Doug Meek
24-Dec-2001, 16:12
As a newcomer to LF I have been suffering from buyer's remorse. I purchased a To yo 45AII before I new of the existence of this wonderful forum. After finding ou t about the forum, I learned of the existence of Ebony cameras. The glowing revi ews that have been posted for Ebony's could not be ignored. As a backpacker, I wanted a camera that was light (wooden) but yet sturdy. As a landscape photogra pher, a range of usable lenses from 75-300mm seemed about right. Specs on the R W45 at the Ebony website made my decision an easy one. It is 2-1/2 lbs lighter t han my Toyo, has center tilts (front and back), and has a usable lens range of 6 5-500mm (telephoto). Perhaps I would even be able to fold it with a small lens attached - another big plus for a backpacker.
I was curious, however, about the lack of postings from people who had actually used the RW45. I ordered one from Jeff at Badger Graphics and received it last week. Unfortunately, the specs on the RW45 are incorrect in one important area - minumum bellows draw. The RW would not focus to infinity with my Schneider 75 /5.6 SA ! My Schneider is brand new and has a flange to focal distance that is spot-on 75mm. The Ebony specs on the RW45 state a minimum bellows draw of 60mm. If this were true I should have had no difficulty whatsoever of focusing the 75 to infinity on a flat board, yet I was at least 10mm shy of being able to do so. If I tried using any forward tilt (critical in landscape), the problem was exa cerbated since the lens was now even further from the back.
The obvious solution would seem to be the use of a recessed lensboard. Unfortun ately, there are 2 problems. First, this camera has a VERY stiff bellows - almo st cardboard like. The bellows on my Toyo is far more supple and seems to be of significantly higher quality. The movements on the Ebony are almost non-existe nt with the bellows fully compacted. Secondly, with the bellows fully compacted , you no longer have a 20 degree drop-bed capability because the camera back hit s the rear base arm after tilting only 10 degrees. The main purpose (as I unders tand it - remember , I'm a rookie) of having a drop bed is so that you don't tak e a picture of the front of the camera with super wide lenses like my Schneider 75. In short, the RW45 should not be used with anything less than a 90mm. Ebon y's claim of being able to use lenses all the way down to 65mm seem to be incorr ect. As a landscape photographer, I used 24mm often in my 35mm photography, so I simply can't get along without my 75 in 4x5. A 90 just won't cut it.
I told Jeff at Badger about the problem and he cheerfully offered me a refund. Dealing with Jeff has been an absolute pleasure. He had never heard of any prob lems with the RW45 such as I have just described. This concerns me because sinc e I am a rookie to LF I hope that it's just not me doing something really stupid . The 75 Schneider works easily on my Toyo with a flat board. Using a 58 with a recessed board on the Toyo would be no problem.
One more note - the RW45 did indeed fold with my Rodenstock 150 attached. You j ust have to mount it backwards. The camera was beautiful! I really wanted to k eep it. Those center tilts would have been nice. The weight savings speaks for itself. On the other hand, the Toyo has much smoother camera controls and is a lot easier to use IMHO. Perhaps now I understand the mysterious lack of posting s on the RW45. Please forgive me ahead of time if this is just a rookie mistake , but I don't thing that it is. I hope that this information might help other n ewcomers who are in the same situation as myself.
Doug Meek
I was curious, however, about the lack of postings from people who had actually used the RW45. I ordered one from Jeff at Badger Graphics and received it last week. Unfortunately, the specs on the RW45 are incorrect in one important area - minumum bellows draw. The RW would not focus to infinity with my Schneider 75 /5.6 SA ! My Schneider is brand new and has a flange to focal distance that is spot-on 75mm. The Ebony specs on the RW45 state a minimum bellows draw of 60mm. If this were true I should have had no difficulty whatsoever of focusing the 75 to infinity on a flat board, yet I was at least 10mm shy of being able to do so. If I tried using any forward tilt (critical in landscape), the problem was exa cerbated since the lens was now even further from the back.
The obvious solution would seem to be the use of a recessed lensboard. Unfortun ately, there are 2 problems. First, this camera has a VERY stiff bellows - almo st cardboard like. The bellows on my Toyo is far more supple and seems to be of significantly higher quality. The movements on the Ebony are almost non-existe nt with the bellows fully compacted. Secondly, with the bellows fully compacted , you no longer have a 20 degree drop-bed capability because the camera back hit s the rear base arm after tilting only 10 degrees. The main purpose (as I unders tand it - remember , I'm a rookie) of having a drop bed is so that you don't tak e a picture of the front of the camera with super wide lenses like my Schneider 75. In short, the RW45 should not be used with anything less than a 90mm. Ebon y's claim of being able to use lenses all the way down to 65mm seem to be incorr ect. As a landscape photographer, I used 24mm often in my 35mm photography, so I simply can't get along without my 75 in 4x5. A 90 just won't cut it.
I told Jeff at Badger about the problem and he cheerfully offered me a refund. Dealing with Jeff has been an absolute pleasure. He had never heard of any prob lems with the RW45 such as I have just described. This concerns me because sinc e I am a rookie to LF I hope that it's just not me doing something really stupid . The 75 Schneider works easily on my Toyo with a flat board. Using a 58 with a recessed board on the Toyo would be no problem.
One more note - the RW45 did indeed fold with my Rodenstock 150 attached. You j ust have to mount it backwards. The camera was beautiful! I really wanted to k eep it. Those center tilts would have been nice. The weight savings speaks for itself. On the other hand, the Toyo has much smoother camera controls and is a lot easier to use IMHO. Perhaps now I understand the mysterious lack of posting s on the RW45. Please forgive me ahead of time if this is just a rookie mistake , but I don't thing that it is. I hope that this information might help other n ewcomers who are in the same situation as myself.
Doug Meek