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View Full Version : Sironar vs Sinaron N vs S



Nick Wood
22-Nov-2006, 07:34
One for Mr Petronio I think.

Are Sinaron lenses merely rebranded Rodenstocks, and is there any significant difference in quality?

What's the main difference between Sironar N & S i.e. is the 'S' generally worth the extra spend?

And what of 'Apo' Sironars?

(Can you tell I'm looking for my first lens?)

Bewildered from the UK

Nick

Oren Grad
22-Nov-2006, 08:24
http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=14151

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=18873

Oren Grad
22-Nov-2006, 08:26
PS: They're all very fine lenses. If you're just getting started, you can confidently select among them just by weighing your budget and intended use against price, size, weight and coverage.

Nick Wood
22-Nov-2006, 08:39
Thanks for the information, and links to other threads.

I must learn to dig deeper into this forum before starting a new thread!

Having said that, I tried a search for 'Sironar' which returned all sorts of (on the surface seemingly unrelated) threads & posts.

Nick

Oren Grad
22-Nov-2006, 08:48
Thanks for the information, and links to other threads.

I must learn to dig deeper into this forum before starting a new thread!

Having said that, I tried a search for 'Sironar' which returned all sorts of (on the surface seemingly unrelated) threads & posts.

Nick

Yes, searching just on "Sironar" will get you a swamp. The other threads were easy for me to find because I remembered them.

In any case, welcome aboard! If you can tell us more about what you hope to accomplish with your first lens, I'm sure you'll get lots of specific suggestions of reasonably priced options to consider. Good luck!

Jack Flesher
22-Nov-2006, 09:27
Mods: This (and the corresponding answer list) should be a permalinked FAQ ;)

Nick Wood
22-Nov-2006, 09:37
Have just taken delivery of a Linhof Kardan GT. Have been waiting for a decent kit to crop up on eBay, but continually miss out.

Opted for monorail over field; really I was after something more portable, but this will get me going in the mysterious LF universe.

I was expecting German precision in the Kardan. Now that it's turned up it seems to be 'super-precision' ...WOW!

Unfortunately there's no lens board. I fully realised how expensive Linhof accessories are, but got the camera for a song.

Anyway, to lenses. Most of my subject matter is landscape, with a bit of portraiture and architectural thrown in. My favoured MF lens is 50mm.

I've half decided to start with a 90mm and a 210mm, though I'm not sure how much movement I'll get from the standard Kardan bellows with the 90mm. I'll shortly be receiving a recessed lens panel adaptor which will take Technika panels, so that should help with the 90mm, but I'm not sure whether it'll help enough?

I only chose to investigate the Rodenstocks because of the 'Lenses for 4x5 cameras - landscape' feature on the LF homepage.

Any other suggestions would be most welcome.

Thanks

Nick

Joakim Ahnfelt
22-Nov-2006, 11:08
You could look for the cheaper Wista lensboards they will fit.

Ted Harris
22-Nov-2006, 14:14
Actually there are a raft of generic boards for the Technika format. In addition to Wista boards are also made by Nikon and Toyo. Many of the plain vanilla boards are jsut fine but beware of boards that are simply a flat metal panel with no light trap in the rear.

You can get good quality boards, both new and used, all the time from Midwest Photo ... Linhof too.

Richard Kelham
22-Nov-2006, 18:10
Actually there are a raft of generic boards for the Technika format. In addition to Wista boards are also made by Nikon and Toyo. Many of the plain vanilla boards are jsut fine but beware of boards that are simply a flat metal panel with no light trap in the rear.


Technika boards are no use without an adaptor as Nick has a Kardan which has the (unique) large square boards. Linhof do make an adaptor board but it is likely to be pricey – I got one for £25 from MXV. Check the S/H lists from them, as well as Teamwork, ffordes, Robert White and of course Linhof & Studio.

You won't get much joy with a 90mm lens using the standard bellows either, even with a recessed mount. As a new bag bellows will cost you more than the camera did, some other solution may be called for! The Kardan GT is a lovely camera, but a bit of a brute for lugging across country.


Richard

Frank Petronio
22-Nov-2006, 18:51
There are relatively inexpensive Linhof Kardan to 4x5 Technika adapter lensboards on eBay right now, I think I posted a link on another thread. Certainly they are less expensive than a new one. Bag bellows do come up, but only a few per year. You might try the German eBay for more selection.

In the end, this is why I am using a Sinar rather than a Linhof or Arca. Of the three fine brands, probably the Sinar is the least "quality" (with the exception of the Norma) but it is the most plentiful and the prices are way down. You can easily find hundreds of Sinar attachments and accessories on eBay and on dealer's shelves, at decent prices.

The lack of moderately priced accessories is part of the reason why Linhof monorails sell for so little, inspite of their excellent quality.

If you stick with normal 135 - 210mm lenses on the Linhof you need nothing more than the proper lensboard to make excellent photos. But I wouldn't bother getting a 90 until you secured a decent bag bellows.

Ted Harris
22-Nov-2006, 18:54
Note that Nick said he was getting a Technika adapter board. As for the 90 without a recessed board. Likely correct that there will be a lot of constriction in the movement using the estandard bellows, all depends on how stiff. I use a 90 without any problem on my field cameras with the standard bellows. On the monorail I usually switch to the bag.

Richard Kelham
23-Nov-2006, 12:06
I've just dug out a ruler: the Kardan standard bellows squashed tight is about 100mm from lensboard to film plane. Bag bellows it is!