Ebony camera's reflective ground glass

[Marky]

Hello everyone,

I recently bought a very good Ebony 45S. Everything seems nice, however the ground glass and is very very reflective. Is it normal? The seller assured me that everything is original, and I saw Ebony logo imprinted on the focusing screen so there was no reason to doubt him. Is there any way to make it less reflective?

Thank you all,
Mak

[Gary Beasley]

Are you using a darkcloth? A magnifying loupe?
The darkcloth eliminates any refections.

[minh0204]

Mine is quite reflective, compared to other cameras I've seen/used. I can kinda get away without a dark cloth with a longer lens (150mm and longer), as my camera has the standard viewing screen installed -t hey also have a wide-angle viewing screen which is even more reflective.

[Sal Santamaura]

I replaced the Ebony focus assembly in my SV57 with a Maxwell HiLux 4.7 screen (which consists of a one-piece acrylic frosted surface / integral fresnel) and a Beattie anti-reflection-coated cover glass. Unfortunately, the latter is no longer offered, and I'm not even sure Bill Maxwell still sells screens for 4x5 cameras. The original Ebony assembly was very reflective. After replacing it, I can easily compose and focus under daylight ambient conditions by simply shading the camera, as long as lens aperture is f/5.6 or wider. If forced to live with the stock configuration, your only hope will be a good focus tube like the BTZS models sold by The View Camera Store. Good luck.

[Jac@stafford.net]

It is not unusual that a view camera is lacking some fundamental requisites such as a ground glass shroud. It is up to the buyer to make the difference that suits them best. Search and you will find something perhaps as simple as a focusing cloth or drape, or folding apparatus.

Best of luck and enjoy!

[Drew Wiley]

I replaced mine with a Satin Snow glass. And I esp disliked the Ebony Fresnel, which trapped condensation between it and the glass in cold or damp weather.
I hate fresnels anyway. No big deal, just a minor chuckhole in an otherwise great camera, easy to fix.

[Marky]

Thanks everyone for the advices, I will get a dark cloth, seems to be the easiest and most reasonable.