Originally Posted by
BradS
in 2006 and 2007 I had the singular good fortune to travel all around Ecuador and Northern Peru. I brought lots of film but only two cameras and only two lenses....it was not primarily a photo trip..
A 1970's vintage spotmatic with the standard 50mm Takumar lens was my "backup camera".
A top rangefinder 4x5 Crown Graphic with the standard 135mm Xenar was my main camera. I carried and used it every where. I shot mainly hand held and rangefinder focused. Exposure was guessed most of the time during the day but, I had a small gossen light meter too. I carried ten standard film holders, a changing bag and three film boxes.
The beauty of the crown is that it is all self contained. It opens and shoots almost as quickly as a medium format SLR...it is rugged and dead simple. And it really isn't that heavy. It doesn't need any special backpack, case or other special considerations - just fold it up, put it in a big plastic zip lock (when travelling by dugout canoe or panga) and throw it in you bag with your other stuff. No fuss!
Needless to say, I recommend that you seriously consider getting a 4x5 crown graphic immediately and acquaint yourself with all of its subtle beauty.
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