Hello all!
I am interested in getting a nice portrait lens for my 4x5 but I'm not sure exactly where to start looking. I have a couple lenses but they are pretty standard in focal length (135mm, 180mm and a barrel lens at 210mm) so I am looking for something a bit longer and higher quality than the "off brands" that I currently have. I'll probably have ~500 US to spend.
Thoughts and suggestions?
If you're working in the studio, you might consider a no-name 9" Petzval with a no. 6. Packard shutter with sync. A bit of work to cobble together, but the images won't look like anything else out there.
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig."
seezee at Mercury Photo Bureau
seezee on Flickr
seezee's day-job at Messenger Web Design
That sounds interesting for sure. I tend to shoot more location than studio due to a lack of space. My "studio" is a 10x10 room which my desk, computer and photo printer take up the majority of space. I can do headshots but that's really about it.
This setup would be difficult to use in natural light unless you find a lens with an internal iris (they exist) or you obtain the Waterhouse stops with the lens (or have SK Grimes make them, which would put you over your budget). Unless you're doing wet-plate or similar; then you're golden.
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig."
seezee at Mercury Photo Bureau
seezee on Flickr
seezee's day-job at Messenger Web Design
What type of portraits? What type of camera? In a studio with flash, or....?The more specific you can be, the better we can help you. For instance, suppose you want sharp pictures ala Karsh, Penn.....and you have a Sinar. In that case, something like a 300 Symmar-S, a Commercial Ektar..... would be terrific, but the first suggestion wouldn't work well on a small field camera, as a 300mm f/5.6 plasmat is a huge lens. Or perhaps the out-of-focus area rendition is important to you, and then a Tessar, whether an older one or, say, a Fuji 420L might be a better fit. Or perhaps you love glow, and so a SF lens would be better.
Just as an aside, SF lenses and razor thin dept-of-field are much harder to do well than having most things sharp. SF lenses are very challenging to focus, especially at first, and any sitter movement will wreak havoc with a super narrow depth of field. Thus from a focusing and sitter standpoint, using a sharp lens at f/16 or f/22 will be easier to work with than f/5.6 or a SF lens, but you will need more light. All of these things can be overcome, of course.
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
I use a Calumet 540 Series, would rather shoot location than studio but enjoy both.
I use a lot of tilt for location and am not a fan of soft focus lenses.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/coltonstark/
My favorite 4x5 'tog is Polly Chandler.
Good stuff. That helps. I would look for a 10-12 inch lens, perhaps a Commercial Ektar, Ilex Paragon, a Fuji L, or a Zeiss Tessar. You can see some portrait lens tests, complete with downloadable high-res files at: http://www.largeformatphotography.in...ns+Tests+Aviar
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
I really like my 14" Kodak Commercial Ektar for 8x10. It was a favorite of Yousuf Karsh. It's sharp but not clinically sharp. The 12" or 305mm will fit your budget. Just make sure you can fit the large Ilex shutter on your camera.
Thank you all for the help! I will start my hunt this weekend
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