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View Full Version : SA 58XL with CF vignetting with Lee 86mm ring & filter holder



Leigh Perry
6-Sep-2004, 22:04
Lee don't make a wide angle 86mm adaptor ring. On 4x5 the non-WA ring & foundation holder vignette.

Is there a solution to this problem? Thanks.

Charles J Moult
7-Sep-2004, 00:10
Well, yes and no I have a Lee86mm ring and it is so slim you could call it a W/A. No problems using it with a 58mm plus centre filter with ONE slot and Pol. ring. For some reason a lot of people want to use all the slots supplied in the kit. Regards C

Leigh Perry
7-Sep-2004, 01:21
I have the normal non-WA 86mm ring. Mine definitely vignettes, even with 0 slots + 1 polariser ring + B+W polariser.

I wonder if you have found a different adaptor ring?

Leigh Perry
7-Sep-2004, 03:48
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To clarify: the polariser setup I am using is based on the 105mm ring and 105mm B+W polariser, as shown here (except I am not using any filter slots).
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David E. Rose
7-Sep-2004, 07:17
How about using the Lee "Snap" holder that uses a rubber band for attachment? It can mount the gel touching the front of the lens- you can't get any closer than that!

John W. Randall
7-Sep-2004, 12:27
Hi, Leigh,

I'm a bit confused about what components you are using - but perhaps my own recent attempts to re-invent the Lee Filter System I've been using for years could help you figure a way out of the ever-present vignetting problem when applying filters to the front of the lens of a large format camera - especially when movements are applied.

There is often no problem when movements are not used. However, as soon as a bit of tilt, or a few millimeters of rise or fall is dialed in, that dreaded dark thingy emerges on one side or another of your ground glass. Since a big part of the large format allure is the flexibility the various movements add to the making of the image, that usage has to be 'dialed in' when deciding which filter setup will best accomplish the task of making a picture without that vignetting occurring on the top, bottom, left, right, or any of the corners of the ground glass.

Once I had decided that 100mm/4 inch square filters were the way I wanted to go, the next step was to make each lens compatible with the largest adapter-ring-filter-thread diameter available for the Lee System, while keeping in mind that that compatibility also had to apply to a lens cap attachment that would be common to each lens. I also reminded myself that others more knowledgeable recommend no more than 3 filters on a lens at one time, lest image degradation begin.

I went with a step-up arrangement that got me to a final thread diameter size of 95mm. Lee makes an adapter to fit. Contax makes 95mm lens caps to fit (Clip-in/clip-on - they are secure.) That got me away from the sides of the lens far enough to feel comfortable. The next problem to overcome: Bringing any filter setup back as close to the lens as far as possible. For it's often more of what's way out there in front of the lens than what's to the side. The more you build the lens configurations outward, the more liable the vignetting nightmare.

Since I had extra Lee components, I was able to remanufacture the inside diameter of a spare filter holder to fit snugly onto the outside of those installed 95mm filter rings (From B+H). I believe Lee now offers a similar setup that fits onto the outside of a lens - check Badger Graphics for particulars. Then I reassembled three filter slots onto that filter holder - and went outside, set my 115mm Grandagon at infinity, and proceeded to apply the maximum rise and fall combinations necessary to confirm the soundness of the setup.

Everything works.

Lens shades/lens hoods are a (necessary) subject for another thread. I think I got that one nailed, too.

Best regards,

Karl Amo
7-Sep-2004, 16:53
I have a SA 58XL, Schneider centerfilter, and Lee filter holder with three slots. As a non-vignetting solution for using it all on a 4x5 camera, I'm having S.K. Grimes make a plastic adaptor to slip over the 90 mm OD of the centerfilter. The outer diameter of the adaptor will be 95 mm, with slots to accomodate the Lee filter holder.

I made a cardboard version of the holder first, and it worked.

Lee provides a solution: a filter holder sized to slip over 100 mm OD lenses, plus a donut spacer to adapt it to 90 mm OD centerfilters.

Leigh Perry
8-Sep-2004, 07:22
Karl & John, thanks for the details of your solutions. Given my selection of adaptor rings, perhaps the Lee push-on holder and doughnut spacer will be my easiest approach.

Don Miller
9-Sep-2004, 05:45
John, I would like to hear about your lens shade solution. Perhaps start a new thread?

While not relevant to the 58XL, Robert White now lists a 115mm Lee holder that will slip over a Schneider 4 series CF that is used on the 72XL. Also listed are "wings" that extend the Lee holder to accept 5" filters.