Small and medium format lenses..

[jml]

Are they good enough to use for shooting onto 4x5 film.. I was thinking of building (more like hacking together) a large format camera..

I started with the idea of building a 4x5 box camera, with a pinhole.. Then I figured, if I can use some of the lenses I have lying around the house, then I would be on the first rung of moving towards large format photography..

Basically, the camera would be a box, film holder clasp, and possibly a ground glass view screen.

The question is, can I use 35mm/ MF lenses on such a box, to produce an image, and has anyone here tried it? Quality isnt too important right now, I am in a very experimental phase right now..

Cheers

[Michael Chmilar]

Most of the small and medium format lenses do not have a large enough image circle to cover 4x5 film. You will end up with a small, circular image on the film, surrounded by blackness.

Some small and medium format lenses might cover 4x5, but they would be exceptions to the rule.

[Ron Marshall]

If you use the camera only for macrophotography you may have enough bellows extension for some of the lenses to cover LF.

[Brian Ellis]

A friend of mine used to make circular photographs this way (I realize he wasn't the first person to do it). It made for some very interesting images and they were an immediate attention-getter just because they were different. With the right subject (usually seemed to be subjects that were themselves round or that had arcs of varying degrees in them) he got some excellent photographs. I'd encourage you to give it a try, you might like the round result.

[Ralph Barker]

Experimentation can be great fun. Given that the image circle of 35m or MF lenses won't be sufficient to cover 4x5 at "normal" distances, the results can still produce interesting images. At macro distances, the issues change. For example, I found that attaching a Leica 90mm Elmarit lens to a Nikon digital with gaffer's tape actually produced some astounding macro shots.

Pardon the hand-held camera shake in the (obviously off-topic) "Neica" attachment. ;)

[jml]

Thanks all.

I dont have the camera made yet, and wasnt going to put bellows in for a while.. But I have looked at 35mm lenses through MF cameras, and there is a big image circle.. Not to worry. I will try to figure something out. There has to be a way of using different lenses in different formats, and getting a good result. Back to the drawing board.. It will be a LF pinhole camera at the least. If I get anything else going I will let you know..

Thanks again..

[Ash]

I wouldn't give up. When I "borrowed" my mother's 10x8 camera, the lens had gone missing. I placed a 300mm minolta MD-mount lens on the front, held by masking tape (kinda suspended in the lens-board). The image circle was actually quite large, but I'm not sure it covered the whole area.

Go to your local camera shop, or somewhere, even a car boot sale or something, and look for enlarger lenses. You COULD get away with a 4 1/2 inch enlarger lens (I've got 2 wray supars, and they cover the area on my 1/2-plate camera like a wide angle lens). Those lenses are very small, but their focal length is still around about 114mm, which just cuts it.

I think most people go in the opposite direction, however, and use larger lenses on smaller bodies. I've seen MF lenses on 35mm or digital cameras, and they can produce good results.

I basically tried the same as you, and you need anything over 200mm to even start playing with. check 'bay and maybe get yourself some bellows, or else you won't be able to focus the damn thing!

Hope that gives you some hope!

[jml]

Thanks.. I will hack on and do what I can.. Its good to hear others have tried this kind of thing, I suppose its how it all started initially anyway, trial and error!