I see nothing, HELP.

[darryl_roberts1]

There as close as they can be on the rail. I shined a flashlight through with no ground glass, bright on the wall. Then I placed the ground glass, faint on the wall.

[darryl_roberts1]

Frustrated, I'm going to watch "A Haunting" on Discovery. Any responses are greatly appreciated.

[ashton_lee3]

Try to focus on a light bulb (lit).

 

If you can't see that then the lens isn't open, or it's set to f64.

 

Try setting the shutter for one second and firing it while looking through the ground glass.

 

We are going to solve this.

[ashton_lee3]

It is possible that the lens is on backwards, or that the elements got screwed into the shutter backwards?

 

Are you using bag bellows? They can get in between a lens and the ground glass.

 

You don't have a ground glass protector or film holder in the camera do you?

 

Is the camera new? While it would be unlikely, perhaps a previous owner substituted some weird glass for the ground glass.

 

I think the key is to first focus on something very bright... learn how it works, then focus on normally lit surroundings.

[sattler123]

Can you post a picture of the camera from the side showing how close the two standards are? I am almost 100% positive that your camera cannot focus a 90mm lens at infinity. Try focusing on something close to the lens - I would bet that you will get a focused image on the groundglass. Unfortunately if that is the case, you will either have to get a bag bellows or find another camera for your lens, or you could also try a recessed lensboard.

[ashton_lee3]

Does your ground glass look like this?

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/4x5-Calumet-view-camera-no-lens-4-by-5-cambo-format_W0QQitemZ170218410870QQihZ007QQcategoryZ15247QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[ashton_lee3]

We can solve the problem of whether the camera will focus a 90mm at infinity later... there are a bunch of tricks to get there... the first challenge should be to get it to focus at a light bulb 2 feet away... I guarentee it will do that (the closer the target the longer the bellows draw needs to be)

[ronald_moravec1]

The glass sometimes collects fog in storage from outgassing of some bellows or camera cases. Take it out and clean it without scrubbing. Rinse with distilled water and drip or blow dry.

 

Careful as you can scratch it. micro fiber cloths. It is more fragile than a lens as far as scratches go.

 

I hope you are using a good dark cloth. The Image is not visable in sun light.

[darryl_roberts1]

Sort of, it says 4" x 5" Super Cambo 9 x 12

[ashton_lee3]

What happens when you try to focus on a nearby light bulb?

[darryl_roberts1]

The lens isn't on backwards, I just checked it.

 

The standards are as close as possible. I believe it came from a Linhof Technika since that's the little board I removed it from.

[darryl_roberts1]

Modicum of success! I took it outside and sunlit bricks on my house I decided to walk to them til I saw the bricks. At about 7 inches from the lens I saw some focused brick detail. Now I need to figure out how to increase the depth of field.

[michael_briggs2]

What is the closest distance that you can position the lensboard from the front of the ground glass?

[darryl_roberts1]

7.5 inches

[ashton_lee3]

We can't help you if youcan't try focusing on a bright light 2-3 feet away and tell us what happens

[ashton_lee3]

Forget the last comment... now you need to figure out if there is any way to get the two standards closer together (which moves the focus further out). Is it the design of the metal that stops you (in which case you need a recessed lens board) or is it the bellows (in which case you need a bag bellows)... or can you reverse one of the the standards which some times works? Perhaps it is that the tripod mount needs to be moved. I would be surprised that any modern 4x5 has a minimum draw of 7.5 inches.

[rick rosen]

A 90mm lens should be about four inches in front of the ground glass to be focused

at infinity. My guess is that you have the lens too far away from the ground glass

and the resulting image is so indistinct and dark that you don't see anything. If you

cannot move the lens 3-4 inches from the ground glass (lens board to ground glass)

then you will need a recessed board and most likely a bag bellows for that 90mm.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Rick

[michael_briggs2]

The equation for focusing a lens is given on the Lens Tutorial: http://www.photo.net/learn/optics/lensTutorial: 1/So + 1/Si = 1/f. Here f=90 mm and the smallest value possible for the image distance is Si = 190 mm (7.5 inches in mm). Solving for the object distance for this value of of image distance Si, one obtains So = 171 mm = 6.7 inches. (It is slightly more complicated then this because to get a answer that is actually accurate to a mm you have to know where to measure to, but this calculation is plenty close enough.) As you increase your bellows extension Si, you will decrease So and focus even closer. That you can't position the lensboard much closer than 7.5 inches to the ground glass is why you are having problems focusing. To focus on infinity, the lensboard needs to be about 90 mm from the ground glass.

 

You need to figure out how to move the standards closer together. Maybe the front standard needs to be removed and positioned behind the tripod block? Maybe you need a bag bellows? Perhaps if posted a side view of your camera, we could help more.

[darryl_roberts1]

Can I purchase a bellows for this camera (Cambo 4x5)?

 

Thank you. I don't have a way of posting a picture of the camera. It's closed as tight as possible. I'll try the move the tripod block.

[darryl_roberts1]

Would I be better off just buying a field camera, like Tachihara?

[leicaglow]

You should be able to. Many systems are interchangeable between models. I'd probably check with Calumet Photo if you don't have a pro store nearby that carries the brand: http://www.calumetphoto.com/ctl?ac.ui.pn=search.Search&query=cambo&x=0&y=0

[p.d._foote]

Hi Darryl, maybe you should seriously consider a high end digital camera if you have problems with mechanical applications because focusing is just the very beginning. Some people have great difficulty with the upside image, some are able to adjust to it & a rare few never notice it's upside down.

[darryl_roberts1]

P.D., I'm not into digital. I will develop and print my own pictures.

 

Michael, thank you for the link. Look <a href="http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/CB0209/">at this one</a>, I could buy the Tachihara for a little more.

[darryl_roberts1]

Furthermore P.D, the problem isn't focusing and I have no problems with mechanics. The problem is misinformation before this purchase. I was advised that this was a good combination by many "experienced" View Camera users.

[ashton_lee3]

A field camera is a lot more compact than a monorail, and essentially all of them will give you plenty of movements with a 90mm lens for landscapes... and a lot of movement for architecture. But most architectural specialists use bag bellows on a monorail of some sort, since they are capable of the most extreme movement. All three of my field cameras and both of my monorails will handle down to at least 75mm lenses. For the two monorails I do have bag bellows... which often come with the kit when sold used. The standard inexpensive monorail in my eyes would be a Sinar F1. It will do just about anything any fancier camera will do.

 

I still suspect you can get your Cambo standards closer... probably by moving the tripod block out from between them. But your bellows may then be so tight as to restrict movement. I wouldn't even think to buy new bag bellows... they are all over on E-Bay at a fraction of the cost you posted. Heck, you can get a monorail camera AND bag bellows for under $400.

 

That said, I'd bet you would find it easier to start with a field camera... a Tachihara, a Shen Hao, or a Horseman Woodman. They can be a lot easier to schlep around. And you may find you never need more movements than they allow... I've never needed more movements than a field camera gives me.