Buying a 5" x 4" camera

[michael_pye]

Hi,

I really want to buy a 54 camera.But I'm abit in the dark what to get

and on my budget as well.My budget is about ?400 or say about $800

give or take so I must be able to get something decent for that?

Within that price I would like the lens as well.

 

I've been looking at a MPP on ebay.What do you think of those.At the

end of the day though,if I knew I could alot better quality for a

little more money I could save up it,would be worth it?

 

The only feature I want though is it has to be a field camera.

 

Any ideas?

 

Cheers.

[affen_kot]

www.largeformatphotography.info is a great resource for finding out what equipment will fit your needs/desires. possibly the first thing to do is to find out what kind of photography you want to do, and then factor the equipment which this requires into your budget. are you into portraits or architecture? color of B/W? landscapes or street shots? good luck in your search. cheers...affen.

[brian_ellis3]

I'd suggest that you go to the archives here and at the www.largeformatphotography.info site Affen mentioned, do several searches in the camera section using terms like "beginner," "newbie," etc. You should find hundreds of repsonses to the same question you've asked (it pops up here and there several times a week). You'll learn much more from the hundreds of responses you can read that way than you will from the relative handful of responses you'll get here, especially since you don't say why you want a 5x4 camera (i.e. what it is about smaller formats that makes them unsatisfactory to you) and what you want to do with the camera.

[kipling]

Well, I can only say that I have a Sinar p2 and I love it. The older Sinar p isn't much

different but costs a lot less. A Sinar f will even run you less than a p but doesn't have the

comfort of the p. They are all well made and have a superb system of accessories that can

be used on all the different models. And there is a lot of used Sinar equipment out there.

[dave_s]

Mick, I've never used the MPP-- most of them never left the U.K. However, MPPs are said to be a very good camera, somewhere between a Graphic and a Linhof in terms of movements and overall quality.

 

A press/technical camera like the MPP (or Graphic or Linhof) is a good choice if you don't need a lot of movements-- they're light, compact, and versatile. With the exception of Linhofs, press cameras are seriously undervalued, because they're unfashionable and look like antiques. Little demand = buyer's market = good prices.

 

A good source of information would be the graflex.org site. The regulars there are evangelists for Graflex Graphic cameras (like the Speed and Crown Graphics), but they have a forum that's dedicated to discussing non-Graflex cameras like MPP or Busch.

 

 

Incidentally, U.K. prices (at least from dealers) tend to be a little silly, but you probably know this. You might think about ordering from the U.S., even if it will cost you a bit in shipping and customs.

[jbq]

I have a Sinar F, which is a "field monorail". It folds pretty small and I don't hesitate to carry it in a backpack wrapped in the darkcloth. That won't fit in your budget, though.

[edward_kimball]

If I had $800 to spend I would get a second hand Tachihara. I would prefer a Shen Hao but they are hard to find on the used market. Both are about $600 new but the more you spend on the camera the less you have for the lens. I prefer a normal lens so there are lots of good deals on the used market including Sironar N, G Claron, and Fujinon W S.

 

At KEH you can get a Calumet Wood Field (Tachihara) for $484 and a 150mm f/5.6 Sironar N for $379. Add a couple pair of film holders for ~$50 and you are in business. For a hundred dollars more than you were planning (plus taxes and shipping) it is much better than an MPP

[scott_davis5]

Personal recommendation if you are thinking of the Tachihara is to save your money a little longer and get the Shen Hao. The Shen Hao has a LOT more movement than the Tachihara (front rise, fall, tilt, swing;rear rise,tilt,swing and shift!), including longer bellows extension and smoother controls. You can slide the rear standard forward for use with extreme wide-angle lenses, to keep the focusing rails out of the image. Also, if you get in to wide-angle, the (real leather) bag bellows are only $99 new. It uses the very common Wista/Linhof lens boards, so they are quite easy to find and inexpensive. If you scout around you can sometimes find NEW Shen Haos on ebay for under $600 USD - I picked mine up for about $550 I think.

[bob.]

Once you have decided of what type of 4x5 camera you want (monorail/field/technical etc) your best bets for used equipment in the UK (always useful on these sites to say where you are situated, otherwise people assume you are in the U.S. ;-)) are MrCad (www.mrcad.co.uk), MXV (www.mxv.co.uk) but unfortunately, neither web site is very well designed. However they are staffed by knowledgeable people so give them a call. I would steer clear of the likes of the MPP as a 1st LF camera, mainly on age grounds: they stopped making them many years ago - check out the MPP User's Club at: http://www.mppusers.freeuk.com.

 

Tachiharas and Shen Haos will need to be imported from the US - actually a good idea given the current exchange rates. I bought a Shen Hao from Badger Graphics a couple of months ago: it was delivered to me just outside London in under 48 hours from placing the order. Cost inc. duty and VAT was just over 500GBP).

 

For new in the UK, see www.robertwhite.co.uk and http://www.teamworkphoto.co.uk but be prepared to spend well in excess of 1,000 GBP...

 

Monorails are both cheaper and more widely available and decent ones can be had within your budget without too much difficulty. If you have set your heart on a foldable camera then check out the MPP site so you know what's what with the different models before buying - if you find you want a different camera, you can always sell it for little or no loss in a few months.

 

Cheers,

[h_macdonald]

Hi Michael

 

I have used an MPP V and enjoyed using it for some time as it was my first 5x4, they are built like tanks and very robust,portable being folders unlike monorails and are resonably modest in weight .I paid around ?180 with an old xenar 150 lens, they have good bellows draw that could accept upto 300mm but like somebody has mentioned here they hardly leave the shores of uk.. they do turn up on Ebay UK from time but keep your eye out for the MK VI as thats the nicest or the MKV 2nd choice

 

Hugh

[russell_binns]

The MPP was my first LF here in England. As has been said, excellent, strong, but a bit

heavy. Lots of good ones selling here...but why not consider a Shen-Hao Teak field

camera? Excellent value for money. If you're in the US - don't Badger Graphic sell them?

You could also access Shen-Hao's web-site direct...Good Luck, and try a really slow, old-

fashioned black and white film like Efke PL25 and surprise yourself at just how much

quality detail LF can achieve!

[andy_shand1]

sinar f2 does it all.

[michael_pye]

Many thanks for all your replies.I should of said I'm in the UK.I'll see what the score is with importing from the US.

 

Though for a first Large Fromat Camera the MPP does sound OK.

 

Thanks.

[bob.]

If importing, check that it is a reputable company (ask here). Deal with someone like Badger who export to the UK regularly and you should have no problems - the shipper handles all the customs paperwork for a small fee (FedEx charged me 4.50 GBP recently). Allow 20% or so extra for duty and VAT.

 

Cheers,