Buying advice for first LF camera

[andre]

I think the beginning of my LF journey is imminent and I start to have an idea of what type of camera I'd like to have.
Could I ask you for some concrete advice on models. Also considering that I will try to purchase within the EU.
I have never owned or shot a camera before so my points below may be a little off


I would like to do environmental portraits
I will need travel to locations by metro a lot
I'd love a wooden camera for looks & weight
Should be without a rear shutter (am I saying this right?)
Should have a graflok back
Should ideally come with a 127mm or 135mm lens
Will shoot B&W in available light. Lens should not be too contrasty and faster than 5.6


Thanks for having a look :)


EDIT: Sorry, I guess I should mention a budget. I'd go up to 1500 EUR for a complete outfit.

[Regular Rod]

I think the beginning of my LF journey is imminent and I start to have an idea of what type of camera I'd like to have.
Could I ask you for some concrete advice on models. Also considering that I will try to purchase within the EU.
I have never owned or shot a camera before so my points below may be a little off


I would like to do environmental portraits
I will need travel to locations by metro a lot
I'd love a wooden camera for looks & weight
Should be without a rear shutter (am I saying this right?)
Should have a graflok back
Should ideally come with a 127mm or 135mm lens
Will shoot B&W in available light. Lens should not be too contrasty and faster than 5.6


Thanks for having a look :)

Let's see if we can help you with your requirements...

I would like to do environmental portraits You can use any format for that. If you are lucky enough to be able to find subjects then go for it.
I will need travel to locations by metro a lot So long as you are permitted to take a rucksack and a tripod on the metro that's fine.
I'd love a wooden camera for looks & weight Wouldn't we all but they are expensive. Metal cameras are tough and better for use in all weathers and frankly you get used to the weight.
Should be without a rear shutter (am I saying this right?) That is a restriction you might like to get rid of. 4x5 Press Cameras often come with a focal plane shutter. You can ignore it and keep it open, using the camera as a normal 4x5 camera OR you can use cheaper barrel mounted lenses and put the focal plane shutter to work for you.
Should have a graflok back Not necessarily! As long as the back takes standard film holders like Toyo or Fidelity you will be able to source film holders. More importantly you want a revolving back to change between horizontal and vertical formats without moving the camera.
Should ideally come with a 127mm or 135mm lens Usually a 4x5 camera comes with no lens and you buy one separately. Those focal lengths are not exactly portrait lenses. 150 mm is a good general focal length and will be better for those portraits.
Will shoot B&W in available light. Lens should not be too contrasty and faster than 5.6 Only if you are rich will you be able to find a lens faster than [/I]f[/I]5.6 available light is no problem if you use a tripod.


In Europe you can easily find cameras like the MPP MkVI, MkVII and MkVIII. Any of these gives you a very compact but massively capable camera.

http://www.mppusers.com/mtmkvii.jpg

Very easy and quick to set up. Can be used hand-held with a built in range finder coupled with a simple Symmar 150 mm lens would give you a very versatile outfit that is not beyond the reach of a beginner. You will need some double dark slide film holders like the Fidelity or Toyo versions, a changing tent or darkroom to load them from the boxes your film will come in (avoid a bag as this is a recipe for dust on your films), the Harrison Changing Tent is damned good but you can get very good Chinese versions on eBay, if you can afford it get a big one as the extra room is very helpful and makes the loading and unloading much easier. To develop your films I believe the best way currently is to use a modified Paterson Orbital Processor http://freepdfhosting.com/f640343f29.pdf shows you what to do to make it work well.

I suggest MPP because I use a MkVII and find it excellent in every way.

There are alternative cameras. Put a search on eBay and wait...

RR

Post Script: Your budget is fine and lets you spend on the often overlooked ancillaries too.

[Mat5121]

Some older Tessar type lenses are available in f/4.5 such as the Schnieder Xenar 150mm or the Zeiss Jena Tessar 135mm. Probably lots of others too. These are usually available at very low prices. They are also usually uncoated so you have to deal with lens flare(lens shade/hood). Faster lenses tend to have very big glass or get incredibly expensive but the Xenar is very small. Make sure to get something with a reliable shutter as fixing them is a real pain and mounting in new shutters is prohibitively expensive. The previous poster makes a very good point about the usefulness of a focal plane shutter, which would open up a whole world of cheap barrel lens options.

Good luck with this and have fun!