250mm lens

[Allen in Montreal]

As other members have noted, the Fuji-W 250mm was produced in two versions: the coated (but not EBC) f6.7 lens was first, with 80 degrees and coverage of 398mm........

You may have to wait a while for a good one to show up on the auction site (I guess those that have one are hanging on to them), but they sometimes go for final bids well below their true value........

......Lynn has extolled the virtues of the f6.7, and commented on how much the lens was favoured by commercial photographers for its wide coverage and sharpness.........

Luis,

I spent a rather long time searching and finally found a Fuji 250 6.7 ws here on LF.
The prices on Evil-Bay were all over the ball park.

I have only used the lens for a few sheets of B+W on 8x10 so far, but it is razor sharp and I am very happy with it. It is small and light when compared to Nikkor 240 (using a #3 shutter compared to a #1 shutter on the Fuji 250ws) and tiny when sitting next to my Nikkor 300 W!!

I had considered buying a Computar 270 and only having the 270 and a 480 apo Nikkor, the seller, who was also here on LF, advised against the Computar for use on the smaller 8x10 format (he was shooting ULF) and in retrospect, I think he gave good advice, I am happy with the 250 WS performance and size weight ratio, if you are carrying your gear outside of the studio setting.

[John Kasaian]

You might consider a 10" 250mm Kodak Wide Field. It offers huge coverage and even if it is an official "Cult Lens" they can often be found reasonably priced (but not "cheap") I love the look these lenses give---Ansel must have been on to something here!

[Michael Jones]

Another 250mm lens to consider is the 250 Fuji Soft Focus. Not only does it cover admirably at its factory engraved apertures, if you take the time to mark the full closure of the iris, when stopped down to f64 (or f90 depending upon the shutter’s vintage), the usable image circle is 500mm. Many, including me, use this on 7x17 cameras. The other bonus is it is a 8x10 soft focus lens when used wide open (and/or with the diffusion disks). Food for thought…

Mike

[Martin Aislabie]

Have you considered the Schneider 210/5,6 Super Symmar XL

Its a little shorter tha you want but the image circle is huge (500mm)

Martin

[Arne Croell]

Another lens that covers in that focal length, although rarer than hens' teeth, is the Docter Optic 240 f9 Apo-Germinar. Not a huge circle, but it does cover, and is a truly sweet lens for travel because it is so compact and light.

The 240 Apo-Germinar, Scott? Don't you mean the Germinar W 240mm? The latter one certainly covers 8x10 with room for movements, same as the G-Claron, but multicoated.

[David Vickery]

As far as old and cheap lenses go, I recently discovered that my old Bausch-Lomb Kodak anastigmat f6.3 no.6 (about10") covers 11x14 with some room for movement, though with softer corners the further you move it. For 8x10 it would cover quite well and is relatively small. Mine is uncoated of course, so I need to build a lens hood for it.

[John Powers]

You might consider a 10" 250mm Kodak Wide Field. It offers huge coverage and even if it is an official "Cult Lens" they can often be found reasonably priced (but not "cheap") I love the look these lenses give---Ansel must have been on to something here!

I use the 250mm Kodak Wide Field Ektar on 7x17. It gives full coverage but only a small amount of movement. For 8x10 it should offer huge coverage as John Kasaian says.

John