Toyo View 45AX with 6x7 backs, shooting wide-angle & movements

[PatrickMP]

<p>Hi there.<br>

I've been looking into a large format or "baby large format" camera so that I can shoot wide angle landscapes with movements. Currently I shoot with a Mamiya RB or Bronica SQ depending on the situation, but both leave me with "falling buildings" when shooting.<br>

That said, I've been looking at a Toyo View 45AX field camera. My questions are:</p>

<ul>

<li>How short of a lens can I use with this camera, while retaining full movements? Can I mount a 50mm lens (24mm equivalent in 35mm format?)</li>

<li>What adaptor would I require to mount my Mamiya RB 6x7 backs?</li>

</ul>

<p>Thanks for any input!<br>

Cheers,<br>

-Patrick</p>

 

[leicaglow]

<p>The ToyoView.com website says you can use lenses as short as 45mm with a recessed lensboard. Full movements is more often limited by the lens than the camera. A 47mm lens has very small image circle, so movement is just about a mute point. For an adapter, look for a "QS" adapter. They make them for a lot of backs.</p>

[m_dawg]

This is a tough question.<br><br>

 

 

In terms of coverage, the 47mm xl (which is expensive) should give you tons and the 47mm super angulon (which isn't as

expensive) should be more than sufficient for 6x7, too.<br><br>

 

 

However...<br><br>

 

 

The bellows on the 45a compress to just under 70mm. So you need a 25mm recessed lensboard (now apparently

discontinued and scarce) to use a 47mm lens. Toyo's website now lists a 58mm lens as the widest you can use,

presumably with the normal 12mm recessed board. But with the 25mm recessed lensboard...theoretically you could use

47mm lens and be okay.<br><br>

 

 

Normally (in 4x5), when using a lens that wide, you need to drop the camera bed so the rails don't show up in frame. This

prohibits the use of front rise as the lens needs to rise completely to compensate for the downward-sloping bed. Maybe you

won't need to drop the bed in 6x7--but my guess is that movements will still be scrunched a bit and movement restricted by

the compressed bellows either way.<br><br>

 

 

So it might work, but getting the movements you want probably won't be much fun at that focal length and the bellows will be very compressed at infinity. If you're buying the camera primarily to shoot ultra-wide 6x7 architecture my guess is it won't be the wonderful

experience you're hoping for, but in theory this should work if you can find a 25mm recessed lensboard. I don't know, as I

haven't tried it. Also be aware that view camera lenses are softer than medium format lenses. The center is the

sharpest part so it might not be a big difference.

[PatrickMP]

<p>Hi folks.<br>

Thanks for the responses thus far. I happened upon the Toyo website earlier today and saw the minimum focal length that the camera would mount, along with the disclaimer that movements depended on the lenses. From what I've read in this thread so far it looks like what I want to do is <em>technically</em> possible, but might not be realistic.<br>

That said, I am not against looking at other options. I'd primarily like a folding camera, and I would only ever shoot up to 6x7 (maybe 6x9? I'm not sure if my MF enlarger will take a negative that big; my scanner can do 6x9 however). Are there any other recommendations that are attainable on a limited budget? I've seen "Horseman" and "Linhof" thrown around, but the prices that I've seen thus far are more than my budget (I'm budgeting for $1200 including a lens and whatever adapters I need to mount my RB backs).<br>

Thanks again for any input.<br>

-Patrick<br /></p>

[m_dawg]

I'm not sure a Horseman or Linhof would be that much better. Apparently the older Linhof field cameras are bad with ultra-

wide lenses and the new ones are thousands used and require expensive helical mounts. There are lots of 120 roll film

cameras with built in ultra-wides (Horseman, Linhof, Cambo, Veriwide, etc.); some have movements and some don't. Never

used any of them, but that's another option I've seen pop up on eBay pretty constantly. I have to assume they're rangefinder-based so I have no idea how that would work with movements, though apparently it does.<br><br>

 

If you ask your question here: http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/ you will probably find out way more than you

ever wanted to know about the subject. Worth a try.<br><br>

 

I think Fuji makes a medium format (6x8?) camera with movements that's highly regarded and within your budget. The Toyo

is pretty nice (my only complaints are that the front rise is a little limited and you can't fold the lens into the body), I just

wouldn't choose it if my only lens were 47mm. Others may disagree, though.

[allen_whittier]

<p>The Mamiya 23/Press/Universal has some movement, but the shortest lens that works with the rear movements is a 90mm. It also has the capability of 6x9 which starts getting into wide angle.<br>

One of the nicest medium format wide angle with movement cameras I've seen is a Galven reworked to have a short bellows. It used a 47mm lens with 6x6-6x9 formats and was built on the short extension rail that came with the Galven setup. It required redesigning the rear bracket to clear the lens bracket. Aside from that it was just a shortened Galvin. A nice thing about the Galvin is that a Graflix 120 film back can slide under the ground glass. It makes going from viewing to shooting very easy, and is the only camera I know of that can do this.</p>