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Thread: Which would you choose and why?

  1. #1

    Join Date
    Oct 2006
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    Question Which would you choose and why?

    I am looking to buy my first 4x5 camera. I have experience with them, but i wanna know which you'd get. I dont care about gears or stuff i want a nice camera, that looks nice, is Very light weight, and helps me become a better photographer.

    When I mean light weight, something light. I used an old kodak from 1940something, and it was a ton.

    would you have a:
    CAMBO SCIIRS in EX condition for $225
    4X5 CAMBO SOFT COVER in EX condition for $245
    4X5 SINAR F1 WITH CHROME RAIL in EX condition for $339
    4X5 SINAR F2 WITH METERING BACK in BGN condition for $379-$339
    4X5 TOYO VIEW 45 CX In EX condition for $325
    or
    a Bender 4x5 kit for$330

    I kind like the bender because of the wooden look, but would like one of the others above.

    So which would you get?
    Thanks
    Chad

  2. #2

    Join Date
    Dec 1999
    Posts
    1,905

    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    Before buying a camera may I suggest some reading

    Getting Started in Large Format

    in the Free Articles section of the View Camera web site

    www.viewcamera.com

    Good intro books

    Using the View Camera that I wrote or User's Guide to the View Camera by Jim Stone. Check your library.

    You should not select a camera until you do some reading and thinking about what you want to photograph, what lenses you will be using, and what movements you need.

    If you can make it come to at least the trade show at the View Camera conference at the Brown Hotel in Louisville June 28-July 1. You will have a chance to see many cameras, play with them, and ask a lot of questions.

    steve simmons
    publisher, view camera magazine
    www.viewcamera.com

  3. #3

    Join Date
    May 2006
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    Orlando, FL
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    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    Dittos to what Steve said.

  4. #4
    Whatever David A. Goldfarb's Avatar
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    Mar 2000
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    Honolulu, Hawai'i
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    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    At that price the F2 is the most bang for the buck in terms of functionality and ease of use. The Bender would be the lightest, but an F-series Sinar is fairly portable--a little bulky but about as heavy as a Linhof Technika. There are three ways of packing it, depending on how compact or how ready-to-shoot you want to be.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Jun 2002
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    9,487

    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    Those are all good camera and none of them will impede you from learning how to be a better photographer... you can make the finest pictures ever with any of them.

    The Cambo is a great deal at $225 but the Sinar might be something you could expand with down the road, it is a very flexible professional system. A BGN camera may or maynot be a bargain...

    It really won't matter, your first 4x5 camera should be like your first girlfriend... someone nice you can grow with, but you aren't going to get married...

    Your best deal will be buying an outfit from somebody unloading a complete package, lens, holders, tripod, etc. even if some of it is redundant you can try it all and eBay the leftovers.

    Have fun.

  6. #6

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    Sep 2003
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    Harbor City, California
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    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    I certainly agree with the books suggestion. Books are cheap (comparatively), cameras expensive.

    Aside from that, two thoughts come to mind:

    How much need of movements do you foresee? If landscapes and/or portraits are your forte, you won't need much and a rather basic field camera will be a good choice. If you have an interest in architecture, you'll want a versatile monorail.

    If you buy used, there is no need to consider your starting camera as a lifetime investment. It may teach you what you really need and can then probably be sold for close to your original cost.

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Dec 2001
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    San Joaquin Valley, California
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    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    Something you should consider is which lens you intend on using, and if the bellows will accomodate such lenses. Probably not an issue with the camers you've suggested, but its still something to consider if either extreme WA or very long lenses float your boat.
    "I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority"---EB White

  8. #8

    Join Date
    Feb 2005
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    2,955

    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    They are all good cameras, but you may be happier with a lighter and more portable field camera. That said, I would go with the F2 if I had to choose between those listed.

    This site has a review of most of the modern cameras:

    http://www.largeformatphotography.info/roundup4x5.html

  9. #9

    Join Date
    Sep 2006
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    64

    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    It is just amazing to me that you can buy a sinar F2 for less than a point and shoot digital camera would cost you at Ritz Camera, etc.

    But anyway, I would only say that of the cameras that you are looking at, the sinar has one advantage that probably stands above many other cameras in that practically everything that Sinar has made for very many years will fit your camera and there are tons and tons of Sinar parts and accessories out there since so many people used them. So you will always be able to reconfigure or get running as they say. Sinar doesn't hose their users by constantly switching from this thing to that with no compatibility in between. JMHO.

  10. #10
    Format Omnivore Brian C. Miller's Avatar
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    Jun 1999
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    Everett, WA
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    2,997

    Re: Which would you choose and why?

    If you absolutely love making things yourself, the Bender is nice. Otherwise I would get one of the other cameras. My first 4x5 was a Graphlex Super Graphic, and I'm still using it. I'm of the opinion that your first LF camera is one you can physically fiddle with first, then buy it. Each camera model is unique, and its good to get one that "clicks" with you.

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