Donald Qualls
14-Jan-2005, 05:59
Those with very good memories might remember my asking questions concerning a couple of Ica and Zeiss Ideal 9x12 cm plate cameras. I don't recall if I posted here, but I managed to combine parts and repair bellows leaks to make the Zeiss unit functional, and have used it a little (before a move forced a four month hiatus in photography, just ending now).
Now, I have two reasonably well functioning dial-set Compur shutters (one suffering slightly from a previous owner's hack job, but both accurate enough for B&W negative work), with identical 13.5 cm f/4.5 Tessar lenses. What I'd be interested to know is what other lenses I might look for that would fit these shutters -- that's important, rather than lenses in shutters that might fit the front standard of the Ideal, because the shutters mount to this camera with a bayonet latch similar to that used twenty years later on Exakta 35 mm SLR cameras and lenses -- and it would be nifty to be able to swap between two lenses (say, the 13.5 cm normal and a 165, 180, or even 210 mm longer lens, or else the normal and a 90 mm wide angle) quickly -- or at least to swap glass in one shutter while the other remains in the camera to keep dust from multiplying.
Obviously, lenses originally made to fit dial-set Compur shutters will work (or at least this size -- was there another size of dial-set that I need to watch out for?), which (from the ones I've seen) include 15 cm and 16.5 cm, made for larger plate cameras, and possibly a 10.5 cm or so made for smaller cameras. However, the glass from my somewhat newer rim-set Compur won't fit; the rim-set has a larger thread diameter than the Dial-set.
So, the question is -- what other shutters have the same thread for mounting the glass? I occasionally see 10x15 and 18x24 plate cameras on eBay at prices low enough to buy for the glass, if I'm sure the glass will fit my shutters; in addition, one can occasionally see a mounted or unmounted classic lens in the same venue.
I'm prompted to this by some portraits I made of my grandmother in September, which required considerable cropping to be viewed as actual portraits (head and shoulders or head and torso), even though the camera was set up only about five feet from the subject...
Now, I have two reasonably well functioning dial-set Compur shutters (one suffering slightly from a previous owner's hack job, but both accurate enough for B&W negative work), with identical 13.5 cm f/4.5 Tessar lenses. What I'd be interested to know is what other lenses I might look for that would fit these shutters -- that's important, rather than lenses in shutters that might fit the front standard of the Ideal, because the shutters mount to this camera with a bayonet latch similar to that used twenty years later on Exakta 35 mm SLR cameras and lenses -- and it would be nifty to be able to swap between two lenses (say, the 13.5 cm normal and a 165, 180, or even 210 mm longer lens, or else the normal and a 90 mm wide angle) quickly -- or at least to swap glass in one shutter while the other remains in the camera to keep dust from multiplying.
Obviously, lenses originally made to fit dial-set Compur shutters will work (or at least this size -- was there another size of dial-set that I need to watch out for?), which (from the ones I've seen) include 15 cm and 16.5 cm, made for larger plate cameras, and possibly a 10.5 cm or so made for smaller cameras. However, the glass from my somewhat newer rim-set Compur won't fit; the rim-set has a larger thread diameter than the Dial-set.
So, the question is -- what other shutters have the same thread for mounting the glass? I occasionally see 10x15 and 18x24 plate cameras on eBay at prices low enough to buy for the glass, if I'm sure the glass will fit my shutters; in addition, one can occasionally see a mounted or unmounted classic lens in the same venue.
I'm prompted to this by some portraits I made of my grandmother in September, which required considerable cropping to be viewed as actual portraits (head and shoulders or head and torso), even though the camera was set up only about five feet from the subject...