Shen Hao and sheet film holders

[swmcl]

Hi all,

I've just taken delivery of my first LF camera. It is a Shen Hao. How it is supposed to hold a sheet film holder beats me. It does accept the Chinese roll film holder by using the slider.

I'll try to include some pics so that you can see my problem.

As you can see, the Fidelity film holders do not have a screw in the side of them. The ground glass that came with the camera does have the screw in the side.

Am I missing something ? Which sheet film holder has screws in the side ?

Cheers for your help guys,

[tim atherton]

if it's like every other camera, the back with the glass in it is spring loaded. You don't remove it to put in the holder

Facing the back, you just put your fingers behind those two knobles of wood on the right hand side of the ground glass, pull them gently towards you half an inch, then slide the fim holder in from the right until it seats. It is then in the back of the camera, with the ground glass frame between you and the film holder

make sense?

[Robert Oliver]

I'm confused by your question.

The ground glass frame is spring loaded and the film holder slips behind the ground glass. The spring loaded ground glass frame holds the film holder snug against the camera. You only take off the ground glass when you are using a graflok back item like a roll film holder.

It would be a huge pain in the arse if you had to remove the ground glass every time you made an image.

[tim atherton]

different camera, but kinda like this (no need to used the fancy thumb and finger method - that's just because the back of the metal canham can be accidentally moved out of zero)

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/canham/canham8.jpg

the film holder just slides into that gap

[swmcl]

Hi guys,

The ground glass holder has no springs on it. Just a screw in the side as seen in the photo. The only other piece of metal in the GG holder is the two little pieces that hold the glass in the wooden frame.

The flat spring steel that is used to tension it against the back has a slot which is used to accept the screw.

The Fidelity sheet film holder simply falls out as there is nothing to hold it in place.

Cheers,

[tim atherton]

or check here (scroll down) - again, different camera, same principal - there's even a little video:

http://www.artm-friends.at/rm/foto/lf-cameras.php

[swmcl]

Hey!

Thanks Tim, Thanks Oliver !

The sheet film holder goes BETWEEN the GG holder and the back ! (I was thinking you'd be taking the GG holder off each time ...) I've been running up a phone bill trying to find someone to sell me some little scraps of Stainless Steel to make some re-engineered springs ...

Ooooh la!

God help the little screws in the wooden back. There seems to be PLENTY of tension on those little screws !

Hmmm, at least I can take some photos now !

You guys are a much appreciated bunch.

Many regards.

[tim atherton]

The flat spring steel that is used to tension it against the back has a slot which is used to accept the screw.
,


those two flat steel springs ARE the springs - they hold the back in tensions against the film holder once it's inserted between the back and the camera.

[naturephoto1]

Steve,

The Shen, like other LF cameras uses a spring loaded back. In the horizontal position, the spring is normally on the left side and is opened on the right side. You pull the portion that is to the right of and in front of the ground glass toward (side toward the lens and your first photo) you and slide the double sheet film holder into the film gate. The film holder will slide in with the white portion of the film holder at the right side. Once loaded the dark slide would be removed from the side of the film holder facing the lens. Once the film is exposed, the dark slide is slid back into the sheet holder. The film holder would be flipped 180 degrees for the second image (again with the white portion of the holder to the right side). Again the dark slide would be removed to take the image on the sheet of film facing the lens. Again, the dark slide would be returned to the film holder after the film was exposed.

Normally the dark slide is put in one direction indicating the film is unexposed while the other side is used to indicate the film is exposed. Since it is so long since I have used the standard holders (instead of the Kodak Readyload holder and Fuji Quickload film), I will defer to others as to which is the standard practice.

When a vertical image is taken by the way, the rotating back of the camera has to be removed and relocked in position so that the film can be slid into the film gate from the top of the spring loaded back.

Rich

[snuck]

I think that the Shen's seem to come with a very tight spring back so it might be a bit confusing... it'll loosen up with time..