TLR Lenses, Do They Deliver?

I currently own a C-220 w/55mm,80mm, and Super 180 lenses,

all black versions. I was having a hard time getting sharp

pictures over 11x11 in size, even when using a tripod. I

sent the camera back to Mamiya to have them work on it and

got back an estimate for $911. OUCH! My question is, with

the possibility of having to pay $911 for sharper pictures,

just how sharp are these lenses in the first place? Ive

heard that some have no coatings thus introducing possible

flair problems, but this aside, at 16x16 or 20x20, do these

lenses deliver? Thank-you

I have used a C330S & 55, 80, 105, 180, &250 lense for many years. The 80 & 105 are the best of the lot. There is some flair, tobe sure , but sharp 20 by 30 enlargements are easy at f5.6-f16.Take careful note of the shop that quoted the $911 figure, as well as the rational, & HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM! These lense shutters are repairable forever! The focus problem is likely the alignment between the taking & viewing lens,(a common problem, but possibly better fixed by Mamiya?) Better still ,obtain a C330S & get a life! Also, did you know that Leica`s new polarizer works perfectly with ALL C330 lenses except the 65? Good luck!!!

Richard:

 

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Mamiya wants $911 to fix the body??? What did they say needed to be

done? You can buy three used c330f bodies for that!

 

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My experience with a chrome 105 and a black 80mm is that you should

get prints up to 16x20 that are sharp, if you use the optimum

apertures. Both of mine were optimum at F-11. Below f-5.6 and beyond

f-16, the sharpness drops off significantly.

 

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Get the old C-220 body back first and run some comparisons. I have

found with a couple of 80mm lenses, that I had to shim the top lens

out by the thickness of a 4 ply mat board, to get identical focus on

the film and the ground glass. Crude, but effective! Some others here

on this forum have experienced this mis-alignment problem.

 

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The quickest way to determine if you would be happy with the lenses,

providing you got a good body, is to mount the 80mm on your exisiting

c220 and set it at F-11. Then focus on a target, such as a page of

want ads or other small type that is about 10 feet from the camera.

Make an exposure with electronic flash at 1/500 on a tripod. Then move

the lens forward slightly and make another expsoure. Repeat going

further forward for 6 exposures. Them repeat the second six exposures

by moving the lens back from your ground glass focus point in a

similar manner as above. Develop the roll and look at each negative to

determine which is the sharpest. Make a 20x20 size print of the

sharpest and see if you are happy with the result. You should find one

negative to your liking and it will also tell you which way the camera

focus is off.

AFAIK all the black lenses are coated, some are multicoated.

Go to http://db.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=0005l3

to see the tests I did with my lenses. From my tests the 105 and 180

lenses are the sharpest, the 80, 250 and 55 are pretty sharp and the

135 is so-so (didn't test the 65). That said, I've made some very nice

prints up to 16x20 with the 135.

Richard, Spending $911 for repairs on a Mamiya C220 would be like

spending $9,000 for repairs on a car that in top shape is worth

$3,000. In short, you'd be crazy to do it. The whole point of using

this type of camera is that it's supposed to be highly cost-effective.

Obviously in this case it isn't. Mamiya's estimate sounds

ridiculous, as if what they're really telling you is that they don't

want to work on your camera.

As above, it seems crazy to me so spend that kind of money on the repair when you can buy a C330 with 2 lenses for that same price. The results are worth it! I have made 16x20's from my handheld negs that are much nicer than any prints from 35mm that I have made. Not quite 4x5 quality, but alot lighter to carry on a 10 mile hike.

Sounds like you have a focusing/lens misalignment problem. Take a photo of some classified ads spread out on a table such that the paper is diagonal to you and focus on a particular word. When you check the negatives, you can find out if there's a difference between the taking lens and viewing lens.

I have aligned the focus on another TLR by taping a piece of ground

glass on the film plane with the ground part facing towards the lens.

I then taped a loupe on top of the ground glass. I focused using the

loupe and ground glass, then checked the focus with the viewing lens.

I then shimmed or screwed out the viewing lens until it was also in

focus. Good luck, John. Oh,you can get a piece of ground glass cut to

fit at a glass store.

Although I have a Pentax 67 with various lenses, as well as a 5x4 camera with rollfilm backs, I usually use my trusty Mamiya C330f complete with 65mm + 135mm lenses for preference (especially if I'm doing mountain landscapes in black and white and need a camera which I can throw in my backpack and not worry about). Although the lenses are prone to flare if used without lens hoods (or too much against the light), they deliver very high quality results - with excellent definition and contrast.

 

The Mamiya TLRs are real workhorses. They may not have the features (or status) of modern cameras but they produce excellent results and go on and on and on....... If you want medium format results at an affordable price, you really can't go wrong, especially if you get a C330, C330f or C330s

 

Bill Davis/London UK