Perhaps I'm being a little unfair on the Sinars, but if you ever get a chance to do a side by side comparison of a Sinar F1 for example and an Ebony you will see where I'm coming from. That said I will admit that there are thousands of happy Sinar users out there so perhaps I should shut my mouth. I played with a Sinar Norma recently...a beautiful camera which proves that light weight monorail design doesn't have to mean wobble.
Ed, the Sinar F series are rickety when compared to other cameras in their price class, such as the Arca Swiss F-Line Classic or the A-S Discovery, and a few other makes as well. I've owned orworked with both (and currently own an Arca Swiss F-line). Ravin would be better off with a Sinar X, An Arca-Swiss FC, a Linhof TK45s, or even a Canham DLC. For that matter I am really hard pressed to think of any set up I've ever done that required 20 degrees of tilt even for 2:1 macro shots! Maybe she should try the Sinar so she'll have the built in tilt / swing + DoF Calculator!
My problems doing macro in the field are A) wind and B) tripod location. I use a 150mm lens on a camera with about 18" of usable extension. Being able to reposition the standards along the length of the rail/bed without having to move the tripod is a necessity for this kind of work -- and to do this you need more extension than just what your reproduction ratio table says.
I'm not sure if tilting the entire camera will help in "macro" situations. Try this solution out with your current camera before you commit to it.
I'm not sure exactly what kind of work you intend to do, but I'd probably only consider a camera with 11" of bellows if my idea of a long lens was 120 or 135, and my normal lens was < 90mm.
Man wants an Ebony. He doesn't want a Sinar, nor a Linhof, nor a NirvanaView. He's not gonna be happy with anything else, no matter if it's better suited to his photographic needs than the Ebony. Leave him this week's dream.
Hi all, and thanks for the response. I do have a monorail. A Calumet 45N. The problem is the size and weight of the camera/case. I have a Tenba car case. Can't get any smaller then this case to hold this camera. And its still quite large. The other problem is the weight of the tripod. Its the lightest in weight that I could get away with for this camera, but still "weighty". Its not possible to travel on foot without my Wesco cart that I attach the case and tripod to. This does not make for an enjoyable day of shooting when my focus is on, say, getting the cart up each curb, getting the three parts on the train, up steps, in the door of a store. Traveling by plane with this gear is out of the question since I will only "carry on" my equipment. It's too big for carry on! I'm going to England, and quite possibly the walking tours I will be taking will not allow this cart at the ruins sites. I often hear how field cameras are flimsy. I know Ebonys are not. I really like center tilts. Most are not. Most have base and center tilts. Too many knobs. I have a bad back. I felt I could use a fairly light tripod with a field camera. I felt the craftsmenship of the Ebony would not disappoint me. And that when traveling about, my focus would be on creating, rather than transporting a camera meant for the studio. I tried to do it cheap. My camera was $400.00. Its as rigid as they come. Sometimes I think of getting a 2x3 view camera to cut down size and weight. But I'm determined to work in the field with 4x5 equipment that won't break my back. Anyway, thanks again.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks