Field Camera - Which Movements Would You Consider ESSENTIAL

[Andrew O'Neill]

Tilts and swings front and back. Rear slide.

[David Swinnard]

Having used a variety of "rail" cameras and flat-beds in the field I've discovered that I only really use front rise, the front tilt and very occasionally front slide. My current camera has some rear tilt capabilities but I've only used them once - and that was just to try them.

I'm shooting mostly in the woods these days having left the city behind.

[DannL]

My first three home-built cameras (8x10's) had no movements. I used them only for landscapes. Eventually I found a 4x5 and it had enough movement that it could be tied into knots. But, the only movements I ever used were rise/fall and rear-tilt. That was 7 or 8 cameras ago. For me rise/fall and rear-tilt are nice to have. But, for my type of photography movements are not necessary.

[jbenedict]

Rise. I like rise. I can use it to refine the composition and not have to reset the camera on the tripod. Also, if I tipped the camera up to get the composition I wanted, I sometimes would screw up the vertical lines. With rise I can avoid that.

Tilt is nice to boogie around with the plane of focus. Front tilt is fine. Front and back tilt is better.

I guess I'm a man of simple needs.

[Oren Grad]

Front rise/fall is enough for me.

[hoffner]

The only absolutely essential movement my cameras need is the one - out of the room - in to the wild. Alternatively, being at home, it's the movement out of the box - on the tripod.

[Fr. Mark]

I'm building an all friction no gears monorail design with all movements as a successor to a telescoping box 8x10 and I way underestimated the rigidity problems. Will beef it up and add secondary clamps. I'm tempted to build a 14x17 to take advantage of big X-Ray film for cyanotypes. And a 5x7 for hiking. I also have a Busch pressman D it has front rise/fall and shift and base tilt and perhaps you could get a tiny vertical axis twist by fooling with the way it clamps into the focus rack. The front bed can drop which can kind of be used for back tilt. So far this all has been enough for me but I'm a beginner compared to most. The idea was to use the "easy" to build monorail to figure out what I wanted for a hiking camera and with modifications build a diffusion enlarger for the growing collection of negs that don't fit in the 35mm enlarger. I sometimes think that a 5x7 or 5x8 is silly when I have a 4x5 if only I had an enlarger for 4x5, but contact prints...and evennicer enlargements... I should probably take more pictures and spend more time in the darkroom and less at the workbench.

[Heroique]

Front rise/fall is enough for me.

If a leprechaun in the forest appeared at the foot of my tripod and said he had to take away all the movements from my Tachi 4x5, except one, this would be my reply.

[Old-N-Feeble]

If a leprechaun in the forest appeared at the foot of my tripod and said he had to take away all the movements from my Tachi 4x5, except one, this would be my reply.

You have leprechauns in Washington state? I suppose that makes sense with all the green surrounding you up there.

[Heroique]

You have leprechauns in Washington state? I suppose that makes sense with all the green surrounding you up there.

Right you are, they are numerous in the Cascades, are very clever, wear tiny red hats, and have made off with many of my smallest photo accessories. They haven't tied me down yet like Gulliver and the Lilliputians, but I wouldn't put it past them!