The little Horseman would have a hard time taking advantage of the 150 Sironar-S's larger image circle so why waste the money? Likewise a 135 is very close to a 150 in practice. So even if you settled for a lowly 135/5.6 Sironar-N, it would most likely be the lens you keep forever.
And they sell in mint condition for about $300 and change on eBay.
The 150/9 g-claron will fit inside the closed 45FA. Also, while I haven't tried it, judging by its shallow projection in front of the lensboard, which seems the same as the 135 A-S-N, the Nikkor-M 200/8 may also just fit too.
Oren is right about the quite reasonable pricing of a used 135 (or 150) A-S-N, I got mine (mint) for €350 last year.
I haven't found a solution for using instant film with the 45FA, as the Fuji 4x5 and 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 instant films sizes are all 10-pack films which use the thicker PA-45 (or Polaroid 550) and PA-145 (or Polaroid 405) holders respectively. As the above poster says, time to use real film/quickloads with this camera. So I'm using up my stock of FP100B on my Razzle.
@Van Camper & John Biskupski.
While it's true that a small point&shoot does the job, I sometimes use a 3 and 4 studio strobes for indoor and outdoor portraiting. In those cases, regardless of what my Sekonic or DSLR tell me, I always shoot a FP100 with my Hassy to check the final look and texture....
John, when you say that "Fuji 4x5 and 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 instant films sizes are all 10-pack films which use the thicker PA-45 (or Polaroid 550) and PA-145 (or Polaroid 405) holders respectively" I assume that those holders do not fit the Horseman, right?
And since we are talking about holders, does the 545i work for both Readyload and Quickload? I'll be mainly using Portra 160 NC (which I don't think is Readyload available), Portra 160 VC (which I think it is) and some Fuji every now and then. What ready/quick holder would you recommend? I just don't know if each brand sells it's own or if there is a "universal" one.
Thanks for the links Van (although I don't understand a single word of the last one...)
@ Oren
You're right, that's the price of the "S" model.....
@ Frank
It makes all the sense in the world, I'm definitely going to check that 135/5.6 Sironar-N on Ebay. However, your comments leads to my zillionth question: You say that the Sironar's IC is too much, but what should be a good IC for a 135/150mm (given the movements of the Horseman(
Ps: Not that I will be shooting architecture, but I'd like to take good advantage of the movements to its limits sometimes.
To all; sorry if I ask the same question a couple of times, I'm not an English native speaker and I hadn't practiced in a while...
The Polaroid 545 series holders, as well as the Kodak Readyload and Fuji Quickload holders, are now obsolete since all the film that was made for them is now discontinued.
The other Instant Film options for large format are the Fuji FP-145 or old Polaroid 405 holder for the smaller Fuji 10-pack films or the Fuji FP-45 or older Polaroid 550 holders for the full-size Fuji Instant films.
The holders are too thick to fit between the ground glass and back of some cameras. I have not tried a Horseman so I am not an absolute authority on whether or not they will work, but it is something to check out.
If the camera has a Graflock style back then the holders can be mounted with sliding tabs once the ground glass is removed.
As for the coverage of a 135 Sironar-N, it should be sufficient for most large format work. The more image coverage the better, so it's a trade-off between cost and size versus compactness and value.
Any recomendation for film holders? Should I go for the originals, buy them on Ebay (not sure if they are all compatible)? What about lensboards? Are ebay ones ok, or should I get an original one?.
Man, so many things to buy and decisions to take. I better put all that to work soon....
Thanks!!
Ramon
The Polaroid 405 and the Fuji PA-145 instant 3.25x4.25 film pack holders are 27mm deep, versus just 15mm for a Fuji Quickload holder or a Polaroid 545 series holder. Too tight for my 45FA spring back. I haven't explored whether a bar mounting system (after removing gg) could be adapted to this camera. But they fit fine into a Canham and a Wista spring back.
For Fuji Quickloads, I suggest you use the Fuji Quickload holder (mark II is the latest). The Polaroid 545 series holder apparently takes Kodak readyloads without problem. I have read in some threads, but have no personal experience of this, that quickloads work well in both the Fuji and Polaroid holders, but not the converse, ie sometimes Kodak readyloads don't quite work so well in the Fuji holder.
Just to correct an impression from previous posts, both Fuji 4x5 Quickload individual sheet film and Kodak 4x5 Readyload are both still available, just a very limited choice of emulsions.
Your other question on lens choice, I don't think you need to worry about coverage for 4x5 with the A-S-S 150, whose IC is 231mm with 75 degree angle of view, unless you are planning extreme architectural work. The N with IC of 214mm and 72 degree aov is not far behind, very adequate for the great majority of purposes.
Don't forget you can add the Horseman 2x 150-300mm lens converter to these lenses to get usable 300mm on the 45FA. Mpex sometimes have them in stock used.
Its just to unsharp in my opinion, it kills all the best things of a sharp lens!Don't forget you can add the Horseman 2x 150-300mm lens converter to these lenses to get usable 300mm on the 45FA. Mpex sometimes have them in stock used.
Cheers Armin
P.S. And yes you can take every standard 4x5 inch filmholder!
Thank you guys.
As just received my Horseman 45fa, and although I have it's my first LF camera and have nothing to compare, I'm veeeery pleased. The camera is much smaller and portable than I thought, and it looks very solid and well built indeed!
Now I just have to find a nice Sironar N 135mm that fits inside the camera close.
I assume it's going to be a gradual, challenging and sometimes frustrating transition from MF to LF, but I can't wait to see my first 4x5 negative!!!
Before you buy that 135, think, if you really do want a 150. The Schneider 150mm Xenar f5.6 fits inside the FA. It does not have much coverage but is VERY small, VERY sharp. It forms the basic outfit for an outstanding back pack camera. Couple it with a Nikon 200M and/or a Germinar or Fuji 240 f/9 with a C-board.
BTW the Germinar 240 on a C-board will focus down to 15 feet. I found the Germinar so sharp I sold my 300 Fuji Tele. Enlarging gave better results than the tele.
Also there are some off-brand lens boards out there. I found that the few bucks you save are not worth it. They all have a slightly loose fit. Buy the Horseman.
Thanks Jim, any idea where I can get them?? I've been looking on ebay but Im not able to find Horseman ones......Originally Posted by Jim Rhoades
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