"I neglected to mention in my initial post that I live in Montana. Finding a dealer around here that carries LF equipment is darn near impossible, so I'll probably not be able to see an Arca unless I buy one. "
Not at all true.
Just ask Marcia at F11 in Bozeman. She is very experienced in large format.
One last item to consider-- The standard classic f -line Arca comes with 38mm bellows which could be a problem for longer lens use-- though a longer bellows is available. And now with micrometer orbix-- geared axis tilts are available. It is shear delight to focus with my right had while gear-tilting with the left. Oh yeah, I think the AS is less money too--
I've only used the Arca (2.5 years now).
1) it is very rigid
2) With the telescoping (I think that's their term) it's relatively small for a 4x5, but it's not tiny. I'm under the impression the TK folds considerably smaller.
3) Arca _might_ sell one. Steve Grimes could certainly make one to fit any smaller board you like.
4) It's very high quality on the Arca.
I have the classic F-line (I think) there is the compact version with the smaller front standard. I've been very happy with it all around, but I don't backpack the thing.
Dennis,
Like one of the folks above, I've had my TK45 for about 10 years. Here are a couple of considerations you may not have heard.
As you've probably learned from handling one, there are several components in its base which slide relative to each other as you extend the camera. These and the shift movements can be rather "stiff" in sub-freezing temperatures. I live in Anchorage and spend more than a bit of time outside with my camera in the winter, so this isn't theoretical.
A second problem that I've found with the camera is that the standard bellows sag a bit more than I would like in warm weather. This only becomes an issue when the extension exceeds about 300 mm. Whenever I use my 355 mm conventional lens or my 600 mm telephoto, I place a support between the bellows and the rail to avoid having some of the optical path blocked due to the sag.
That being said, I'm still quite happy with the camera, and would purhcase another if anything happened to the one I have. Aside from the camera itself, there is the support that Bob S. provides in this forum. I don't know of any other large format camera company or sales rep who regularly participates. He's been very helpful when I've had a problem that required a bit of attention.
With respect to trying the Arca: have you considered renting one? I doubt that it would be cheap, but, as you may have noticed, we all tend to hang on to these much longer than most folks hang on to their 35 mm cameras.
Best of luck,
The current model is the Technikardan 45S, successor to the TK45. You may want to compare the T45S with the TK45--the changes are barely noticeable. Whether you buy the Arca or TK, you cannot go wrong--both are great cameras. On a calm day you likely will never experience any problem with lens shake with either camera fully extended. TK45's small lens board is advantageous when you have to store several lens in a camera bag or pack. Arca Swiss larger bellows opening accomodates lenses with larger rear elements, the type of lenses you might buy if you want the lens to cover both 4 x 5 and 8 x 10 formats. Most field photographers avoid the 8 x 10 format lenses because they cost too much, weigh too much, are too bulky, and the filters are extraordinarily expensive. With TK 45 you have only the 4x 5 format camera. It folds up to the size of a textbook. It is extremely easy to focus with whatever focsl lenght lens. With some of the 4 x 5 Arca Swiss models (not all), you can buy a kit to upgrade the camera to 8 x 10. Field photographer Jack Dykinga has a website showing landscapes taken with the 4 x 5 Arca-Swiss F Compact. Arca Swiss offers an Orbix that allows geared axis tilt, but I am unsure whether the Orbix is available for the F Compact, or is available only with the M-series. The geared axis tilt is overkill for landscapes--you do not need it and it adds weight. People have different preferences regarding center lense tilt vs base lens tilt. I prefer the center axis tilt of the TK st
I erred in saying that if you buy the TK 45, all you have is the 4 x 5 format. I forgot about the fact that Arca and TK 4 x 5 cameras can be used with roll film backs, allowing 6 x 12, 6 x 7, 6 x 6, and 6 x 4.5 formats, and Polaroid 545 & 545i film holders, with Polaroid films' unique dimensions. When lens shifts are used with these smaller formats, you will encounter more situations where you will not see any light dropoff, that otherwise might occur with the 4 x 5 film format. Thus, you will more frequently not have to use the center filters that will involve a loss of 2 f-stops. I do not know how much lens shift is required before any light dropoff is noticeable with the XL 110 lens--the wider the coverage of the lens, the less likely you will see light drop with lens shifts. Light drop off is very noticeable for 4 x 5 format with shifting of the Rodenstock 115 mm lens. Have you checked the price for the Rodenstock 82 mm center filter for that lens? Similarly, if you adopt the strategy of bying the Arca Swiss with lenses that barely cover 5 x 7 or 8 x 10, for later upgrade of you camera to that format, you will encounter the problem of light drop off with lens shi
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