affen_kot

greets everyone. this is concerning the flat vs. recessed lensboard

dilemma.

 

i recently purchased a 1975 calumet super cambo. accordion bellows,

rounded standard/rail connections, revolving 4x5 back, no sepcial

modifications. i'd like to mount a schneider angulon (not

the 'super') 90mm with it's linhof synchro compur shutter to the

flat lensboard that came with the camera, but i have questions as to

whether or not the lens will be able to focus to infinity with this

proposed setup.

 

this sort of question has been, from what it looks like, asked more

than its share of times on p.net; but after reading some of the very

adamant - and very conflicting - opinions on other threads about the

ability of the SUPER angulon lens to focus to infinity on a flat

lensboard (from many that appear to not even have used the equipment

in question), i thought that it might be safer to check with my

specific gear before i commit to mounting with the wrong board and

the aftercost of fixing my possible error.

 

i need the setup to be functional for an upcoming weekend on the

lake of zürich for some landscape/biergarten shots that won't really

call for movements, but will call for good depth of field; so

restriction of movements is not going to bother me.

 

can someone familiar with the cambo and the normal angulon 90mm give

me some thoughts on their experience with this rig?

 

thanks for the thoughts in advance. cheers! ...affen

this is arguable, but most nikon film SLRs below the F100 will feel pretty plasticy; the exception being the brick-like N90, which is more of a precursor than a lower model.

 

if you don't want the N75 to feel so toyish (which it will, unless you're currently an N55 owner), you could always purchase the MB-18 grip ($44 at B+H for reference). i had a similar conundrum with my N80, and an MB-16 really beefed up the overall feeling, and added some decent ballast against a heavier zoom lens. and as a bonus - which is missing in the N80's MB-16, but reappears in the F100's MB-15 - the MB-18 has a vertical release button.

 

just an option if you're considering the N75. cheers!

eBay deutschland is the place to look if you go the eBay route. the shipping might kill you, but i see technica IV's of your type on there all the time. http://www.ebay.de

 

cheers!

hi, helen.

 

i second jay's suggestion not to travel digital. from personal experience, electricity can be a troublesome - or altogether unattainable - prerequisite to taking pictures as well, depending on where you want to go. example: not all electrical sockets in italy are created equally.

 

without knowing a budget or what you're looking to produce with your camera, my modest recommendation would be to pick up a nikon N80 (<$285) and a 50mm prime lens (<$100), or if you're feeling saucy, possibly a nikkor 24-85G lens instead (~$300). manual/mechanical cameras are great for learning the principles of photography, and most are more than sturdy enough to be thrown around in your backpack for weeks at a time, but a drawback is that this avenue would also entail a lot of on the job training - assuming you're not going to have a lot of practicing time before your flight/boat leaves for wherever it is you're going.

 

short list of reasons for the N80:

(1) the metering is pretty solid

(2) it has automatic mode (if you don't have time to practice beforehand), in addition to fully manual mode

(3) although not an F100, you can jostle it around a little more than a bottom of the barrel SLR

(4) it's a relatively inexpensive way to get on your feet with SLRs, and allows some room for growth

(5) it allows you access to a large selection of nikon lenses should you wish to continue with the pasttime.

 

anyway, just my subjective stab in the dark. regardless of the system/camera you end up with, i'd just reiterate what kerry said: practice with it. canon, nikon, mamiya or leica, the more time you take to learn your instrument, the better your photos will be. have fun on the trip. cheers!

dude, eric. no need to apologize do much. on photo.net, there are no stupid questions...just abrasive answers.

really? what camera did you buy there on eBay denis? was it a Nikon C17a? i have the same camera. i read the manual, though.

where you saw this offer (?) would have a lot to do with whether or not to take it at face value. i.e., some people's/businesses' definition of the word 'new' can vary. for example, on eBay i've seen sellers refer to a factory reconditioned/demo camera as new because it was never actually 'sold.' can you point us to the sale if it's online?

i bet all that rust in the aerolitoral engine seams was reassuring.

she's looking at the mcdonald's drive through across the street...

 

but seriously, nice photo.

hi ambika,

somewhat as a throwback/extension to steve's anecdote from 1977...the successful photographer takes the system he or she has - be it holga, pinhole, F5, D1, etc. - and creates compelling photos. inversely, the unsuccessful one does not. anecdotal example: a few weeks ago at an art gallery here in vienna, someone asked me what body i shot a few of my displayed black and whites with. it was a Nikon F55 in the rain (isn't that an eagles song?). getting the biggest bang for your buck is in no way a bad idea - reference to your original question - but my advice, FWIW, is to learn thoroughly whatever system you purchase. be it film SLR and scanner, D70, D100, etc. buy what you can afford, because you will just resent the purchase if it means you will have to do without something else important to you later; and after you buy it, filter out any negative comments from gear snobs while you set yourself to making more compelling photos with your D70/D100 than they do with their D2's. have fun with whatever you end up buying! cheers!

"I'm trying to get into photography."

 

I too have an N80, and whereas it's been a nifty photographic tool with all of its features, I might suggest that you first try to use it with a minimum of its bells and whistles, so that you can learn stops, times and lighting situations before attempting to bend the laws of time and space with the exposure compensation buttons :)

 

that aside, if this is your first post, it might be fair to warn you to take all opinions/comments here on photo.net - starting with mine - with a grain of salt.

 

enough said. have a great time with your N80! cheers!

i'm with mr. chura on the wide angle lens. kauai is fairly unspoiled, so in places you can still get those token panoramic pristine beach shots. i think 'donovans's reef' was filmed in kauai too, so you can imagine some of the opportunities for the 17mm.

 

nice portfolio, robert.

hi there. this is a little late, but in case you're still getting notification...

 

i'm also a student, and had the same conundrum a few weeks ago. i finally went ahead and asked a friend bring me an N80/MB-16/50mm 1.8 back from the U.S. for two reasons:

 

1. price-to-feature offering (on demand grid lines, reliable auto-bracketing, DX override, cable release(!) to name a few that i find handy)

 

2. did i mention price?

 

most likely the build quality will be adequate for what you want to do with it (i.e., no upcoming national geographic assignments, right?), and the 1.8 50mm is a fine (inexpensive) prime that fits the student's budget. total price for my package from the states: less than half of what a new F100 body would have set me back; and i've been very pleased with the results so far.

i'd suggest that you don't buy photo products here in europe unless you either just can't find them in the US, or you absolutely must have whatever it is you happen across. photo gear here is usually more expensive, and with the 1.22:1 exchange rate, purchasing anything outside of film would be about as comfortable as colonoscopy. instead, i'd spend that money on some of the other 'products' of amsterdam that are harder to come by in the US.

800 and faster is generally considered the point where you should be avoiding the xray machines. in my experience jean-baptiste is right though, in that 800 is only the lower tip of the damage curve, and most of the time you won't notice any problems due to xray at that speed. that aside, i always have my rolls hand inspected, rather than take the time to presort them with a ringing hangover.

i do have to concede to the beer argument.

sorry to piggyback, but after reading your thoughts, it brought up question in regards to my own gear. i usually have 2 filters attached to my 50mm at any given time (except for night shots). does this afford in any way a similar effect to what the lens hood would do (because the lens front element is now surrounded by a couple centimeters of rings, or does this go in the complete opposite direction because of all the added glass? or does the answer lie somewhere in between? thanks!

nothing like a good cage match thread to make for good quality photo advice.

 

on topic; no one plans to scratch their front element, but incidental contact with the environment happens, and front elements accumulate blemishes over time. speaking all chemical-like, anything that comes in contact with the outside environment will slowly be oxidized by it, and in addition will also be subjected to free particulates (evaporated diesel biproducts, methylated mercury, etc.) that ebb at your element on a molecular level. let the lens spend a short while in a filtered enviroment, and then tighten a filter on it; if you're not planning on trading it up in the forseeable future.

i live a few hours away from there and spend some time there every summer. august is a fine time, especially in the northwest portion of tuscany with its rolling hills and 'funeral trees.' hot as hell, but the sun-baked rooftops and golden red dirt of the countryside makes for great photos. the wine harvest in the montepulciano area of tuscany (great light wine by the way) starts about the first week of september, so you should be there in time to see the fat, ripe vinyards in full bloom - which, like most things in italy, makes for good photos too.

 

The Montepulciano Arts Festival and the Bravio Wine Barrel Race are around the time that you'll be there. I'm sure you could find those online if you googled them.

 

Have a great time!

i second constance's "sweaty" remark.

 

before going out shooting, i would buy a couple of bottles of 'pokari sweat,' from a local store for rehydration. after walking around rice fields for a couple of hours, you'll be bathing in your own perspiration - which actually might be so copious, that you might have to be alert to 'dripping' on your camera if it's not weather sealed. hope you have a great time (and take a towel). cheers!

don't get your panties in a bunch, dave. not everthing works like it does in the USA and (western) EU. for example, the al italia milan gate agent that looks like he's been on duty 13 hours and is ushering an overbooked flight, or the nordeste ticket clerk that brought her kids to work with her - and no, it's not 'bring your kids to work day' - many of these people won't generally turn their nose up at gratuities if it's posed to them with discretion. i've seen lots of these quiet transactions from china to south america, and whereas they take more finesse and subtlety than the general hawaiian shirt-wearing mono-lingual photo dork has, i assure you they do happen often. i certainly don't recommend that if in russia, our friend phil attempts his international street saavy on the ticket lady, especially over a matter that will probably cost as much to secretly remunerate away as to just pay the extra weight costs; but i think phil is smart enough to deduce that my llama herder-glacier comment means that i am not prescribing that he give this practice a try. i was just mentioning it.

with a lot of those third world airlines, you can bribe the counter staff to look the other way on your weight limits. this is however not terribly safe because all airlines distribute passengers and cargo as much as they can into "weight bearing zones" of the aircraft. you get too many bribing americans up front on the same flight, and 50 years from now the discovery channel will be doing a documentary on how some llama herder found you all encased in a glacier up in the andes - camera gear and all.

my dad's been flying with a major airline for over 25 years, so having grown up taking the security entrance at airports, i'll throw my three cents in on your question.

 

tony has a point that in checking a bag, i wouldn't be terribly worried about theft or loss. on the other hand, his checked items fall into another category, whereas people trying to sneak bombs onto planes don't generally travel under a company name and take 100 cases with them; and to actually take that much gear with you, you have to have it cleared ahead of time. what airlines are more worried about is the incidental luggage, i.e., whatever you bring with you without prior warning: the stuff that 99 percent of people travel with, which is impossible to know about until the actual moment when it's scanned. in your case, i would be more worried that your bags might get bumped to a later flight, to facilitate a longer inspection of your suitcase. if you're on assigment, or if you have a specific appointment to see the last supper at the duomo, this can be catastrophic. additionally, there's just the inconvenience of having a stranger rifle through your personal items -having your bag "tossed," as it's called. if your checked bags contain something which is fairly large, tubular and has machined-looking parts attached to it, you can fairly sure that they'll be gone-through. better to just carry the tripod on with you, because you can explain the situation and demonstrate that it is indeed only a tripod. most times, a situation can be quickly diffused if they can "match" an item to its owner (example: some ambulatory medical devices, when packed in one's bags, will raise suspicion at the x-ray booth, especially if the owner is a young healthy woman. but if the owner happens to be a 65 year old man who is at the time clearly wearing a medical device of the same kind, it can be quickly and quietly deduced that they are most likely backup or replacement devices).

 

sorry for the length. if you have doubts, make it known to the counter representative when you check in that you have a tripod in your bag; or just carry it on and get there early enough to get some overhead compartment space. cheers.

thanks a lot for the thoughts. unfortunately, roland, my computer can't get that website to come up after trying it with english, german and spanish translation. maybe canadian would work. i appreciate the input anyway. as for the domke, at first glance, it looks like the smaller domke would fit the bill for what i need. much obliged, guys.

greets everyone. upon buying an n80 and mb-16 pack, i've

encountered difficultiey cramming it into my previous travel

camera's soft case (which is either a lowepro nova 1 or 2).

 

which leads me to my question...can anyone with an n80/f80 or

experience therewith offer suggestions on which camera bag would be

a good upgrade candidate? this camera currently has a 50mm nikon

1.8 attached (and it's likely to remain her primary lens), is mainly

for traveling, and would be accompanied by one extra lens at the

most, plus film. i'm looking for a case that's a good compromise

between overhead storage bin compatability and room to tote the

essentials. any safari travelers out there with an n80?

 

sure, the easiest answer might be "buy a nova 4," but if i'm going

to be dropping 80+ euros on a case/bag, i thought i'd troll for

suggestions for those more knowledgeable/experienced. thanks in

advance for the thoughts. cheers...affen