I thought some of you might be interested in my first impression of the Wehman 8x10 camera. I have had the camera now for a little over a week. The lens I use with it is the Fuijon 300-C f8.5. It is a very light and compact lens that is very sharp and has an image circle of about 380mm – which is sufficient for landscape photography – so far I have not run out of coverage.
What I like about the Wehman 8x10:
The camera is absolutely bullet proof. Folded it is completely surrounded by a metal clam shell. You really can take this camera and throw it in your backpack without any concern about scratches or damages. The little Fuijon lens can stay attached when the camera is folded – that makes it a very neat, light package.
The camera comes with two sets of ground glasses – one is glass, the other one is plexiglass. I installed the plexiglass, because it is lighter and I don’t have to worry about braking it. If only using lenses up to 300mm you can leave one of the metal clam shells at home and instead just put a film holder over the GG – saves weight. With that configuration, including the lens, the weight is just 8 lbs.
The beauty of this camera lies in its simplicity and its low weight. I don’t think you can make a camera that is simpler in its construction and still gives you the rigidity of the Wehman. It is solid as a rock. The back has a little spring that holds it open to make it easier to insert the film holder- - I found that feature very helpful. Setup is quick and easy. The back folds up, you slide the front standard forward, lock it and you’re good to go.
What I don’t like or miss:
There are no levels on this camera at all and there is no scale on it to help with hyperfocal distance focusing. The lensboard fits very tightly and you almost have to rip it out of the front standard, I talked to Bruce and he assured me that this would get better with useage – if not, I’ll have to sand it down just a little.
The Wehman comes without a fresnel lens installed. The zero detends are not pronounced enough and I always have to double check to make sure that the standards are parallel.
The rear swing mechanism takes some time getting used to – it is very unique to this camera – it would take too long to explain it – just take a look at the Wehman website to get an idea how it works (this is not necessarily a negative point – it’s just different).
Front swing, shift and movement of the Standard are all controlled by one single knob – it is almost impossible to get this right. You unscrew the front standard, lift it and then position it to either the swing or shift position, or both.
There is no provision to clip on a dark cloth, which would come handy.
Overall I am very pleased with this camera – it is really hard to beat for the price, but I do think there is room for improvements. This is my first 8x10 camera and I am still at the bottom of a steep learning curve. I realized that DOF it is a very different beast with this larger format. I have been shooting 4x5 for about three years now, but this is a different world.
I would be interested to hear from other Wehman owners if they concur with my observations or if I am way off here.
I would recommend this camera to folks who focus on the functionality of a camera, not the looks and who look for a practical backpacking solution.
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