Apo Nikkor Process Lenses

[Dan Fromm]

Pete, if anyone was ripped off it was the seller.

[trundrumbalind]

The lenses themselves perform quite well, sharp, coated and have nice contrast and I believe them to be real sleepers for the money. I have a couple of 480's and a 600mm APO Nikkor all have very large coverage and the 480 covers my 12x20 with some movements. The 480 will fit into a modern copal 3 which is nice and the large lenses 600 & 610 fit into an Ilex #5. They are large lenses so be prepared for that. As suggested see SK Grimes for mounting.

Hello! I just bought a 480 Apo Nikkor for my Sinar P2 14x17 mod. I read you comment about it covering 12x20 with some movements but I forgot to ask if that was at infinity or portrait distance??
Either way, thanks for that comment, I bought it for $25 after reading this thread!

[jbenedict]

One of my photographic mentors, Ed Olson at the Camera Show in Seattle, bought a large number of these Nikkor process lenses. The shorter ones were in the high 300mm range and the largest ones were in the 750mm+ range. He was selling them "by the millimeter". He constructed a "long focus" camera to demonstrate them. He sawed off the shutter section from an Anniversary Graphic and mounted it on a custom bed and a very long custom bellows. The one that I saw was specifically designed for the 750mm lens. He used 4x5 film and it worked really well. Ed's been gone for quite a few years now but the idea is still there. I've been wondering how well a Speed Graphic shutter would work on the from of an 8x10 camera for use with process lenses. The front of the camera would need to be pretty stout to deal with the movement of the shutter... Perhaps something to try out...

Elsewhere on this site, "Big Bertha" Graflex cameras are discussed. There were built by newspaper photographers to cover events where they needed to be a long way from the action and no other tools were available. They used the SLR 4x5 Graflex body with a custom bed and bellows. Search also on "Big Bertha Graflex" on Google and you will get an idea of what is possible.

[Drew Wiley]

My experience with the Apo-Nikkors is strictly with the more modern version. I have a variety of them, and they're stunningly sharp and superbly color corrected all the way from very close up clear to infinity. My largest camera is an 8x10, so I can't comment on anything larger, except to say that the image circles are fairly
generous - way beyond the published circle intended for process specifications. Some of these make superb enlarging lenses too, which is mainly how I use them.

[Dan Fromm]

Hello! I just bought a 480 Apo Nikkor for my Sinar P2 14x17 mod. I read you comment about it covering 12x20 with some movements but I forgot to ask if that was at infinity or portrait distance??
Either way, thanks for that comment, I bought it for $25 after reading this thread!

This link http://sdrv.ms/1i4czGa will take you to a page of links that has a link to Nikon's account of Apo-Nikkors' coverages. If you're too lazy to follow the links, Nikon claims that the 480 will cover a little more than 400 mm at infinity. 14 x 17 wants 560 mm, 12 x 20 wants about 600.