First lens choice.....

[David Young]

I now have a Toyo 810G winging it's way my direction, and I plan on using it in my home studio (ok..... spare bedroom) for shooting still-lifes, all for contact printing in platinum. Looking for a suggestion on a good starting lens (used is fine) that won't break the bank out of the starting gate. The obvious answer is a 300mm, but I do want to be able to get to 1:1 (shouldn't be a problem on the Toyo). Should I think in terms of a wider lens though? Any good suggestions?

D.

[steve simmons]

You might consider the Fuji 240A. It is really desifged for this type of work and would require only 480mm/19" of exension for a 1:1 (it will cover 8x10 at infinity so coverage is no problem. The Schneider G Claron 305 would be another good choice.

steve simmons

[John Kasaian]

You might also consider the 240 G-Claron, 9-1/2" Goerz Dagor and 250 Wide Field Ektar.

Good luck!

[Mark Sawyer]

I'm quite fond of my 8 1/2" (215mm) F/4.8 Ilex Acuton (aka Caltar). Quite sharp all the way to the corners, with enough coverage for moderate movements at small apertures. Side-by-side, noticeably better than my 210mm Dagor. It also converts to a 14", which is of "okay" resolution, (good for contact prints, at most a 16x20 enlargement.) This is about the best you can hope for with one cell of any convertable. It has at least a single coating, maybe a multi-coating. Nice ones seem to go in the $125-150 range.

[Tony Karnezis]

What they said. And if you're only going to be shooting inside with available light, consider a barrel lens like the 240/9 or 300/9 APO Nikkor. They're designed for closeup work and always on ebay for a song ($100-$250).

[Steve Hamley]

O.K., I'll throw one more hat into the ring. The 270mm G-Claron. I love mine on 8x10, equivalent to a 135mm focal length on 4x5 which I also love. Good up close and a little easier on bellows draw up close, but not too wide. I think MPEX has one.

Steve

[John Berry ( Roadkill )]

For the application I use my 240 G-claron. Mine is in a shutter and is optimised for 1:10. Barrel lens are made for 1:1 with packard or hat shutter would be better for closeup work.

[Ralph Barker]

Another vote for the 240mm G-Claron. It's an excellent little lens, and one of the real bargains around, IMHO.

Here's a scan of an 8x10 Polaroid done with the 240 G-Claron. In the original Polaroid, the flowers are slightly larger than 1:1.

[Prashant]

This is fantastic Ralph! Would love to see more of your work.

[Graeme Hird]

That old shot again Ralph? Haven't you got something better yet?

Cheers,