lenses for 6x9 medium format camera

Hi ! I have a question for those hwo ownes 6x9 /6x7 camera . Camera with large format lenses!! I plan to have one but have no idea how to choose lenses... i have hasselblad 500 cm with normal 80 mm planar lens... what is the best normal lens for 6x7 6x9 format ? (Lens that used in large format).. I hope that my question is clear..sorry for non professional language, guys )

Best? Best for what? There are many good modern 100 - 105 mm lenses. You can't go wrong with one from, in alphabetical order, Fuji, Nikon, Rodenstock and Schneider. If, that is, the lens is in good order.

Thank you .. it was hard to understand what lenses is "normal" for medium format.. for environmenal portaits ,some objects ,etc...??? Edited October 5, 2017 by maximkharitonov

A lens that is normal for a format has a focal length that is approximately the format's diagonal. 2.25 inches x 3.25 inches' (6x9 is a poor metric approximation) diagonal is 100 mm. 6x6's (a poor metric approximation to 2.25 inches by 2.25 inches) diagonal is 80 mm.

 

I understand that you're not a native speaker of English, but you should be a native speaker of photography.

Maxim, I have several folding cameras from the 1950's that are 6x9 formats. All have 105mm lenses. The "normal" lens for my 6x7 RB-67 cameras are 90mm. I had a 6x7 roll film adapter on my 4x5 viewcamera & the 210mm "normal" lens of that camera provides excellent coverage for the 6x7 film holder. If you intend to use a 4x5 camera, you should consider the 6x7 or 6x9 roll film holders as an option. Bill

A lens that is normal for a format has a focal length that is approximately the format's diagonal. 2.25 inches x 3.25 inches' (6x9 is a poor metric approximation) diagonal is 100 mm. 6x6's (a poor metric approximation to 2.25 inches by 2.25 inches) diagonal is 80 mm.

 

I understand that you're not a native speaker of English, but you should be a native speaker of photography.

Thanks ! Now its clear for me !!

A lens that is normal for a format has a focal length that is approximately the format's diagonal. 2.25 inches x 3.25 inches' (6x9 is a poor metric approximation) diagonal is 100 mm. 6x6's (a poor metric approximation to 2.25 inches by 2.25 inches) diagonal is 80 mm.

 

I understand that you're not a native speaker of English, but you should be a native speaker of photography.

 

6x6 or 6x9 is not a poor metric approximation, it is exactly the film format. Simple as that. The imperial measurement covers only approximately the net area of the image. However, it is not a standard, because i.e. a Plaubel 69W does have a slightly smaller film gate than a Horseman 6x9 back or a Fuji GSW 690 III Professional.

 

Did you ever think about the fact why NASA, the army, etc. use the metric system? It is a lot more precise!

for environmenal portaits ,some objects ,etc...???

I'd pick something slightly longer than "normal" for product shots. 120 or 135mm?

FTR: if you are familiar with handling crop factors and using them due to digital & 35mm experience: 6x9: 0.5, 4x5: 0.33

what is the best normal lens for 6x7 6x9 format ? (Lens that used in large format)

I'd think twice before I buy a LF wide as the normal lens for 6x9. I own 90 & 120 mm f8 Super Angulons. They eat a lot of light, that you'll miss on your ground glass. Focusing and composing would be easier with something faster that was calculated as a standard lens for 6x9.

6x6 or 6x9 is not a poor metric approximation, it is exactly the film format. Simple as that. The imperial measurement covers only approximately the net area of the image. However, it is not a standard, because i.e. a Plaubel 69W does have a slightly smaller film gate than a Horseman 6x9 back or a Fuji GSW 690 III Professional.

 

Did you ever think about the fact why NASA, the army, etc. use the metric system? It is a lot more precise!

I think of 6x9 as a convenient, conventional, description, for the reasons that you give i.e. film gate sizes can vary by a few mm.

 

Granted that the metric system can be more convenient for scientific and engineering use, but the "Imperial" system, with variants actually in widespread use in many countries before the French Revolution, can be used to be just as 'accurate'. And it evolved for ease of human perception - think ...

 

Inch -Thumb -Daumen - Pouce ... ;)

Edited October 6, 2017 by johnny_hfour

Jens. . go figure this out: Boeing & Airbus make airplanes using inch measurements ! Boeing tried going metric but it never took hold...Bill Edited October 6, 2017 by Bill Bowes

Freaky Friday with V2.2. . "File too large" for an edit??? Thankfully the "Options" works.

6x6 or 6x9 is not a poor metric approximation, it is exactly the film format. Simple as that. The imperial measurement covers only approximately the net area of the image. However, it is not a standard, because i.e. a Plaubel 69W does have a slightly smaller film gate than a Horseman 6x9 back or a Fuji GSW 690 III Professional.

 

Did you ever think about the fact why NASA, the army, etc. use the metric system? It is a lot more precise!

Jens, thank you (NOT!) for the incorrection. You should check the facts you assert before you post them.

 

If you check nominal 6x9 roll holders' gates (look at specifications, get some and measure) you'll find that their sizes are 56 or 57 mm high and 78 to 84 mm long. 57 isn't 60, 84 isn't 90.

 

Measurement systems have nothing to do with precision. Calculations are easier with the metric system than with the Imperial, that's all.

Airbus is using the metric as well as the imperial system, depending on the task. My neighbor is an engineer at Airbus, wings section. Everything is metric there.

 

120 film is 60 mm wide. I am not talking about the gate or net frame size which is close to a credit card size (54x85mm, same size as German standard business cards).

There are many excellent large format lenses. Perhaps you might find resolution tests useful:

 

Photographic Madness, and others

what I didnt get, you know that LF lenses need a shutter and a bellow to focus?

When using a 6x9 back on a 4X5 large format camera you should consider the image circle; the zone of in focus coverage by the lens, available to you from the large format lens. Most LF lenses give you a image circle greater than an 8X10 format so that you can utilize the movements of the LF camera. My 150mm F/5.5 Fujinon W when used with the 6x9 back allows for extreme movements which lets me get a whole bunch of stuff in focus that I wouldn't get with a medium format camera. (In movements I mean tilt, shit and rise of the lens board and lens.) A good reference is a brochure of the Nikkor large format lenses. "http://homepages.tig.com.au/~cbird/nikkor/LF_lenses_141A.pdf" And you may also want to look at the large format photography.info page "A large format photography home page' there is more than enough info to confuse you and provide lots of knowledge about large format lenses.

Most LF lenses give you a image circle greater than an 8X10 format so that you can utilize the movements of the LF camera..

 

Image circle > 300 mm! Are you sure? That's not what my catalogs say or what my lenses for 4x5 do.