast enough shutter speed. Often I don't want to be using F22 as it restricts the shutter speed, so the coverage at wider apertures is important to me.