Learning Macro

[seawolf66]

Folks : Up until today , I have been greatly confussed on and about how to use a 4x5 camera in a macro mode ! the below information I found when read a for sale ad on a Toyo camera!

[The camera's full 324mm extension allows use of 150mm lenses for 1:1 life size macro work, or wide angle lenses for greater than 2x life size. A standard 210mm lens can be focused to 3.5 feet (1/2x life-size)for exceptional portraits and close-ups. Even a telephoto design 360mm,or standard design 300mm can be focused to ten feet for complete versatility in landscape work. ]



So by extending my bellows out to 17" inchs that gives me a 400mm extention sort of, with a 150mm should give a 1:1 ratio and using my 106mm Ilex med wide angle or my 130mm W>A kodak that 2x life size there abouts : Now if this information is right which I believe it is , I now have some thing to work wwith and learn how to do it: Thanks for your time

Any adjustments to my think here would be very well received by me, Rather than waste 4x5 film , I plan on use-ing my 6x6 graflex 22 for a 4x5 to obtain shots with and use to guide me with:

Thanks a lot\\\Lauren

[Bob Salomon]

Lens extension for 1:1 is twice the focal length. For 2:1 it is doubled again. So for your 150mm at 1:1 you need 300mm of lens to film extension. For a 100mm you would need 400mm total extension. The length of the bellows does not include the depth of the camera back. There should be a film plane mark on your back, just like on a medium format or 35mm camera. The extension is measured from that point to the lens so a camera with a 324mm bellows has more then that amount of extension. Since this is a camera with a very short bellows extension (only 12") the range of macro is quite limited. To give you an idea a Linhof TK45 has a 20" bellows and a Linhof Technika has a 16" bellows. For a general purpose camera a 12" bellows is very short, and limiting.

[Bob Salomon]

So by extending my bellows out to 17" inchs\\\Lauren



That will be very difficult to do since the camera you are asking about only has a 12" bellows. 17" would be 431.2mm.

[Dan Fromm]

Lauren, before you spend money on gear, buy a book. Lester Lefkowitz' The Manual of Closeup Photography, available used from booksellers all over the web. Google will find 'em, or start with abebooks.com, addall.com, amazon.com, ...

Uncharacteristic arithmetic error, Bob. Getting 1:1 with a 100 mm lens needs 200 mm extension, not 400 as you typed. Did you have some other magnification in mind?

[Bob Salomon]

Lauren, before you spend money on gear, buy a book. Lester Lefkowitz' The Manual of Closeup Photography, available used from booksellers all over the web. Google will find 'em, or start with abebooks.com, addall.com, amazon.com, ...

Uncharacteristic arithmetic error, Bob. Getting 1:1 with a 100 mm lens needs 200 mm extension, not 400 as you typed. Did you have some other magnification in mind?

I was giving the extension for 2:1 for the 100mm as he was asking about. Not 1:1.

[seawolf66]

Bob Salomon: I thank you very much the corrections and the addittional info on the Linhof Tech III , and yes I measured with the back extended out and the front extended out and came up 17 inchs , eh so I was wrong nothing new: Thanks a lot\\Lauren

[seawolf66]

Dan Fromm: I will look for that book and thanks for the help and Information::\\Lauren