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sperdynamite
11-Jul-2016, 06:07
What's your optimal loupe magnification? I've been using a Fuji 4x loupe that isn't terrible but I am having a bit of a hard time focusing with it. I have to rack in and out before I feel that I've hit optimal focus, and even then I rely somewhat on stopping down. Would a greater magnification/more expensive loupe help with this problem? I'm looking at the little Wista 5x that you can get new, but I know there are even 8 and 10x loupes too.

I'm focusing on my brand new Chamonix 45N-2. Such a beautiful camera! Can't wait to break it in. :-)

B.S.Kumar
11-Jul-2016, 06:12
It depends on your eyesight and age. I used a cheap Agfa 4X for many years, then a 7X Horseman for 6 or 7 years. I started using a Peak 10X a few months ago, and I hope it works for the next 6 or 7 years. I have a 15X in reserve :)

Kumar

sperdynamite
11-Jul-2016, 06:22
HAHA! I'm 32. Shouldn't be TOO bad. But I do have memories of not complaining about focusing dimmer screens in my early 20s.

BrianShaw
11-Jul-2016, 06:32
4x (Forex).

rdenney
11-Jul-2016, 09:37
A 4x isn't enough for me. I've been using a 6x tilting loupe, but I will occasionally uses 10x loupe.

It also depends on the screen. A grainy screen (or a coarse Fresnel), especially when the lens is stopped down, will become unviewable at higher magnifications.

Rick "whose Maxwell screen can be viewed at 10x even through the Fresnel" Denney

Drew Wiley
11-Jul-2016, 09:53
I like 7X Horseman/Peak/Nikon (all the same thing) loupes for both 4x5 and 8x10 usage.

Ari
11-Jul-2016, 09:59
10X Schneider, bought at first for focusing wide-angle lenses on 4x5; now I need it to compensate for poor eyesight and I use it on 8x10.
As a result of using the 10X, I've also changed the type of ground glass I use, going to a much finer grind.

Doremus Scudder
11-Jul-2016, 10:33
I use a two-step approach.

I rough focus and frame/compose using 4-diopter reading glasses. Fine focus is done with an 8x or 10x magnifier/loupe. I have always liked the higher magnification for fine focusing. Perhaps it's from my early days of shooting 35mm slides and using 10x loupes to view those.

Racking in and out is not going to go away; that's how you find the right focus.

Best,

Doremus

carylee2002
18-Jul-2016, 18:45
I use a used Calumet 7x loupe and had put black electrical tape around the barrel so my focus plane doesn't move everytime I use it.

jose angel
19-Jul-2016, 07:18
I have several loupes, e.g., 10x and 8x Docters, 6x Silvestri (without the tilting accessory-), 4x Rodenstock, amongst others.
My favorite ones use to be the Silvestri and the Rodenstock; like Ari, I tend to use the 6x for "fine grind" cameras (sometimes the 8x) and 4x for all the rest. Maybe the easier, more comfy to use is the Rodenstock.
With "bright type" screens I only like to use the 4x.
Needless to say that any focusing loupe should be adjustable (that is, with diopter correction).

John Kasaian
19-Jul-2016, 07:25
I started with a 9x Agfa because that is all I had. Now I have a 6x Silvestri, which I can hang around my neck.One or the other it doesn't matter much to me, but the string on the Silvestri is sure nicer than walking around with an Agfa in my pocket.

Bob Salomon
19-Jul-2016, 07:51
I started with a 9x Agfa because that is all I had. Now I have a 6x Silvestri, which I can hang around my neck.One or the other it doesn't matter much to me, but the string on the Silvestri is sure nicer than walking around with an Agfa in my pocket.

8x Agfa, not 9x.

Luis-F-S
19-Jul-2016, 11:02
Years ago, at Fred Picker's suggestion I had a pair of 5x reading glasses made my my optometrist. I still use those, and I also have an 8x Toyo loupe as a back up. I also have 4x, 6x, 8x Schneider and Rodenstock loupes which I used mostly on negatives. Too high a magnification on the ground glass and all you see is the grind of the glass. I suspect that 6-8x is probably optimal, but I would not give up my 5x glasses. L

Doremus Scudder
19-Jul-2016, 11:14
I started with a 9x Agfa because that is all I had. Now I have a 6x Silvestri, which I can hang around my neck.One or the other it doesn't matter much to me, but the string on the Silvestri is sure nicer than walking around with an Agfa in my pocket.

"Are you happy to see me, or is that an Agfa in your pocket."

Mrportr8
21-Jul-2016, 09:40
I use a magnifying visor like a jewler would wear. It keeps both hands free and I have a choice of 3 different magnifications. This also makes it very easy to check the corners which is a problem with a round loupe.

Ian Gordon Bilson
25-Jul-2016, 03:10
Well,there you are, people. A consensus has been reached.

barnacle
25-Jul-2016, 12:11
If you don't want to pay 'photographic' prices, there is a large range on Farnell's. We use a (rather expensive for what it is) head mounted binocular magnifier at work ("Who's got the googly eyes?") which I think I might borrow one weekend. - http://uk.farnell.com/edsyn/ma10/magnifier-headband-with-2-5x-lens/dp/353760

Though this one - http://uk.farnell.com/lightcraft/lc1770/led-magnifier-2-5x-mag/dp/2442795 - looks similar in many ways, and is a lot cheaper (and obviously doesn't need the batteries and light for our purposes.)

Neil