paul_ewins

If you are buying the latest versions of the lenses then there is probably very little difference in quality between any of the MF cameras. Ergonomically, the Pentax and Mamiya will be the best choices for hand-held eye-level shooting. Then it comes down to a simple RF vs SLR argument with both cameras just scaled up versions. The price for doing this is eliminating the interchangeable backs found on the more box-like Hasselblad, Rollei and RB67 SLRs.

 

The Pentax does have a couple of zoom lenses and the wides go all the way down to the 35mm fisheye. If you stick with the "SMC Pentax 67" lens versions rather than the earlier "Super Takumar 6x7" and "Super Multi Coated Takumar 6x7" versions you shouldn't have any issues with lens quality. Similarly, for bodies stick with the 67II or 67 bodies over the earlier 6x7 models.

 

If you have a preference for RF cameras then I think the Mamiya 7II will probably be what you want. If you preferred SLRs then the Pentax 67II would probably do it. I don't think that there are any limitations for either system that will be relevant to what you want to do (hand held shooting).

Jean,

You really should try and rent or borrow one before you buy. It won't be as fast to use as a Leica, even with a grafmatic, so you will lose some of the fluidity that a 35mm RF offers. i.e. you can't just leave it up at eye level and keep shooting.

 

The combined RF/VF will be easier to use than a Technika or a Super Graphic, but you lose the ability to change lenses. If you regularly swap lenses on your Leica you may want to think hard about that.

 

Some of the lens options require you to remove the front element to close the camera.

 

You'll need the portrait version to focus down to 4 feet, otherwise it is 6 feet minimum (The Speed Graphic RF is accurate to 4 feet). Remember, these are slightly wide to normal lenses so you may run into trouble with tight headshots.

 

For shooting portraits on the street the combination of the RF/VF and light weight would make it the preferred tool. If you were just shooting streetscapes then something like a Fotoman 45 would be a better bet. If you were shooting at one location then a Technika or even a Graflex SLR would do a better job. The Littman 45 is a one trick pony, but if that is the trick you want then go get it.

Grafmatic, hands down. I find them easier to load and unload, they take up less space and they hold the film flatter. I have found them to be reliable and haven't had any light leaks. You'll probably be buying units manufactured 40 years ago but they were a well designed and engineered item.

 

There are a lot of worn out ones on eBay, but equally I see lots of near new looking ones too. If you've never used one, try and find someone who has a good one to demonstrate what they should be like, i.e. smooth and precise not sloppy and jam-prone.

Oops, I knew I had answered this before:

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00CD1b&tag=

The reflex hood from the Polaroid MP-4 can be modified to fit the later Speed/Crown Graphics. The folding screen on the Ground Glass back just clips in place. The MP-4 reflex viewer is held in place by a couple of roll pins. They are a little too long and wide, but with a little careful filing they can be made to fit.

Vanbar in Cardigan st, Carlton (www.vanbar.com.au). You can catch the University tram from Swanston St and get off at Lincon Square. It's a 15-20 minute walk from Melbourne Central/RMIT. They do mail order, so you may be able to pre-order and have it waiting for you.

 

In the CBD I think Ted's Camera and Michael's Camera (both in Elizabeth st) keep some pro films. Don't buy any 2nd hand gear from Michael's though, they are normally double the going rate. Up the hill a little in Lonsdale St you will find the Camera Exchange which will usually have the best range of MF gear.

To amplify on Michael's response, I used that technique last night to budge the front cell of a barrel mounted G-Claron. Put the sheet of rubber on a sturdy surface (i.e. table or work bench) Place the lens face down on the rubber, assuming that the front element is recessed enough so that the glass doesn't touch the rubber. Now grab the shutter, bear down with a fair amount of weight and then twist to unscrew the cell. Once the cell starts to unscrew stop and try unscrewing it normally.

 

If the front element protrudes past the cell mount then you'll need to try a strap wrench around the edge of the cell.

There has been a Super D on eBay for months now for around $650 without any takers, so I'm guessing that you aren't going to get $1200. I paid $150 for a 4x5 RB Auto and I've seen a series D go for around $300 so you might reasonably hope for $500 or so depending on condition. The graflok back is a huge plus compared to the graflex back if you have other 4x5 gear with graflok/international backs.

 

Prices for Super Graphics and Super Speed Graphics have also fallen a bit since I started watching them and I think you could get a nice clean one for $300 - $400.

 

It could be worse, you could have spent a lot of money on Medium Format gear.

I've got one of these that came with my Almaz 103. Regular Pentax bayonet lenses are slightly loose when mounted to the Almaz, so I suspect that LOMO have a different idea of the K mount to everyone else. I have found that the best K->M42 converter to use in a Pentax camera is the genuine Pentax version and I suspect that the LOMO version probably works best in LOMO equipment.

The tank you have sounds like the much-maligned Yankee tank or one of the more modern versions. First and foremost you should check that you have enough chemicals to cover the film. It sounds obvious but they do take a lot to fill, so maybe try a practice run with the lid off. Fill it till you have covered the film slots completely and then empty the water into a graduated jug to determine the actual volume required. Side to side (parallel to the orientation of the film) is indeed the correct form of agitation, I usually agitated for 10 seconds out of every minute. Once I sorted out the chemical volume required I never had another blotchy neg.

 

Having said that, I went from that style of tank to a Jobo CPP set up and don't regret it one bit. I found the 2509 reels fiddly to load and upgraded to the 3010. The 3010 is far superior, even if it is the most expensive piece of plastic you'll ever buy (apart from a 3005!). Jobo gear is expensive new, but readily available second hand. You can use the drums without the processor, so that purchase can be delayed, but once you use a processor you'll understand why people like them so much.

The tripod socket on my (post-war) Speed Graphic is 3/8" with a 1/4" insert, so the answer is both. In practice it may take a lot of work to get that insert out - mine is stuck fast. A graphic is pretty light so the 1/4" thread should be more than good enough.

 

Of course, given the long production run what is true for my graphic may not be true for yours.

 

regards,

 

Paul

Rafal,

Although obviously the backs are different, most of the cartridges that go inside them are the same. Certainly, the ones used in the Pentax MX and LX 250 shot backs are identical to the Nikon MZ-1 cartridge and also I think the Olympus OM and more obscure stuff like Topcon. Given the similarities I strongly suspect that most of these were supplied by one third party company in Japan. The film loaders are also the same.

 

The exceptions MAY be Canon, and also the earlier Nikon F and Pentax Spotmatic versions which appear to be slightly different.

 

KEH currently has s/h cartridges for Canon, Pentax and Nikon but unfortunately only has pictures for the Pentax versions.

 

regards,

 

Paul

Jobo is expensive new, but a lot cheaper second-hand. Go to a few swap meets and keep an eye on eBay and you'll probably score a CPP with lift for less than $300. An expert drum will cost about $150 on eBay and they show up regularly. $450 is a lot more than the other methods, but less than the cost of a new lens or camera.

 

The whole point of the Jobo is that it allows every step of the process to be repeated precisely. I set mine to 20 C and it varies by .4 C at the most (typically from 19.9 to 20.3 as it goes through the cool/heat cycle). The film gets exactly the same agitation every time. Loading the expert drums is quick and easy (unlike the 2509 reels). The end result is evenly processed films with no scratches.

 

Once you find a film and developer combination you like you can experiment with times and temperatures confident that you are getting a meaningful result. Get that nailed and you can then process every batch after that with EXACTLY the same results.

 

The other methods may well work to your satisfaction, and hell, I was getting satisfactory results from B&W in a Yankee tank, but the Jobo is simply a better way to do it.

 

Is $450 too much? Maybe, if you're just starting out or your budget is pretty tight. Given the cost of pretty much everything else in LF it really isn't unreasonable.

I think James Place Cameras in the Adelaide CBD has 4x5, but I'd check in advance to make sure they have what you want. I've found that some Ted's stores will stock 4x5, but again you'd be best ringing first to find out.

 

Otherwise you could mail-order from Vanbar in Melbourne (www.vanbar.com.au) to get a better range of choices including 8x10.

For most cameras the M42 adapter doesn't have any optical elements so there is no degradation of optical quality. At worst it is like a very thin extension tube. I have heard of a number of people using them happily on DSLRs.

 

Regarding the K-mount -> M42 adapters, I have had a third party version jam on the body. I had to remove the lens mount to get it out. I then bought a genuine Pentax one which works much better, presumably due to closer attention to tolerances etc.

and here's the other side showing the step-up ring holding it together, along with some fairly strong glue.<div></div>

I've gutted a broken Ricoh 50mm lens to make a tube with a k mount on one end and the normal filter thread on the other. An appropriate size hole was bored into a sheet of 6mm (1/4") aluminium and then a step-up ring was screwed into the filter thread from the other side to hold it all in place. The plate is cut to the same dimensions as the ground glass so I simply swap one for the other. As a bonus the lens body retains the helicoid so I het some extra fine focussing as well.<div></div>

You mean something like this?<div></div>

Hi Darrell,

I've got sixteen grafmatics, most of which are quite worn. I buy them cheaply and tinker till they work smoothly. None of mine leak light and by the sound of your test in the sun neither does yours.

 

Are you putting the grafmatic under a spring back or clipping it into a graflok back? If it isn't seated properly under a spring back you might have a leak at one end. Was the light leakage uniform across the sheet or in one particular spot?

 

Do you leave the grafmatic in place till you have shot all six sheets or are you taking it on and off? If the tray hasn't clicked back fully into place there might be enough of a gap at the other end to cause fogging, but it would only be on one end of the sheet.

 

Does your darkroom have flourescent lights? These have a fairly persistent afterglow which might have been enough to fog the first sheets you loaded and then have faded enough to not affect later sheets. This would probably be a wide area fogging rather than just in particular spot.

 

regards,

 

Paul

Troy,

I did some investigation on my own SMCT 500/4.5 and couldn't get a large enough image circle to cover 6x7. There is a baffle ahead of the removable rear section that may be restricting the image circle so you will probably have to remove that.

 

The rear section is basically a tube with a screw mount (or k-mount)at the camera end and a breech lock at the other end. It should be very simple to make a 6x7 version.

 

I have seen one of the genuine Pentax converted lenses on eBay, but none of the catalogues I own have it listed, so I guess it was a custom adaption available through the Pentax service centres rather than a separate product. They do exist, but are very rare.

 

SMC is preferable to non SMC, but the 500/4.5 is only a four element lens so there isn't as much difference as would be found in a complex zoom with ten or eleven elements.

My win/loss record is probably not great, but I finally tasted success with the Kalart rangefinder on my 4x5 Speed Graphic.

 

The mirror needed replacing so I bought a new one on eBay. Checked the instructions at various places and it seemed straight forward. Took the cover off and doused the mirror in acteone to try and remove the glue. No joy, so following some more online advice I resorted to breaking it and chipping out the remins. That's fine until one of the two very tiny (1.5mm) screws that holds the mirror assembly in place shears off while I'm hammering away.

 

OK, remove the whole assmebly from the camear, drill out the screw and retap the hole larger - back in business. Glue the new mirror in place and all I have to do is adjust it.

 

The online instructions mention three points of adjustment, but I have created a fourth by disconnecting the big arm inside the camera so that I can remove the rangefinder to fix the broken screw. I eventually work out how to get that back in roughly the right position. Set infinity and then adjust the little sliders to the factory values.

 

After hours of futile fiddling I check the prism and realise that it is bent out of position. Remove the prism housing and rebend the arm holding it in place. Drop the small screws on the carpet and spend half an hour finding them. Now reassemble so that the prism sits on the factory-set screw (adjustment point 5).

 

Now reset infinity, fiddle about with the adjsutment sliders and voila, it works! The rangefinder is now accurate from around four feet to infinity. And it only took me twelve hours.

and here is the reflex viewer clipped into the same spot. You can see why the pin needs to be filed to fit. Regarding the MP3 viewer, I have no idea whether it will fit or not. I've never seen one.

Ok, here is the right hand side of the standard folding hood, where it clips into the graflok back

Oh, and I forgot to say that the pins really do just click into the same spot as the tabs on the side of the folding hood, so nothing needs to be done to the graflok back.

 

BTW, when I bought my MP4 viewer it came attached to a plastic panel which simply clicks off in the same way that the folding hood clicks out of the graflex back. It probably held a ground glass screen, but all that was left was a plastic fresnel lens.

.... and a blurry shot of the front<div></div>