Wanderlust 4x5 P&S

[Tin Can]

Yup one open!

Go for it dudes!

[rdenney]

Just sent out an update to make sure people have the right reward selected, and there's some considerable churn... Some canceled pledges, some new ones, some increased. Just a heads up that some lens packages or early bird slots might magically appear as people settle on their rewards.

Yeah, when my wife entered her pledge (for the 65) just a few minutes ago, we noticed that a lens package was available. I was tempted even though I already have the lens, heh.

Rick "but it was gone on the next screen update" Denney

[Tin Can]

I am glad you also suffer from restraint, but that could be a mod characteristic...



Yeah, when my wife entered her pledge (for the 65) just a few minutes ago, we noticed that a lens package was available. I was tempted even though I already have the lens, heh.

Rick "but it was gone on the next screen update" Denney

[jnl]

A 65mm kit just opened up!

[Ben Syverson]

It's like lens kit whack-a-mole!

[jnl]

It's like lens kit whack-a-mole!

LOL
and its gone!

[gliderbee]

Ok, I have my Angulon 90/f8 ! Now waiting for the camera to hang at the back :D ! I'm glad it came with an original mettalic screw-in type lenscap for the back, with the Scneider logo on it. Never seen one like this before.

Stefan.

[Ben Syverson]

Whaaaa?? Super Early Bird specials popping up all over!

[AuditorOne]

Congrats, looks like this was a very successful project.

[Kuzano]

Well, as soon as I see the debit from my debit card, I am packing up my 90 Schneider 6.8 (linhof select) in Synchro Compur shutter and shipping it off to SK Grimes for a service. ($100 to $125).

I'm presuming the Kickstarter will draw the money from my account today???

With the film holders on standby, and including the price of the lens, the service and the camera body, This is the least expensive, lightest, most accomodating ergonomically, 4X5 Project I have ever done.

Originally, I bought my first Crown in 1990 (wow,23 years) at a Camera shop located in an old church in Columbus Ohio...... Columbus Camera Group. I think they are still in that old church. The first time I went there the building was filled with tables of used merchandise, and you used to pull boxes out from under the table and rummage through them. I found my Crown in one of those boxes.

I drove up from Cincinnati one day, expecting to spend a couple of hours at the camera shop. I had been a constant follower of the Columbus classifieds in the back of the old rag Shutterbug for some years. I finally realized after moving from Oregon to Cincinnati, that I was about a two hour drive, or less from CCG in Columbus. I got there mid morning, and started looking around. At noon I left and walked down the street for lunch. I went back to CCG and looked some more. I left about 3PM. Lighter by about $225, I took my new (to me) Kowa 6 w lens, and Graflex Crown, and drove home.

This was nearly as much fun, watching the dollars roll up on the screen. Thanks guys.

[Larry Kellogg]

Whaaaa?? Super Early Bird specials popping up all over!

Hilarious, why would people give up a deal like that? I just got the email saying that preorders have closed and that my credit card would be charged.

Hooray! Congratulations!

Just yesterday, I pitched the camera to someone who was complaining about the hassle of shooting a Linhof. I hope he beat the preorder deadline. The $99 price did not give him pause, considering the cost of other cameras.

[Ben Syverson]

Thank you all so much... If it wasn't for LFF, I wouldn't be shooting large format, let alone making a 4x5 camera. The 65mm version is a direct result of the poll in this thread and the feedback you gave us... And you did an amazing job getting the word out. So THANK YOU!

Today we spoke to a tool and die shop in Michigan. We learn something every single time we talk to the tooling shops. It's always fascinating for us.

We also shot and processed two batches of two different light leak tests (one test for the back and one for the helical). Thanks to those tests, we were able to verify that our back is absolutely not leaking light. So that is a huge relief.

We keep adding tape to the inside and outside of Prototype #2, and the amount of leak/flare has gone from a large amount (visible in the Brazil shots) to an absolutely tiny amount. At this point, it's not visible during normal shooting, but when we do a stress test, we can still provoke fogging in one corner. I'm convinced that the cause of the leak is the 3D printing material on the helical. What's happening is that light is entering the tiny gap between the lens tube and focus ring, going right through the helical ridges, and entering the camera. This won't happen in the production camera because light can't get through black polycarbonate.

I'm posting this because I'm trying to be 100% transparent (no pun intended) about the process. We're going to quadruple check the CAD. We really don't want to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a faulty design. But the nice thing is that even if we need to scrap two molds and redo them completely, we have the financial elbow room to do it. This camera will not go out the door until it's working perfectly and we're proud to put our name on it.

Thanks again you guys. YOU made this happen.

[Steve Goldstein]

Nothing happens without an idea. That came from you and Justin. The support from the worldwide photo community is certainly validation, but this camera concept wouldn't exist without your original idea.

I'm really looking forward to getting my Travelwide.

Any chance you'll be able to put an Arca-Swiss compatible mounting point on the bottom?

[Ben Syverson]

Any chance you'll be able to put an Arca-Swiss compatible mounting point on the bottom?
We did look into it... The portion that would make up the AS mounting surface would have to extend past the bottom of the camera, and would be a pretty thick chunk of plastic. Beyond adding bulk, that extra thickness means a potential for that section to sag or pull away from the mold as it cools. So I think the tradeoffs don't quite justify the convenience. Sorry about that!

[rdenney]

We did look into it... The portion that would make up the AS mounting surface would have to extend past the bottom of the camera, and would be a pretty thick chunk of plastic. Beyond adding bulk, that extra thickness means a potential for that section to sag or pull away from the mold as it cools. So I think the tradeoffs don't quite justify the convenience. Sorry about that!

How about three 1/4" tripod threads instead of one? Then, we could use a long AS plate from eBay with two screws--the ultimate anti-twist plate. But for those not using plates, it would add flexibility to how they attach it to a tripod.

Rick "happy to spend your money" Denney

[Ben Syverson]

How about three 1/4" tripod threads instead of one? Then, we could use a long AS plate from eBay with two screws--the ultimate anti-twist plate. But for those not using plates, it would add flexibility to how they attach it to a tripod.

Rick "happy to spend your money" Denney
Three tripod threads?? People seem to use everything from DSLRs to Mamiya RZs to metal field cameras with one tripod thread. :)

The tripod thread itself is a metal insert which has to be hand-placed in the mold, so not only does the metal insert part itself cost money, it also costs more to run. Adding two more would add to the retail cost of the camera and would necessitate making the camera larger somewhere to house the tripod mounts.

I get that people want flexibility, but keep in mind that it's a 1.3 pound camera. A Leica weighs more!

[Steve Goldstein]

We did look into it... The portion that would make up the AS mounting surface would have to extend past the bottom of the camera, and would be a pretty thick chunk of plastic. Beyond adding bulk, that extra thickness means a potential for that section to sag or pull away from the mold as it cools. So I think the tradeoffs don't quite justify the convenience. Sorry about that!

Oh well, I'll just use the tripod hole to attach a small AS-type plate.

[Tin Can]

P&S camera...

[rdenney]

Three tripod threads?? People seem to use everything from DSLRs to Mamiya RZs to metal field cameras with one tripod thread. :)

The tripod thread itself is a metal insert which has to be hand-placed in the mold, so not only does the metal insert part itself cost money, it also costs more to run. Adding two more would add to the retail cost of the camera and would necessitate making the camera larger somewhere to house the tripod mounts.

I get that people want flexibility, but keep in mind that it's a 1.3 pound camera. A Leica weighs more!

When Arca-Swiss, Kirk, Wimberley, Acratech, or Really Right Stuff provides a custom anti-twist plate for the Travelwide same as they do for the cameras you mentioned, then I'll agree. It's not the weight of the camera that makes twist control important, but rather my fat hands pushing in a film holder. But if you can't accommodate my need, I suppose I'll get over it.

Rick "that was a joke; you can laugh" Denney

(P.S. How about a hole or two that lines up with a Mamiya or Pentax medium-format camera, so that a plate for one of those, with the alignment pin, would fit properly? Would adding such a hole affect the design or cost? It would not need to be metal lined. Mamiya uses two holes, Pentax one.)

[Ben Syverson]

(P.S. How about a hole or two that lines up with a Mamiya or Pentax medium-format camera, so that a plate for one of those, with the alignment pin, would fit properly? Would adding such a hole affect the design or cost? It would not need to be metal lined. Mamiya uses two holes, Pentax one.)
Color me skeptical... I made a short video demonstrating the Travelwide on a tripod, complete with a film holder insertion or two. If you're doing something rougher than what I do in this video, God help you!


https://vimeo.com/65355646
Link to the video (https://vimeo.com/65355646)

Edit: you'll notice that our spring back sticks a little bit—that's due to the gaffer's tape we've added to the camera, not the design. You'll also see the espresso machine which generates all my ideas.

[welly]

Color me skeptical... I made a short video demonstrating the Travelwide on a tripod, complete with a film holder insertion or two. If you're doing something rougher than what I do in this video, God help you!


https://vimeo.com/65355646

Edit: you'll notice that our spring back sticks a little bit—that's due to the gaffer's tape we've added to the camera, not the design. You'll also see the espresso machine which generates all my ideas.

The video is saying it's private. Can you open it up? Thanks!

[Ben Syverson]

The video is saying it's private. Can you open it up? Thanks!
It will only play embedded in this page, not on Vimeo. It seems to be working for me—anyone else not able to see it?

[welly]

It will only play embedded in this page, not on Vimeo. It seems to be working for me—anyone else not able to see it?

Oh, I see. I was using my iPhone and it didn't have the video player. Can see it now!

[Tin Can]

Like

[Valdecus]

(P.S. How about a hole or two that lines up with a Mamiya or Pentax medium-format camera, so that a plate for one of those, with the alignment pin, would fit properly? Would adding such a hole affect the design or cost? It would not need to be metal lined. Mamiya uses two holes, Pentax one.)

RRS makes a universal plate B-25 which nicely fits a Linhof, Graflex Speed Graphic and others. You may want to consider lining up the hole for one of those plates.

Cheers
Andreas

[Larry Kellogg]

Nice video! Looks good. I always load 4x5 that way, push the holder in and punch the camera a few times, LOL.

Just make sure the metal/plastic tripod socket at the bottom of the camera is strong enough so that it does not somehow break, that would be a bummer. I'm planning to use the TravelWide with a GorillaPod, it seems a little silly to carry around my Gitzo for that, although I could.

[Larry Kellogg]

Here's one thing that will be a bit annoying. The Blik rangefinder covers two cold shoes, and the viewfinder takes one, leaving no place for a bubble level. Do they make cold shoe extenders that would stick out from under the Blik allowing me to mount my bubble level?

[Ben Syverson]

Here's one thing that will be a bit annoying. The Blik rangefinder covers two cold shoes, and the viewfinder takes one, leaving no place for a bubble level. Do they make cold shoe extenders that would stick out from under the Blik allowing me to mount my bubble level?
Yeah, the Blik is annoyingly long, though that does give it a decent baselength. One option is to mount the Blik on the left-most shoe, leaving two free. It will extend past the camera to the left, which may or may not be a problem. The other option is to mount the bubble level on the front of the camera so that it's visible through the viewfinder...

[Larry Kellogg]

Yeah, the Blik is annoyingly long, though that does give it a decent baselength. One option is to mount the Blik on the left-most shoe, leaving two free. It will extend past the camera to the left, which may or may not be a problem. The other option is to mount the bubble level on the front of the camera so that it's visible through the viewfinder...

Yeah, but I don't want to see the bubble level when I compose every shot. Perhaps I will velcro it to the top of the viewfinder. ;-) Maybe I can glue another cold shoe to the top of the Blik.

[Ben Syverson]

Justin just sent me this drawing of the Really Right Stuff B25 (http://reallyrightstuff.com/ProductDesc.aspx?code=B25&type=0&eq=&desc=B25%3A-Used-on-several-cameras) anti-twist plate aligned with the camera... It looks to us like it will fit. So it looks like there's a solution for anti-twist after all! With that plate you should be able to take a baseball bat to the camera without twisting it, as long as you have a strong enough tripod and tripod head. Batter up! :)

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/5/rrs-plate.jpg

[Tin Can]

Great stuff, but also more money I don't need to spend. However it is just a hole.

Why not?

[Larry Kellogg]

Does that protruding screw on the bottom of the plate make it hard to attach it to the quick release plate of certain tripods? I'm thinking about the Ballhead-X for the Gorillapod.

[Kuzano]

Here's one thing that will be a bit annoying. The Blik rangefinder covers two cold shoes, and the viewfinder takes one, leaving no place for a bubble level. Do they make cold shoe extenders that would stick out from under the Blik allowing me to mount my bubble level?

Looking at it from a solution rather than problem perspective, one could mount the bubble level to a plate that fits the shoe... Resin... and stick the plate in from the front of the shoe and have the bubble level in front of the range finder.

Now at this point, the problem thinker would interject that the bubble level obscures one of the range finder windows... To which the solution person would say... AHaaa...but not if you put an "L", or dogleg bend in the plate that holds the bubble level and inserts into the shoe spot. The dogleg would be beyond the flat of the back and position down low over the cone, out of the way of the rangefinder windows.

The Blik may seem a bit long for an external rangefinder, but it focuses better than a shorter rangefinder.

Now, it occurs to me that there could be yet another approach to this situation. How about a dogleg plate to mount the Blik UP and Back a bit to move it behind and over the bubble level, and (bonus) closer to the shooters eye. That's another way to go....While mounting the bubble level directly in one of the cold shoes on the camera.

A problem thinker looks at the locations of the cold shoes as a fixed location, thus a prolem. The solution thinker looks at the 3 fixed cold shoes as an opportunity to hang three items on top of the camera, not necessarily right where the shoes exist. I suspect it would be easy to make a fairly "Universal TravelWide accessory bracket", a simple plate, no drilling needed, in order to place accessories BOTH in front or behind the shoe and to also raise or lower the accessory relative to the shoe.

A set of brackets may include two of the dogleg plates and one straight plate.

Now a problem seeking buyer might say, Nah!!! that won't work (for me). While a solution seeker might respond with, "Wow Lars, Your Pretty creative, How long did it take you to think of that?" to which I would respond (smart ass grin that you cannot see over the internet) About 5 minutes. First came visualizing the fix, then thinking how to make the bracket.

Now,,, before I make yet another enemy, Larry Kellog, I do not intend this to be a reflection on you. You would have eventually figured all this out. Remember, we have seven month to work all these out before we are going to have in our hands, one of the best things, that has happened (at least to me) in 20+ years of shooting large format.

Thanks again guys.

[Tin Can]

like

[Larry Kellogg]

Lol.

[Larry Kellogg]

I'm hoping we only have four or five months to figure out these problems. ;-) I'm going to need a bracket for a hand warmer if I have to wait until December.

[Tin Can]

Ya, what if they deliver early. I will be lost wondering...


I'm hoping we only have four or five months to figure out these problems. ;-) I'm going to need a bracket for a hand warmer if I have to wait until December.

[Ben Syverson]

We would like to be early! Some of it is out of our hands (mold production), but I would say that December is our most pessimistic estimate. We're trying our hardest to under-promise and over-deliver. It's a constant challenge.

Have you heard that rule of thumb for estimates you get from contractors? You double their number, and then move it to the next time scale. So if they say it'll take four hours, it'll take eight days. I'm slowly learning to self-apply that formula.

[zuiko90]

A question about a 90mm f6.8 Angulon filter size.
My sample appears to be about 40mm by measuring across the diameter. I've never come across a 40mm filter thread size. Could it be perhaps 41.5mm?
This 90 looks to be quite old.

[Jon Shiu]

A question about a 90mm f6.8 Angulon filter size.
My sample appears to be about 40mm by measuring across the diameter. I've never come across a 40mm filter thread size. Could it be perhaps 41.5mm?
This 90 looks to be quite old.

40.5mm, but you can add a step-up ring

Jon

[Michael_qrt]

A question about a 90mm f6.8 Angulon filter size.
My sample appears to be about 40mm by measuring across the diameter. I've never come across a 40mm filter thread size. Could it be perhaps 41.5mm?
This 90 looks to be quite old.

According to Schneider's data page the filter thread should be 40.5mm with a pitch of 0.5mm:
http://www.schneideroptics.com/info/vintage_lens_data/large_format_lenses/angulon/data/6,8-90mm.html

[Valdecus]

Justin just sent me this drawing of the Really Right Stuff B25 (http://reallyrightstuff.com/ProductDesc.aspx?code=B25&type=0&eq=&desc=B25%3A-Used-on-several-cameras) anti-twist plate aligned with the camera... It looks to us like it will fit. So it looks like there's a solution for anti-twist after all! With that plate you should be able to take a baseball bat to the camera without twisting it, as long as you have a strong enough tripod and tripod head. Batter up! :)


Perfect! I already have a few spare B25 plates for my Speed Graphic and Linhofs... ;-)

Cheers,
Andreas

[zuiko90]

Ah, 40.5mm, thanks for the info I'll get a step up ring, probably to 49mm, I have lots of filters and hoods in that size.

[redrockcoulee]

Ah, 40.5mm, thanks for the info I'll get a step up ring, probably to 49mm, I have lots of filters and hoods in that size.

That is what I did when I had the 90 and with all the 49mm filters I have had for years for the Pentaxs.

[sergiob]

I arrived pretty late to the scene and would love to have one, if not two. Are going to take preorders? Or when do you think I can buy one? This is just the thing we all need. To have a project that will probably bring a lot of new users to LF, and more importantly, film. Thank you.

[Valdecus]

Sergio, I just sent you a PM.

Hasta pronto
Andreas

[zuiko90]

Just obtained a the 90 f6.8 Schneider. Holy cow that's a tiny lens. Drilled a new lens board to stick it on my 4X5 and had to mash the bellows almost all the way back to reach infinity. This is going to be one short camera, about 5 inch's front to back.

[Larry Kellogg]

I can barely smash my Wisner technical field bellows enough to focus a 125mm, I have not bothered to try the 90mm. I think I would need bag bellows. The Travelwide seems longer than five inches in the video, though. What is the depth of the camera?

[rdenney]

I can barely smash my Wisner technical field bellows enough to focus a 125mm, I have not bothered to try the 90mm. I think I would need bag bellows. The Travelwide seems longer than five inches in the video, though. What is the depth of the camera?

There are realities. A 3-1/2" lens (90mm) that is not a retrofocus design (which these aren't) will have its rear node 1) within the lens assembly, and 2) 3-1/2" from the film when focused at infinity. The front cell of this tiny lens may add a half inch, and the film holder another amount not quite 3/4". The total must be less than 5", or it simply would not be focused on infinity.

Rick "a 90mm Super Angulon would add more" Denney

[zuiko90]

Larry, my 4X5 is a cheap kit camera sold by Calumet in the early 80's. It was called the Porta-vue and came as a bunch of wooden sticks in a box that had to be glued and screwed together. The tapered bellows that came in the kit is rather stiff and maximum extension is only about 8 inch's. I bought it a couple of years ago for $25 as a basket case and have rebuilt it as a rather simple fixed back camera, with limited movements on the front standard only. The front lens board is only 5X5 in. with a 3/8 in. shelf so it would be hard to build a recessed lens board and still reach the controls for the 90mm lens. Still, I can *just* get the 90mm Angulon close enough to reach infinity so I'll have a chance to evaluate coverage and performance before the TravleWide body arrives.

I think the TravelWide prototype in the video just appears larger. Ben is clearly able to reach infinity as several of the sample photographs show. He says the minimum lens mount surface to film distance is 89.5mm and the helical extends to 109mm. My Angulon mounts right at 90mm at infinity so I'm good by about .5 mm, plenty of room for lens focal length variations.

[Larry Kellogg]

I understand. I'm happy that the camera will fit easily in my bag. It is what it is. I had a 450mm on my Wisner yesterday. That seemed to be really pushing things at 18", although I am supposed to have 23" of bellows draw.

[Ben Syverson]

Hi guys, the Travelwide 90 is exactly 100mm (3.93") from the front of the helical to the very back. It's as compact as we could possibly make it while keeping the body rigid. With the little Angulon mounted, this thing disappears into just about any bag.

It probably looks big in the video because I have toothpicks for wrists. :)

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/5/travelwide-depth.png

[Kimberly Anderson]

Just purchased a 90 6.8 today in anticipation of getting one of these bodies. I missed the Kickstarter offer (duh), but will be one of the first in line. I like how they want this to be a hackable platform. One of my first mods will be a Graflock-ish back for my Grafmatic holders. I don't think that spring back will hold it in place well enough. Very excited.

[AuditorOne]

Just purchased a 90 6.8 today in anticipation of getting one of these bodies. I missed the Kickstarter offer (duh), but will be one of the first in line. I like how they want this to be a hackable platform. One of my first mods will be a Graflock-ish back for my Grafmatic holders. I don't think that spring back will hold it in place well enough. Very excited.

Tie it on with bungie cords. :)

[Larry Kellogg]

Looks like you guys made CNET Australia: http://www.cnet.com.au/travelwide-4x5-camera-for-affordable-large-format-photography-339343833.htm Cool. Why not push for a mention in CNET USA?

[Drew Bedo]

Well, I have not read every one of the 106 pages of this thread, but I like the concept and the camera . . .
I have the lens and would like to take on with us on atrip to Colorado in a few weeks.


How may I arrange to buy one? Who has it, how can they be contacted and what is the current price?


Cheers to all,

[Corran]

Won't be available to those of us who've already pre-ordered them till December likely!

New sales not likely till next year. Definitely not possible to get one in a few weeks as there are none in existence but test models!

[Drew Bedo]

Ok I'm good with that . . .just have to wait it out.

This camera looks pretty good. The next project should be either aGrafmatic copy or a Mido type product.

[Jim Cole]

Can anyone confirm whether or not the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof Synchro Compur shutter (instead of a Copal) will mount to the Wanderlust without modification? I see it shown on Ben's camera in the photos on Kickstarter, but I am not sure it is a direct fit.

Thanks

[Jon Shiu]

Can anyone confirm whether or not the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof Synchro Compur shutter instead of a Copal 1 will mount to the Wanderlust without modification?

Thanks

The Angulon is not mounted in Copal 1. It is usually in Compur 0, so no problems.

Jon

[Roger Cole]

Can anyone confirm whether or not the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof Synchro Compur shutter instead of a Copal 1 will mount to the Wanderlust without modification? I see it shown on Ben's camera in the photos on Kickstarter, but I am not sure it is a direct fit.

Thanks

Someone in the many pages of posts said it's the same shutter (as the Compur 0), re-labeled, and would work. At least I hope so as that's what I have as well.

[Jim Cole]

Someone in the many pages of posts said it's the same shutter (as the Compur 0), re-labeled, and would work. At least I hope so as that's what I have as well.

Thanks, Roger, that's good to know. I didn't want to plow thru the 100+ pages of this thread. I should have asked before I bought one, but I got a seemingly good deal and couldn't pass it up.

[Roger Cole]

Well at least I thought that was the case. I did a thread search and can't find it. Maybe that was in the APUG thread, or elsewhere. Can anyone else confirm?

[Frank_E]

I'm not sure about the actual shutter itself. I believe they are different. Having said that I can confirm that the angulon 90mm f6.8 fits in a a compur 0 sized hole, since mine is currently mounted on a linhof 0 board.

[Roger Cole]

So we should be able to mount our Linhof Angulons on the Wanderlust with nothing more than an appropriate spanner, then - works for me.

[Jim Cole]

So we should be able to mount our Linhof Angulons on the Wanderlust with nothing more than an appropriate spanner, then - works for me.

Me too!

[MOZ]

Hi guys,

Heard about this project a bit late but 'got my angulon 90 f6.8 on Ebay today :cool:
I've never worked on LF (only MF and 24x36) but will probably love it, anyway i feel really excited about your project.
How can i get a Travelwide 90 ? Will it be available to buy for the "late guys" like me or can you add me on the project ?

[jnl]

Can anyone confirm whether or not the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof Synchro Compur shutter (instead of a Copal) will mount to the Wanderlust without modification? I see it shown on Ben's camera in the photos on Kickstarter, but I am not sure it is a direct fit.

Thanks

Yes, you can use the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof shutter.



So we should be able to mount our Linhof Angulons on the Wanderlust with nothing more than an appropriate spanner, then - works for me.

We plan to ship it with a spanner wrench that doubles as a bottle opener!




Hi guys,

Heard about this project a bit late but 'got my angulon 90 f6.8 on Ebay today :cool:
I've never worked on LF (only MF and 24x36) but will probably love it, anyway i feel really excited about your project.
How can i get a Travelwide 90 ? Will it be available to buy for the "late guys" like me or can you add me on the project ?

You will be able to purchase the Travelwide from our website *after* all the Kickstarter orders have shipped.

[MOZ]

Thanks a lot for your answer, perfect for me !
Another question (sorry newbie on LF, even if quite at ease with MF and my Hasselblad !)... i got almost everything for my Travelwide except for the release cable.
What length do we need for the Travel wide + 90 angulon f6.8 ?
Do you have specific model (how do you attach it to the camera hole ?), do you have a link so that i can see what to get/buy ?

Will really enjoy to have demo videos for people like me who has never done LF before, explaining the basics, what to do, what NOT to do :)
Thanks by advance for everything...

[Jim Cole]

Yes, you can use the Angulon 90mm f6.8 housed in the Linhof shutter.

We plan to ship it with a spanner wrench that doubles as a bottle opener!


Thanks for the confirmation, Justin! Now I'm all ready whenever the camera is. Looking forward to it.

[jnl]

Thanks a lot for your answer, perfect for me !
Another question (sorry newbie on LF, even if quite at ease with MF and my Hasselblad !)... i got almost everything for my Travelwide except for the release cable.
What length do we need for the Travel wide + 90 angulon f6.8 ?
Do you have specific model (how do you attach it to the camera hole ?), do you have a link so that i can see what to get/buy ?

Will really enjoy to have demo videos for people like me who has never done LF before, explaining the basics, what to do, what NOT to do :)
Thanks by advance for everything...

You can use a standard basic cable release. It should be at least 12in long. It fits right through the hole in the handgrip. Here is one on sale for $5.00 that would work -
http://www.camera-filters.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=536&products_id=7066 (similar to the first pic)

Here is one that might sit a little more flush to the body but cost more money.
http://www.calumetphoto.com/eng/product/calumet_12_standard_cable_release/br5012 (similar to the second pic)

95605 95606

If you are buying a new release, I would probably stay away from the ones that have large finger grips. They will probably stand up really high off the camera. Here is an example of what I am talking about for comparison. http://www.camera-filters.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=536&products_id=6334

[MOZ]

Tx a lot.

[searover]

Looking forward to my Travelwide. I found a viewer much like the on in Bens video but with no sharp edges like the one he is supplying with the camera on eBay for 32$ delivered to the states.
See. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=181134410584&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

I'm afraid my Linhof will get dusty with this new horse in the stable.

[Roger Cole]

Those viewerfinders are discussed quit a bit above. I have mine right here. They're sure not a Voigtlander, but don't cost like one either. Should be fine for the job.

[Tin Can]

A lot of bought those already.

Very nice for the money.


Looking forward to my Travelwide. I found a viewer much like the on in Bens video but with no sharp edges like the one he is supplying with the camera on eBay for 32$ delivered to the states.
See. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=181134410584&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

I'm afraid my Linhof will get dusty with this new horse in the stable.

[MonkeyBrain]

I'm afraid my Linhof will get dusty with this new horse in the stable.

Well, you know, if it's looking for a good retirement home, I'm in the market.... ;)

[Steve Pitchford]

I also bought one of those plastic cast viewers from the guy in Israel, a 20mm, he had no 21mm posted that day. I think a 22mm might even be better. I attached it to my Wista with a 150mm Symar. The symar is a tighter view. The quality of the viewer is just OK;in the short range it's soft. I also bought the BLIK (Russian LOMO viewer). There's a lot of them out there and the prices vary. I paid about $20 +shipping. Works well, but before I found the BLIK I bought a Waltz viewfinder for $12 + only $4 shipping. I like the Waltz better and may resell the BLIK after I check with a buddy who also bought a TravelCam. Since buying the TravelCam I have found other portable non-focusing 4x5 cameras, one from Ilford. However, they all cost more and I believe the Travel cam has a superior design. Looking forward to getting my TravelCam already planning an outing and hike to play with it .

Happy Trails, Steve

[Roger Cole]

The Ilford is a pinhole. While the Wanderflust will come with a pinhole cap so you can use it that way, what really makes it different is being designed from the ground up to be used handheld, which isn't practical with pinholes given the exposure time.

The Isralie finder is indeed "just ok" - but that's all I need. Isn't the BLIK a rangefinder? I didn't know they had a dedicated viewfinder. I'm planning to get myself a cheap rangefinder too.

[MOZ]

Do you guys think the Leica viewfinder 21-24-28 could be a good solution (not considering the price of course) ?
http://www.getdpi.com/forum/attachments/gear-fs-wtb/45422d1308368852-fs-leica-silver-viewfinder-21-24-28-mm-lenses-leica-vf-21.24.28-4.jpg

[tenderobject]

I hope they could produce OVF for their wanderlust... with extra fee or something

[SergeiR]

Isn't the BLIK a rangefinder? I didn't know they had a dedicated viewfinder.
it is rangefinder and quite decent too. I am about to do some rummaging through old piles of gear in russia, hoping i didnt toss mine away years ago.

[Corran]

Anybody opened up their BLIK and adjusted the RF? Mine was delivered out of adjustment vertically.

[Tim Meisburger]

If you happen to be passing through Bangkok, I know a good technician that just CLAed my 90mm Angulon for 30 bucks. Fixed a loose aperture blade as well. I have not checked the speeds yet, but it looks snappy (as they say).

[Tin Can]

I know we all are looking for accessories for our Wanderlust. I figured this may be the ticket for self portraits. It is cheap and unique, so I bought it. I love stuff like this.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/unique-Scene-Locator-accessory-when-doing-self-portrait-fits-on-accessory-shoe-/330926327538?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT&nma=true&si=sD4aTy8SuBpf9cnoD9gRwqDYffI%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

[Tin Can]

If money were no object, I will only be able to buy more.

I don't need more.

I am like a kid, a new shiny is a new shiny, price is restricted by money, whatever that is...

Gotta sell more lemonade.



Do you guys think the Leica viewfinder 21-24-28 could be a good solution (not considering the price of course) ?
http://www.getdpi.com/forum/attachments/gear-fs-wtb/45422d1308368852-fs-leica-silver-viewfinder-21-24-28-mm-lenses-leica-vf-21.24.28-4.jpg

[BarryS]

It's been a month since we funded this project and it would be really nice to get a status report. Has any progress been made? Any better idea of a delivery date? I hope periodic updates are forthcoming after the effort we put into publicizing and funding this project. Thanks.

[zuiko90]

It's been a month since we funded this project and it would be really nice to get a status report. Has any progress been made? Any better idea of a delivery date? I hope periodic updates are forthcoming after the effort we put into publicizing and funding this project. Thanks.

Probably not a lot new to report yet. Now it depends on the speed of progress with the fabrication company Wanderlust has contracted with. They did say it would be 10~12 weeks for the molds to be made.

[Tin Can]

Let them rest. They have been very attentive here. This is a labor of love project and they will make very little per hour. We get a great camera for cheap.

They are doing the impossible!

[zuiko90]

I actually don't mind the wait. It reminds me of being a kid in the 1950's, you know, when you sent off that quarter taped to a Kellog boxtop to Battle Creek, Michigan for some little treasure. We lived in rural southern Indiana. I'd faithfully go out each day to check our big rural mailbox. After a couple of weeks you just kinda forgot the whole thing. Then, some hot August day, 6 or 8 weeks later, mom would say "something came in the mail for you today". The moment of initial confusion and then, Oh Yeah!
Ripping open the little battered brown paperboard box, in great excitement you inspected your treasure.
Could have been a secret decoder spy ring, or even better one of those submarines you put baking soda in to make go up and down in the water.

I've got my lens, and other accoutrements ready. Now I'm going to forget about it, (plenty of other photo related projects). Then, one day, unexpectedly, a package will arrive.

I know you can never go home again, but I still look forward to that experience of discovery and joy.

[barnninny]

I think I'll leave mine accoutreless, at least for a while, and do pinhole shots with it.

[Tin Can]

I had forgotten those submarines...


I actually don't mind the wait. It reminds me of being a kid in the 1950's, you know, when you sent off that quarter taped to a Kellog boxtop to Battle Creek, Michigan for some little treasure. We lived in rural southern Indiana. I'd faithfully go out each day to check our big rural mailbox. After a couple of weeks you just kinda forgot the whole thing. Then, some hot August day, 6 or 8 weeks later, mom would say "something came in the mail for you today". The moment of initial confusion and then, Oh Yeah!
Ripping open the little battered brown paperboard box, in great excitement you inspected your treasure.
Could have been a secret decoder spy ring, or even better one of those submarines you put baking soda in to make go up and down in the water.

I've got my lens, and other accoutrements ready. Now I'm going to forget about it, (plenty of other photo related projects). Then, one day, unexpectedly, a package will arrive.

I know you can never go home again, but I still look forward to that experience of discovery and joy.

[Ben Syverson]

Sorry for the lack of updates! We'll have something more to show you soon. We had to make some minor changes to the helical, and in the end we had to redesign three of the parts completely. But the happy result is that we could incorporate a few other changes we had in mind. I think you guys will like the improvements.

[BarryS]

Sorry for the lack of updates! We'll have something more to show you soon. We had to make some minor changes to the helical, and in the end we had to redesign three of the parts completely. But the happy result is that we could incorporate a few other changes we had in mind. I think you guys will like the improvements.

Ben--thanks for the update! Some of us are interested in the design and production process, so any details are appreciated.

[Kuzano]

I actually don't mind the wait. It reminds me of being a kid in the 1950's, you know, when you sent off that quarter taped to a Kellog boxtop to Battle Creek, Michigan for some little treasure. We lived in rural southern Indiana. I'd faithfully go out each day to check our big rural mailbox. After a couple of weeks you just kinda forgot the whole thing. Then, some hot August day, 6 or 8 weeks later, mom would say "something came in the mail for you today". The moment of initial confusion and then, Oh Yeah!
Ripping open the little battered brown paperboard box, in great excitement you inspected your treasure.
Could have been a secret decoder spy ring, or even better one of those submarines you put baking soda in to make go up and down in the water.

I've got my lens, and other accoutrements ready. Now I'm going to forget about it, (plenty of other photo related projects). Then, one day, unexpectedly, a package will arrive.

I know you can never go home again, but I still look forward to that experience of discovery and joy.

Hey, I remember those promotions. I still haven't been to Alaska to see my 1 Square Inch of land in Dawson in the Yukon Territory. It was a certificate on a box of Quaker Puffed Oats or Rice. The promo was called the Klondike Big Inch promo. Gotta get up there and see if the value on that land has gone up in 60 years since I ate that box of cereal. Let's See... Now where did I file that certificate of deed.

http://yukoninfo.com/klondikebiginch.htm

Sent my Synchro Compur Shutter for my Linhof Select Angulon 90 in to SK Grimes. Sent it with a Copal O shutter for my Nikkor 135. CLA and shutter speed table after adjusted.

[Randy]

For those of us who are just now finding out about this project (how did I miss this...I am on the forum several times every day) when will orders be taken for those who didn't get in on the kickstarter project?

[Ben Syverson]

Hi everyone, just a little update.

We're prepping the final files now, and making sure we have all our measurements in order. We've made even more changes since my last message. One of the last things we're trying to determine is the exact position of the set screw—does anyone know? We'd like to have a small cutout for the set screw on the front.

We finally got the indicator and logo type onto the design, and came up with a great solution for focus adjustment. You can see the focus indicator in the design—it's the green part.

It's all coming together now!

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/6/45-new.jpg




For those of us who are just now finding out about this project (how did I miss this...I am on the forum several times every day) when will orders be taken for those who didn't get in on the kickstarter project?
We'll have more info soon—we need to set up a mailing list. But briefly, you'll be able to order a camera after the Kickstarter preorders are shipped. Unfortunately we have no idea when that will be.

[Larry Kellogg]

Looks great! So, the distance scale matches that of the one on the Blik rangefinder and is in meters, right? I think in feet, a bad American habit, but I think meters is fine for this camera. I don't see myself trying to use it for street work, with guessing distances. Would it be too cluttered or difficult to have both meters and feet?

In meters, could you include the little tick marks after 2.5, 5, and 8? ;-)

[dave_whatever]

I wouldn't bother with the set screw cutout to be honest, I doubt there are many angulons left with the set screw still in place.

[Tin Can]

This is an American camera, sold I think, primarily to American's, and we still use 'feet' for distance. Every time I use metric distance, I have to convert it clumsily to yards, which is incorrect enough to matter in many measures, like photography.

We Americans do understand and use metric, but we still prefer SAE or U.S. Units of Measure.

Forcing us to metric has not worked before and I do not think it will work for some time. We tried metric highways in the 70's and it was a huge failure.

Arguing Metric is more logical and international is also ridiculous, anybody can convert measurements simply with the their cell phone or head.

As an aside, I once restored a 1964 Datsun Fairlady roadster. My metric wrenches fit the body parts, but did not fit the engine. It seems we, America, supplied old tooling and manufacturing equipment to Japan under the MacArthur plan to rebuild Japan and Japan for many years used U.S. Units of Measure for heavy machinery.

Perhaps you need to poll again, or examine the current KS participants for location. If this is truly a 'World' camera being purchased by a majority of people outside the U.S. Unit of Measure system, so be it.

[dave_whatever]

Sometimes I think people would do well to remember that 95% of the world's population are not American.... and hence they either think in metres or are capable of dividing by three in their heads.

[Tin Can]

Did you read what I wrote?



Sometimes I think people would do well to remember that 95% of the world's population are not American.... and hence they either think in metres or are capable of dividing by three in their heads.

[Kimberly Anderson]

Sweet. My vote is for meters, and I'm a red-blooded 'Merican.

[Tin Can]

I think the setscrew issue was a red herring.

[Brian Puccio]

This is an American camera, sold I think, primarily to American's, and we still use 'feet' for distance. Every time I use metric distance, I have to convert it clumsily to yards, which is incorrect enough to matter in many measures, like photography.

We Americans do understand and use metric, but we still prefer SAE or U.S. Units of Measure.

Forcing us to metric has not worked before and I do not think it will work for some time. We tried metric highways in the 70's and it was a huge failure.

Arguing Metric is more logical and international is also ridiculous, anybody can convert measurements simply with the their cell phone or head.

Do you know where I can find a cold shoe rangefinder that measures in good old American-apple-pie-and-bald-eagles-and-fireworks feet? Because if that's the focus scale on this camera, I would like a rangefinder to match.

On the flip side, if everyone who plans to scale focus with this camera is picking up the ubiquitous $20 cold shoe rangefinder that works in meters, maybe meters is more logical. Unless you find converting two and quarter meters to 7.38 feet logical. In which case, I guess using feet is more logical for you. It's not for me (and I say this as someone with a degree in math and another in physics).

But I shouldn't really complain. The way I see it, if it comes in feet and everyone is using a cold shoe rangefinder that measures in meters, there will be a market for a ring with meters. I'll start selling them here for $15 each and can fit them into a cheap (international even, if need be) priority mail envelope.

--Brian (who still shoots with 1.37795" film in his M6 like a true 'Murican until he gets his large format travelwide this fall) Puccio

[Tin Can]

I always use my metric tape measure for focus, oops, no metric tape measures sold here. I'll just use my bike's odometer for distance, oops...

[Brian Puccio]

I always use my metric tape measure for focus, oops, no metric tape measures sold here. I'll just use my bike's odometer for distance, oops...

I just solved your problem in 2 minutes with $6. (http://www.amazon.com/Komelon-4912IM-Professional-12-Foot-Metric/dp/B000CFJB08/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370793223&sr=8-1&keywords=metric+tape+measure) I'd be shocked if your local hardware store did not sell a tape measure with imperial and metric units.


Do you know where I can find a cold shoe rangefinder that measures in good old American-apple-pie-and-bald-eagles-and-fireworks feet? Because if that's the focus scale on this camera, I would like a rangefinder to match.

My question still stands. I have no problem seeing feet on the camera if I have a rangefinder to match.

[Tin Can]

I'd be shocked too, as I have 6 tapes here, that all are only U.S. standard, Imperial is not recognized by the Colonies, for some time now.



I just solved your problem in 2 minutes with $6. (http://www.amazon.com/Komelon-4912IM-Professional-12-Foot-Metric/dp/B000CFJB08/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370793223&sr=8-1&keywords=metric+tape+measure) I'd be shocked if your local hardware store did not sell a tape measure with imperial and metric units.



My question still stands. I have no problem seeing feet on the camera if I have a rangefinder to match.

[Ben Syverson]

Unfortunately there simply isn't room for both sets of numbers. As it is, the numbers are less than 2mm tall. That's under 6pt—not unusual for a camera marking, but you certainly wouldn't want 3pt.

Meters wins because it's on more rangefinders. The less mental math you have to do, the better... We technically have more domestic preorders, but our international percentage is amazing considering the project description is all English on a US-centric site. Over time the percentage will settle down somewhere near 40/60 domestic/international.

That surface is flat, so it will be relatively easy to add new markings or cover the old ones... It's a $99 camera, so you shouldn't feel too bad about making modifications!

[Brian Puccio]

Unfortunately there simply isn't room for both sets of numbers. As it is, the numbers are less than 2mm tall. That's under 6pt—not unusual for a camera marking, but you certainly wouldn't want 3pt.

Meters wins because it's on more rangefinders. The less mental math you have to do, the better... We technically have more domestic preorders, but our international percentage is amazing considering the project description is all English on a US-centric site. Over time the percentage will settle down somewhere near 40/60 domestic/international.

That surface is flat, so it will be relatively easy to add new markings or cover the old ones... It's a $99 camera, so you shouldn't feel too bad about making modifications!

Sounds like an excellent decision. If you don't mind, the patriots here whose freedom is insulted and jeopardized by metric units of measure will probably be willing to pay out a Jackson or two to keep the communist influences of metric measurement away from their photography. If you have no plans to sell a second ring with a different scale, I'll look into getting some made (hands, feet, yards, furlongs, rods, etc., you know -- the usual) and selling them here.

Thanks!

[Tin Can]

Darn Ben. I was hoping you would let us bait each other a little longer! :)



Randy, who despises add on rangefinders, giving myself a footing here.



Unfortunately there simply isn't room for both sets of numbers. As it is, the numbers are less than 2mm tall. That's under 6pt—not unusual for a camera marking, but you certainly wouldn't want 3pt.

Meters wins because it's on more rangefinders. The less mental math you have to do, the better... We technically have more domestic preorders, but our international percentage is amazing considering the project description is all English on a US-centric site. Over time the percentage will settle down somewhere near 40/60 domestic/international.

That surface is flat, so it will be relatively easy to add new markings or cover the old ones... It's a $99 camera, so you shouldn't feel too bad about making modifications!

[gliderbee]

>>This is an American camera, sold I think, primarily to American's, and we still use 'feet' for distance. Every time I use metric distance, I have to convert it
>> clumsily to yards, which is incorrect enough to matter in many measures, like photography.

That might be true but is not proven, nor is it necessarily relevant.


>>We Americans do understand and use metric, but we still prefer SAE or U.S. Units of Measure.
>>Arguing Metric is more logical and international is also ridiculous, anybody can convert measurements simply with the their cell phone or head.

Then what is the argument about, since a.o. Americans have cell phones and /or heads too?

Stefan

[zuiko90]

Meters or feet, meh.
I've had photography as a hobby for 45years and because of that tend to think in meters. This, although most lenses for the US market are in feet. Just find it easier to work in the base 10 system. As in, specifications for the TravelWide are in mm. When Ben says the camera is 100mm from back to front I can picture that clearly, no problem.

As an aside, I've always had an interest in astro-photography (good luck with that, living in South Puget sound, western Washington it sometimes seems we get about 3 clear nights a year:() That gripe aside, I'm looking forward to mounting the TravelWide to a barn door drive and trying a few wide field shots.

[Tin Can]

And I see 4 inches...

Ben has spoken and I am happy and confident in his decision.



Meters or feet, meh.
I've had photography as a hobby for 45years and because of that tend to think in meters. This, although most lenses for the US market are in feet. Just find it easier to work in the base 10 system. As in, specifications for the TravelWide are in mm. When Ben says the camera is 100mm from back to front I can picture that clearly, no problem.

As an aside, I've always had an interest in astro-photography (good luck with that, living in South Puget sound, western Washington it sometimes seems we get about 3 clear nights a year:() That gripe aside, I'm looking forward to mounting the TravelWide to a barn door drive and trying a few wide field shots.

[zuiko90]

And I see 4 inches...

Ben has spoken and I am happy and confident in his decision.

Amen brother. It's $99 fur crying out loud! That is less than half the price of the Harman Titan 4X5 (and it does not have a helical). Even If all I ever did with it was pinhole I'd still be miles ahead.

[Roger Cole]

Amen brother. It's $99 fur crying out loud! That is less than half the price of the Harman Titan 4X5 (and it does not have a helical). Even If all I ever did with it was pinhole I'd still be miles ahead.

Best comment yet.

Look, for scale focusing I'd prefer feet, not just because I'm American and think in feet but because feet are a smaller unit and small enough for most purposes, without dealing in decimals of meters. But I can work in meters easily enough.

The fact that the affordable rangefinders that match best with this affordable camera are in meters is what seals my preference for meters.

But either way doesn't really matter that much in the end.

[Ben Syverson]

I think it's crazy that we Americans still use an imperial system handed down by our British oppressors hundreds of years ago. We need to come up with a truly American measurement system. Here's what I propose:

Length:
"Footlong" (11.2 inches)
"Bakersinch" (A footlong divided by a baker's dozen: 0.861 inches)
"Miley" (the height of Miley Cyrus, fixed in 2013—about 5 footlongs and 10 bakersinches)
"Citymile" (1.439 imperial miles, about 1402.7 Mileys)
"Highwaymile" (0.767 imperial miles, about 747.6 Mileys)

Volume:
"Dollop" (4 fl ounces)
"Biggulp" (30 fl ounces, or 7.5 dollops)
"Hottub" (500 gallons, or 2133 Biggulps)

Weight:
"Tallboy" (the weight of a Miller High Life 16oz can, 17.2 ounces)
"Miley" (the weight of Miley Cyrus, fixed in June 2013—94.2 tallboys)
"Shitton" (maximum load capacity of a Ford F150 Regular Cab 4x4. Varies yearly; currently 27.3 Mileys)

[ndrs]

Ben,

Something is missing here. Haven't you forgotten to add a voluminous version of Miley?

Andres



I think it's crazy that we Americans still use an imperial system handed down by our British oppressors hundreds of years ago. We need to come up with a truly American measurement system. Here's what I propose:

Length:
"Footlong" (11.2 inches)
"Bakersinch" (A footlong divided by a baker's dozen: 0.861 inches)
"Miley" (the height of Miley Cyrus, fixed in 2013—about 5 footlongs and 10 bakersinches)
"Citymile" (1.439 imperial miles, about 1402.7 Mileys)
"Highwaymile" (0.767 imperial miles, about 747.6 Mileys)

Volume:
"Dollop" (4 fl ounces)
"Biggulp" (30 fl ounces, or 7.5 dollops)
"Hottub" (500 gallons, or 2133 Biggulps)

Weight:
"Tallboy" (the weight of a Miller High Life 16oz can, 17.2 ounces)
"Miley" (the weight of Miley Cyrus, fixed in June 2013—94.2 tallboys)
"Shitton" (maximum load capacity of a Ford F150 Regular Cab 4x4. Varies yearly; currently 27.3 Mileys)

[Oren Grad]

"Miley" (the height of Miley Cyrus, fixed in 2013—about 5 footlongs and 10 bakersinches)

Smoots - already tested and proven through more than 50 years of real-world use:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot

Not only that, the unit of measure himself became chairman of ANSI and president of ISO. What more could one ask?

[David Karp]

Smoots - already tested and proven through more than 50 years of real-world use:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot

Not only that, the unit of measure himself became chairman of ANSI and president of ISO. What more could one ask?

Finally, some sense brought back to this discussion. :D

[Ben Syverson]

Not only that, the unit of measure himself became chairman of ANSI and president of ISO. What more could one ask?
Literally nothing—that is amazing!

[Brian Puccio]

One day, Einstein, Newton, and Pascal meet up and decide to play a game of hide and seek. Einstein volunteered to be "it".

As Einstein counted, eyes closed, to 100, Pascal ran away and hid. Newton stood right in front of Einstein and drew a one meter by one meter square on the floor around himself. When Einstein opened his eyes, he immediately saw Newton and said "I found you Newton!".

Newton replied, "No, you found Pascal! I am one Newton per square meter."

This joke doesn't work so well in imperial units.

[Tin Can]

I first said f***, then I chuckled...



One day, Einstein, Newton, and Pascal meet up and decide to play a game of hide and seek. Einstein volunteered to be "it".

As Einstein counted, eyes closed, to 100, Pascal ran away and hid. Newton stood right in front of Einstein and drew a one meter by one meter square on the floor around himself. When Einstein opened his eyes, he immediately saw Newton and said "I found you Newton!".

Newton replied, "No, you found Pascal! I am one Newton per square meter."

This joke doesn't work so well in imperial units.

[MOZ]

Hi guys,

When do you think/believe the travelwide might be ready/out ?

[zuiko90]

Hi guys,

When do you think/believe the travelwide might be ready/out ?

Their Kickstarter page shows delivery to backers starts Dec/2013, anything earlier than that I consider as pure gravy.
If you are asking when they will be available for sale to the public, I sure the answer is; it depends......

[rdenney]

My Blik rangefinder is in meters. So are all other Blik rangefinders.

Randy, three meters equals ten feet, which is easy enough to remember. That approximation is off by all of 1.6%. (It's the same good approximation as 100mm equals four inches, if you do the math.)

Forget yards--one meter equals one yard is off by nearly 10%.

Rick "whose skill with math is not tested by this simple conversion" Denney

[rdenney]

Their Kickstarter page shows delivery to backers starts Dec/2013, anything earlier than that I consider as pure gravy.
If you are asking when they will be available for sale to the public, I sure the answer is; it depends......

Ben has confirmed the notion that they will use the investment dollars to make a production run larger than those who are already owed cameras. Depending on their costs, they may be able to come out of that first run with a significant stock on hand.

Maybe Ben and Justin can start a new thread in this forum to announce the general sale of that additional stock after the Kickstarter backers have received their cameras.

Rick "who was the first backer, and whose wife was one of the last backers" Denney

[Roger Cole]

My Blik rangefinder is in meters. So are all other Blik rangefinders.

Randy, three meters equals ten feet, which is easy enough to remember. That approximation is off by all of 1.6%. (It's the same good approximation as 100mm equals four inches, if you do the math.)

Forget yards--one meter equals one yard is off by nearly 10%.

Rick "whose skill with math is not tested by this simple conversion" Denney

Well if you're using a rangefinder, well and good. But if guesstimating the difference between meters and yards is less than the error in my ability to estimate distance by eye.

[pierre506]

Could the camera use the Linhof zoom viewfinder？

[rdenney]

Well if you're using a rangefinder, well and good. But if guesstimating the difference between meters and yards is less than the error in my ability to estimate distance by eye.

I was responding to Randy's complaint that estimating meters as yards wasn't precise enough.

Rick "whose surveyor-trained pace used to be accurate enough that it mattered" Denney

[Steve Smith]

Randy, three meters equals ten feet, which is easy enough to remember. That approximation is off by all of 1.6%.

I thought it was off by more than that - until I did the maths (not math, we can multi-task!).


Steve.

[Roger Cole]

I was responding to Randy's complaint that estimating meters as yards wasn't precise enough.

Rick "whose surveyor-trained pace used to be accurate enough that it mattered" Denney

Yes I know, and I was expressing the opinion it is closer than I can estimate anyway therefor close enough.

[Regular Rod]

More accurate than a mechanical range finder because your eyes are wider apart than even a Blick's windows is the human range finder. The business card sized gauge fits in your shirt pocket and is free (apart from the paper and ink) here http://tomchuk.com/misc/rf/

Here's one I made just now for the Travelwide with a 90mm Angulon (http://freepdfhosting.com/431bd1a476.pdf)

RR

[Tin Can]

Thanks Rod!


I will make one or ten and plastic coat them.


More accurate than a mechanical range finder because your eyes are wider apart than even a Blick's windows is the human range finder. The business card sized gauge fits in your shirt pocket and is free (apart from the paper and ink) here http://tomchuk.com/misc/rf/

RR

[Kuzano]

Base Leg Too Short... Hmmm?

[Ben Syverson]

Hi guys,

Just sent out an update for backers with tons of geeky CAD detail! Hopefully this explains why it has taken us a second to get the ball rolling. These are the types of changes you really don't want to rush.

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/6/tw-assembly.jpg

[Tin Can]

The indicator ring is a good idea.

Threaded inserts are more than I imagined, better than wood cameras!


[QUOTE=Ben Syverson;1037345]Hi guys,

Just sent out an update for backers with tons of geeky CAD detail! Hopefully this explains why it has taken us a second to get the ball rolling. These are the types of changes you really don't want to rush.

[BarryS]

Awesome update--I really appreciate the design details. It looks like the design has matured and the new helical design looks great.

[David Karp]

Very well thought out. This looks really great!

[Jim Cole]

Really excellent upgrades, guys. The camera now defines "awesomeness"! Well worth waiting for.

[Regular Rod]

Thank you for the update. I can hardly wait. I've sourced: a lens; step up ring; lens hood; viewfinder (as per your suggestion from the nice chap in Israel); some extra dark slides; cable release for mounting on the camera and expect to use the human rangefinder until I know how to guess in metres, all I need now is the camera. Roll on December 2013!

RR

[Jim Cole]

More accurate than a mechanical range finder because your eyes are wider apart than even a Blick's windows is the human range finder. The business card sized gauge fits in your shirt pocket and is free (apart from the paper and ink) here http://tomchuk.com/misc/rf/

Here's one I made just now for the Travelwide with a 90mm Angulon (http://freepdfhosting.com/431bd1a476.pdf)

RR

RR,

I just made one of these and after remeasuring three times on my eye/card distance and my IPD, my card functions well up to 4-6 feet away, but is off by a factor of 2 at 20 feet. It tells me an object 20 feet away is only 10 feet away. It is printing at the correct size, too.

I was all excited about this idea, but it isn't working for me. The math seems straight forward, so it's probably me.

[Tin Can]

I gotta try it, I do know it is impossible to correctly measure your own PD, I have tried and failed, a few times, and my friends were worse. Of course my last Opthamologist wrote down my Rx incorrectly and Costco made my last goggles to his incorrect scribble. The Costco tech tried telling me to get used to the 3 diopter mistake. Costco and the Opthamologist did prioritize a correction.

I'll make one shortly.



RR,

I just made one of these and after remeasuring three times on my eye/card distance and my IPD, my card functions well up to 4-6 feet away, but is off by a factor of 2 at 20 feet. It tells me an object 20 feet away is only 10 feet away. It is printing at the correct size, too.

I was all excited about this idea, but it isn't working for me. The math seems straight forward, so it's probably me.

[Ben Syverson]

On the other hand, it's pretty easy to see visually whether something is 10 or 20 feet away, and you don't need to be exact with long distances. The critical zone is 10 feet / 3 meters and closer, where we're not as good at estimating—it's hard to tell the difference between 1.5m and 1.7m by eye.

That's why I'm curious to try the manual rangefinder! The idea is sound, although it might look a little funny to onlookers. :)

[Tin Can]

Works perfectly for me. My floor has 1 ft tile, non-metric, and I just measured 20 ft perfectly. I use my floor as a rangefinder checker all the time.


I gotta try it, I do know it is impossible to correctly measure your own PD, I have tried and failed, a few times, and my friends were worse. Of course my last Opthamologist wrote down my Rx incorrectly and Costco made my last goggles to his incorrect scribble. The Costco tech tried telling me to get used to the 3 diopter mistake. Costco and the Opthamologist did prioritize a correction.

I'll make one shortly.

[Tin Can]

6 ft works just ducky, or is that 2 meters?

[Jim Cole]

I gotta try it, I do know it is impossible to correctly measure your own PD, I have tried and failed, a few times, and my friends were worse.

That could be it. I'll get my wife to check it for me. I'm also due for an eye checkup, so I'll have the doc check too.

[Steve Goldstein]

Ben,

Now that you've made the fronts mounts more easily interchanged, have you considered making a flat mount in Copal 0? Or could you provide dimensional details so others can do so? That would make it easier for owners of Nikkors, Grandagons, Acugons, and the like.

[Ben Syverson]

Ben,

Now that you've made the fronts mounts more easily interchanged, have you considered making a flat mount in Copal 0? Or could you provide dimensional details so others can do so? That would make it easier for owners of Nikkors, Grandagons, Acugons, and the like.
Steve,

The front of the 90mm helical is Copal 0, and is designed to accept a wide range of 90s. What in particular do you have in mind?

[Steve Goldstein]

Sorry, I wasn't clear. By "flat mount" I meant the non-helical for 65mm. My 65mm Ilex Acugon is in a Copal 0, as are several other 65s.

[dave_whatever]

My 65mm f/4 Nikon is in a copal 0 but I'm just planning on filing or dremmeling (is that a verb?) the 00 hole out a bit.

[Steve Goldstein]

That would be my second choice, but then one can never go back (undremel?).


My 65mm f/4 Nikon is in a copal 0 but I'm just planning on filing or dremmeling (is that a verb?) the 00 hole out a bit.

[BarryS]

Forget the Travelwide, I want my CHOMPY. I was just thinking that I need a new and improved bottle opener for the fine IPAs in my fridge.

[Ben Syverson]

Haha, we're happy with this little guy. :)

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/6/chompy.png

We'll need to test Chompy to make sure he can open 35mm canisters. Luckily this part will be cut with laser or water jet, so we can iterate the design fairly easily.

[Steve Goldstein]

I'm surprised that a flat sheet thin enough to serve as a lens wrench would be strong enough to serve as a bottle/filmcan opener. Very cool!

[Tin Can]

Most likely space age material.

Superman stuff..




I'm surprised that a flat sheet thin enough to serve as a lens wrench would be strong enough to serve as a bottle/filmcan opener. Very cool!

[Kuzano]

Clearly you've never explored all the alternatives that can comply with a dire need for a "brewsky" on a hot, dehydrating day, when all the liquid has been sucked from your system. Have you never opened a bottle of beer with one of your eye teeth, or an eyelid????

[zuiko90]

All this talk of brewsky's is making me thirsty. I wasn't a beer drinker until about 40 and married a canuck. We cannot visit her relatives in Canada without drinking beer. So far the best cheap beers I've found are at Trader Joe's. I really like Stockyard Oatmeal Stout.

[zuiko90]

Justin or Ben,

My darling wife migrated all my accounts from Firefox to Chrome and now I can't remember my login to your kickstarter site. Is there any way to recover this information? My name is John Robison and I'm a backer. Without access to the site I cannot see any updates you post.

[Tin Can]

I am trying to forget about the darn thing, I want to be surprised when it shows up long after I have stopped thinking about it.

I love surprises.

I hide things from myself all the time, old age works!

Going to unsubscribe from this thread right now.

[jnl]

Justin or Ben,

My darling wife migrated all my accounts from Firefox to Chrome and now I can't remember my login to your kickstarter site. Is there any way to recover this information? My name is John Robison and I'm a backer. Without access to the site I cannot see any updates you post.

We don't have access to your login info. I am sure you can just reset the login & password through the Kickstarter website. Otherwise, you can email Kickstarter for help with your account. I think they are fairly quick to respond.

[zuiko90]

We don't have access to your login info. I am sure you can just reset the login & password through the Kickstarter website. Otherwise, you can email Kickstarter for help with your account. I think they are fairly quick to respond.

The wife found the reset password on the site. I couldn't find it but she could and we successfully reset my logon and password.

Thanks for checking back with me.

[Corran]

Just saw the update on KS, what great news!! Now if only I could get mine before the last weekend in September...I'd have quite a use for it!

[Ben Syverson]

Hi guys!

We're outside Detroit at Xcentric (http://www.xcentricmold.com), and they're beginning to run our parts. Here's a little portrait of the bits and bobs:
http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/8/45-parts.jpg

That's the indicator ring, Pinwide lens cap, and an internal retaining ring. We decided to do the indicator ring, Pinwide body and Pinwide lens cap in rubber. Rubber gives the indicator ring a nice grippy feeling, which will be nice for adjusting focus. Here's another view of the indicator ring.
http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/8/45-indicator.jpg

Also pictured above is our custom etched pinhole disk which will be insert molded into the Pinwide (embedded in the plastic). Here's another view:
http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/8/45-pinhole.jpg

We also made some adjustments to the sport finder—dialing in the fit, and rounding some of the corners.
http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/8/45-sportfinder.jpg

Tomorrow they're running the 65mm front plate, so we'll have that to show too. It's so cool to see these parts go from idea to reality!

[Simon Liddiard]

I love getting these updates Ben, thanks:)

[Jim Cole]

Looking good! Thanks for the update, Ben.

[zuiko90]

Wow, thanks for the update Ben. Can't wait to see the looks from the local hipsters when this old man starts working with 4X5. I've already tried out my 90 angulon at 1mm fixed extention on a homebuilt 4X5 box camera. That gives me the lens focused at 27ft with DOF from 13.5 ft. to infinity at f6.8 and works fairly good even as a fixed focus snapshot camera.

[zuiko90]

Thought I had everything rounded up for the upcoming TravelWide 90 but realized that I still needed a shoulder bag.

I'm thinking the camera and 6 to 9 film holders. Looking for ideas for a bag that has a long enough strap to go over the shoulder, bandolier style. Soft side with minimal padding. Removeable strap is preferable. Any suggestions or ideas much appreciated. Perhaps unrealistic but I hope to keep total price under $50 including shipping.

[Winger]

Check for a bag in the lunch bags and small coolers area. I have a cooler bag that's rectangular and perfectly holds a Hasselblad and a couple of extra backs, plus has a second insulated pocket on the front. The strap is long enough on me to go across my body and over a shoulder. The insulation gives it some padding. But I bought the bag several years ago.

I'm just curious how you'll get our addresses for the shipping when that happens? I just moved, so any address you may have printed out at the end of the thing on kickstarter will no longer apply.

And I'm still looking for an Angulon at a reasonable price, if anyone has one stashed and isn't going to auction it.

[Tin Can]

I use cooler and lunch bags all the time, a little stealth never hurts.

Almost forgot again, but NO! we need a reminder...

[zuiko90]

A lunch cooler! Never even thought of that. Available and cheap and non-discript enough to not draw attention. Thanks.

Bethe, I'd also look for a 90mm f8 Super Angulon. They are more expensive but seem more available. I grabbed a f6.8 Angulon with dogy optics but a good shutter for $100 and took a chance that it would be "good enough". I tested it out on a fixed focus plywood box camera and it seems OK, but of course I don't have a pristine sample to compare it to.

Hey, nice site. I especially liked the hand colored flowers.

Thanks to all,

John R.

[zuiko90]

Hey Ben and Justin,

Good news?

Bad news?

Any news?

[Simon Liddiard]

Wow zuiko90, you're keen.

The last kickstarter update was July 22, and the last post by Ben in this thread was August 5th!

[zuiko90]

Actually August 7th. In that post Ben said they were running the 65mm plate tomorrow so they would have that to show too. So naturally I thought there would be another post soon.

Perhaps they are just busy inspecting, assembling, and testing parts. Even when they are able to put together the first few full cameras they will still have to test them with film to verify that everthing is on spec and working, so I wasen't expecting to hear they were ready to ship. Still the updates are fun.

To tell the truth I'm not quite ready anyway. To keep cost down I intend to use paper negatives and still have not fully worked out optimal pre-flash times, development for longest tonal range, and effective ISO speeds. I will use B&W film too but at $1.50 a shot for Ilford or Kodak I'll reserve that for special times.

[Ben Syverson]

Hi guys! Sorry for the delay. We just posted an update for Kickstarter backers. For everyone else: things are moving! We're working out kinks, and the final version isn't far off.

I think we're going to set up a webpage for preorders once we're a bit closer. We're trying to work out what payment systems to use, and what the retail has to be. Stay tuned!

[Simon Liddiard]

Looking good in the kickstarter update though!

[rustyair]

Nice!!!

[angusparker]

Looking forward to the 8x10 version some day .....

[Steve Pitchford]

Zuiko,
Have you checked the Freestyle site, freestylephoto.biz. They have Arista 4X5 film, 50 sheets for $30.68, half the price of Kodak film. The site is dedicated to preserving black and white photography and sell over 5,000 products. I have recently tested the ISO 400, four exposures bracketed. The range and contrast looks good but I have't printed the negs. The neg substrate is thinner than Kodak and the backside coating is green, not blue or black. They also sell Ilford and Adox. Customer service good too.
Steve Pitchford, Happy Trails...

[8thsamurai]

Zuiko,
Have you checked the Freestyle site, freestylephoto.biz. They have Arista 4X5 film, 50 sheets for $30.68, half the price of Kodak film. The site is dedicated to preserving black and white photography and sell over 5,000 products. I have recently tested the ISO 400, four exposures bracketed. The range and contrast looks good but I have't printed the negs. The neg substrate is thinner than Kodak and the backside coating is green, not blue or black. They also sell Ilford and Adox. Customer service good too.
Steve Pitchford, Happy Trails...

Arista EDU Ultra film is made by Foma. I like the 200 quite a bit.

[zuiko90]

Steve;
Yes, I shop Freestyle quite a lot but was a little reticent about going up to 4X5 size as I thought there would be a greater chance of pin holes and other coating blems with cheaper film. I bought some Arista in 120 and on one roll there was missed area of coating about the size of a nickle. Perhaps this was a fluke, and is not a valid concern. Interestingly I just bought a pack of their Arista ortho litho film, 3.9 X 4.9 in., loads right into filmholders. At the time I got a packet of their soft paper developer to cut contrast . Have not mixed the soft developer yet so no results to show. This stuff is as cheap as paper, can be handled undr safe light, and of course in normally very high contrast. The main bug is the same as paper negs, even if you get the contrast under control the ISO is about 8, so tripod work all the way.

Yes, I admit it, I'm cheap, sometimes too cheap.

[Roger Cole]

I've shot a fair amount (a box and starting the next one) of Arista branded Foma 400 and haven't had ANY defects or problems. It's definitely an older style film, quite grainy but this isn't much of a factor in 4x5, and not as fast as the box speed, at least not ideally, but it has a bit of an older style look to it and works fine. I shoot mainly TMY-2 so I shoot the Arista stuff less to save money than to have the look of an older tech film. It's decent film and good value for the money.

[Ben Syverson]

Yeah, grain is rarely an issue, so I wouldn't be too picky about the film. Justin and I shoot a lot of HP5 (another old-style film) pushed to 1600, and it looks great. The nice thing is that at ISO 1600, you can put that 1/400 or 1/500 shutter speed to work. I really can't wait to see what people make with this camera. That's my favorite part of this whole process.

[Steve Pitchford]

On the topic of 4X5 film developing I'm getting tired of tray processing and am wondering if anyone has tried the MOD54 film holder thats fits in the Patterson multi-reel film tank, also found on the Freestyle web site, pg. 4 of their last mail catalog? I have used the stainless tank and reel, (and still do for 35mm) and also have used the square tank and frame method, which uses too much chemistry. So I want to get outa the dark. Enlighten me if you can. Please! Thanks,

Steve, Happy Trails

[rdenney]

On the topic of 4X5 film developing I'm getting tired of tray processing and am wondering if anyone has tried the MOD54 film holder thats fits in the Patterson multi-reel film tank, also found on the Freestyle web site, pg. 4 of their last mail catalog? I have used the stainless tank and reel, (and still do for 35mm) and also have used the square tank and frame method, which uses too much chemistry. So I want to get outa the dark. Enlighten me if you can. Please! Thanks,

Steve, Happy Trails

Please start a new thread over in the Darkroom subforum. A search first might answer your question, however. I recall that it has been discussed but don't myself recall what issues emerged. If you need a better search than what the forum provides (which is not, frankly, very good), add "site:largeformatphotography.info" to a Google search and you'll get better results.

Rick "hoping not to let this thread drift away from the product discussion" Denney

[Steve Pitchford]

Rick,
Thanks. I did a google search, wow! There was a lot of stuff out there, but mostly discussions about the Nikor stainless tanks and their high cost or using the Taco method. Nothing on the MOD54- it's too new. At the cheap price I think I'll just buy one then start a new thread on my results.

Steve, Happy Trails

[Frank_E]

I risk making this into a Mod 54 thread which Rick has already asked we not do
but Steve P did you not find this thread….

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?89257-MOD54-film-processing-quot-report-quot


Rick,
Thanks. I did a google search, wow! There was a lot of stuff out there, but mostly discussions about the Nikor stainless tanks and their high cost or using the Taco method. Nothing on the MOD54- it's too new. At the cheap price I think I'll just buy one then start a new thread on my results.

Steve, Happy Trails

[munz6869]

I just saw this http://www.alessi.com/en/2/3387/bar-and-wines/abc01-az-diabolix-bottle-opener in a shop before, and it reminded me strongly of Chompy... Perhaps a little less practical for lens flange tightening though...

Marc!

[jibanes]

Can I still buy a Wanderlust 4x5 (90mm)? If so, how?

[Roger Thoms]

Any news?

Roger

[Brian Puccio]

Can I still buy a Wanderlust 4x5 (90mm)? If so, how?

As a non-backer, I'm not sure if you can see their latest update on KS, so here's an excerpt:

In other news, we will be launching a pre-order site soon—so if you know anyone who missed out on the Kickstarter, they'll be able to reserve a unit from the first run. Of course all Kickstarter rewards will ship before the preorders. We'll send a separate update when the site relaunches.


Any news?

There was an update on KS for backers less than 10 days ago.

[Roger Thoms]

For some reason I'm no longer getting update from Kickstarter, guess I'll have to check their website a little more often. Thanks for the heads up.

Roger

[Simon Liddiard]

The latest update is #11, but I'm not sure if I got it via my inbox or not. Either way, I've been checking the site regularly to refresh my memory about how cool this camera will be.

[ataim]

Please hurry, I want one for Christmas!

[zuiko90]

The wheels of industry grind slowly.

Ben and Justin can only hurry as much as the injection molding company (Xcentric) schedule will allow. So unfortunately, much is now out of their hands and they are as anxious to have the finished camera as we are.

[WayneStevenson]

Any recent updates on these?

[csxcnj]

Will the Wanderlust ever b for sale to the general public?

[Tin Can]

Yes, right after the early birds get theirs.

Soon!

[csxcnj]

yes, right after the early birds get theirs.

Soon!

groovy :D

[inglis]

Hopefully someone will let us latecomers know where and when we can sign up for one!
have lens waiting with large format trepidation!
(My first post!)

[zuiko90]

Hopefully someone will let us latecomers know where and when we can sign up for one!
have lens waiting with large format trepidation!
(My first post!)
They have said that they will set up a website for pre-orders on the camera. Of course they have to fill the kickstarter orders first.

[AuditorOne]

After the most recent update (#11) I have kind of reconciled myself to waiting until January 2014 before any of these start coming in the mail.

[Corran]

For those eagerly awaiting their Wanderlust, I have a potential new viewfinder to be on the lookout for if you still need one.

I just received in the mail a 21mm finder made by Minolta. I have no idea what camera it would've been used on. It is nice and bright, and the kicker is that the finder actually has less distortion than my Voigtlander or Nikon 21mm finders!

What is neat is it cost me all of $10. Can't beat that. Just mask off the sides and it's good to go.

I also recently purchased a 43mm Mamiya finder (6x7) for pretty cheap to use as a finder for my 75mm lens. My guess is that the 50mm Mamiya finder would be a good fit to the 90mm lens?

[charleymeyer]

PM sent

[Corran]

Hey folks - must've been unclear. I'm not selling it, just giving a heads-up on another brand to be on the lookout for!!

[charleymeyer]

OOPS! misread... wishful thinking, Thanks anyway!

[Ben Syverson]

Hi guys! We're plugging along... We're certainly learning a lot. :) Everyone seems to operate at a much slower timeframe than we'd like. Unfortunately, because we're not ordering 100,000 units we don't have much leverage. But things are beginning to come together.

Here are a couple shots of the assembly, shown a little larger than we could put in the KS update.

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/11/three-quarters-1024.jpg

http://bensyverson.com/images/2013/11/top-angle-1024.jpg

I'm also working on a preorder site, because we get emails every single day asking where to order the camera. We didn't want to offer preorders until the project was nearly complete, but we're pretty much there. It's just a few final agonizing details!

This month I also re-launched my iPhone camera app, which isn't LF related, but some of you might find it kind of cool. Check it out here: Mattebox (http://mattebox.com/)

[Jim Cole]

Lookin' mighty good. I'm getting excited now. Thanks for the update.

[zuiko90]

Stop posting pictures, you are making me drool all over the keyboard.

Seriously, great news. This has got to be the most ambitious camera project on kickstarter. Admire your determination Ben. You and Justin are a major force in helping keep film alive.

Are the distance numbers on the body raised or indented? If indented I think I could fill them in with a white china marker to make them more visible against the dark plastic.

[Tim Meisburger]

I think the letters are raised, but you could still paint them.

I was wishing I had this camera last week for the elections in Nepal. I took my oldest Crown, and everyone loved it, but it is really heavy for times when the camera is an accessory rather than the main purpose of a trip.

Nice app Ben, but I am still looking for something that will show the effect of color filters in black and white. Don't think I would use it in the field, but it would be useful to play around with so I could develop a sense of the effect of various filters. That would help me when visualising in the field

[Ben Syverson]

Nice app Ben, but I am still looking for something that will show the effect of color filters in black and white. Don't think I would use it in the field, but it would be useful to play around with so I could develop a sense of the effect of various filters. That would help me when visualising in the field
Tim, Mattebox does show the effect of color filters—you can even see the effect live in the viewfinder! Check out this page (http://mattebox.com/university/editor/adjustments.html) for some discussion about that.

Of course, the iPhone has a different spectral sensitivity (and much different exposure latitude) than panchromatic film, but it's still a useful option. :)

PS—The numbers are indeed raised, and they're somewhat subtle. We wanted them to be a bit more prominent, but the corners were rounded down in the molding process. We're going to have them apply a gloss so they pop out a bit more.

[Tim Meisburger]

Thanks Ben. Lachlan also recommended an app called "Hueless". Unfortunately I have an Android phone, but maybe I'll buy an I-Pad for Christmas.

For the numbers, for those interested I think a bit of white paint, a fine brush, a photographer's loupe duct taped to the eye, and a sober evening the night before might be just the trick! Also, I'm looking forward to filling those "Wanderlust" letters with red enamel...

[dave_whatever]

I am still looking for something that will show the effect of color filters in black and white.

The 645pro app for the iphone does this, and its a very capable camera app too.

[inglis]

gasp its a beauty!!!

[Larry Kellogg]

The camera looks great! It must be world's lightest 4x5 outfit. Almost time to buy a gorilla pod.

I was also thinking of filling in those letters, and painting the dial. Perhaps my wife can do it, she probably has a steadier hand.

[Ben Syverson]

I've shot with the Travelwide on a Gorillapod many times—the Micro 800 will do the trick. The "SLR Zoom" model is even heftier, and can support 3000g, but frankly, it's overkill for the Travelwide!

[zuiko90]

Hey! Where did all the cheap 4X5 B&W film go!!??

Just checked Freestyle and they are out of stock on all of their Arista EUD Ultra film in 4X5.

Gone. Zip. Nada. None coming in till Dec/2013 or Jan/2014

The low priced Foma brand is out of stock too.

Coincidence? (spoken slow and conspiratorially)

[Ben Syverson]

Coincidence? (spoken slow and conspiratorially)
I only wish! I would love to include promotional boxes of film with the Travelwide.

[zuiko90]

Was casting no aspersions your way Ben. Just that with the latest update backers are getting ready for over 1000 4X5 cameras to arrive. A lot of those folks (including me) are ordering a lot of film. Looks like Freestyle wasen't prepaired for the stampede to get ready for their arrival. I can forsee a increase in the sale of Paterson 2 reel tanks, hair elastics, and searches on the 'taco method' of developing sheet film.

When you start that pre-order website for the regular production camera there well could be hundreds more sold. Once you start shipping more 4X5 cameras will hit the market in 6 months than were sold in the last 10 or 20 years. (Except for the Titan 4X5, but that is pinhole only and I'll bet a lot of folks are sticking to paper negatives.)

Contact printing holders will get a small boost too, 4 negs on a 8X10 sheet. And you can read them without a 5X loupe.

[Light Guru]

Hey! Where did all the cheap 4X5 B&W film go!!??

Just checked Freestyle and they are out of stock on all of their Arista EUD Ultra film in 4X5.

Gone. Zip. Nada. None coming in till Dec/2013 or Jan/2014

The low priced Foma brand is out of stock too.

Coincidence? (spoken slow and conspiratorially)


Just that with the latest update backers are getting ready for over 1000 4X5 cameras to arrive. A lot of those folks (including me) are ordering a lot of film. Looks like Freestyle wasen't prepaired for the stampede to get ready for their arrival.

I hate to break it to you but the this one camera did NOT cause freestyle to run out of Arista EDU 4x5 film. Freestyle is out of almost all formats and all speeds of Arista EDU film. This camera would NOT cause them to run out of 35mm and 120 format films. It's obviously a supply issue.

[zuiko90]

I hate to break it to you but the this one camera did NOT cause freestyle to run out of Arista EDU 4x5 film. Freestyle is out of almost all formats and all speeds of Arista EDU film. This camera would NOT cause them to run out of 35mm and 120 format films. It's obviously a supply issue.

Hey! Your right. The plot thickens Zak. Think I'll give them a jingle tommorow and just ask, point blank, "what's with all this 'out of stock' notices, are you going keep the prices steady?"


Wonder what's going on. Perhaps their vendor for this product are raising their prices and they are looking for alternatives. Would not be surprised if, when the new stuff comes in the prices are higher. Best bargain right now seems to be B&H. They have Ilford's HP5, 100 sheets for $114.95 with free shipping. That is still $1.15 in raw film for each shot. The Arista whould have been about $.75 each shot. Of course that's OK for the US, don't know how prices are for the rest of the world.

Now....I don't want people to think I'm cheap, but......well I guess I am cheap.

[Roger Cole]

They've been running the EDU Ultra at 7% off for a while. That might have helped it sell. Anyway my fridge is well stocked with both TMY-2 and Arista EDU/Foma in 4x5 as well as some Ektachrome 100SW, some Portra 160 and some older stuff frozen.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk (http://tapatalk.com/m?id=1)

[zuiko90]

Roger;
I bought their ortho film for 4X5 hoping I could tame the contrast with some soft developer. So far not going well, soot and chalk negs. And the ISO is about 8, that would be f8 at 1/30 in bright sunlight at best. but it is cheap, $21 for 100 sheets.

[Larry Kellogg]

Hello Ben,
The Micro 800 can't be wrapped around poles, can it? I was thinking that maybe the Hybrid would be the best one to get, it has a ball head, which the Original does not. What do you think? All of the models are here: http://joby.com/gorillapod

To help sell the rest of your cameras, I think you need to set up a site where people can post pictures taken with the TravelWide. I'm looking forward to seeing what other people shoot with this camera.

I can't wait to hear what people in New York say when they see this camera, I already get a lot of comments from just walking around with a Contax G2. I'm sure I would help sell some cameras at the International Center of Photography.

[Kuzano]

I think the letters are raised, but you could still paint them.

I was wishing I had this camera last week for the elections in Nepal. I took my oldest Crown, and everyone loved it, but it is really heavy for times when the camera is an accessory rather than the main purpose of a trip.

Nice app Ben, but I am still looking for something that will show the effect of color filters in black and white. Don't think I would use it in the field, but it would be useful to play around with so I could develop a sense of the effect of various filters. That would help me when visualising in the field

How UNStreetlike. I am planning on putting a strip of black Duct Tape over my letters. This will put off the name recognition camera thieves, and make the camera less obvious for "Stealth Street Shooting".

I already have about 300 sheets of film in the freezer, 150 of which are Quickloads. Have been practicing "dry shooting" with my Readyload Pro back.... I do all the setup, but don't pull the dark slides when shooting.:cool:

[Larry Kellogg]

How UNStreetlike. I am planning on putting a strip of black Duct Tape over my letters. This will put off the name recognition camera thieves, and make the camera less obvious for "Stealth Street Shooting".

I don't see how this camera is going to be a stealthy street machine. People are incredibly curious, they're going to take notice when you hold up this big piece of plastic to your face. I'm expecting a lot of "What the hell is that?" questions. Send me some business cards, Ben, and I'll hand them out to people when they ask.

So, guys, what has been your experience shooting the camera on the street. Do you get much attention? I'm thinking about taking a road trip in March, hope I get the camera by then. No pressure. ;-)



I already have about 300 sheets of film in the freezer, 150 of which are Quickloads. Have been practicing "dry shooting" with my Readyload Pro back.... I do all the setup, but don't pull the dark slides when shooting.:cool:

Ha, funny. Pulling the dark slide is going to be a whole new experience for bystanders, LOL. Nobody does that anymore, and I bet that most people don't even know what a dark slide is, or why it is needed.

[MOZ]

So... what's going on guys ?
It's been a while and we're still awaiting for some real news concerning the availability of the Travelwide 90 !
I know the Chinese can be difficult to work with (had some trouble at work !) but can we expect sometime soon to be able to place some order (for the non early adopters) ?
Thanks by advance...

[Steve Goldstein]

My take from following this is that it's being made in the US and it's just taken time to work out the kinks of injection molding for this completely new design.

[Roger Cole]

I don't see how this camera is going to be a stealthy street machine. People are incredibly curious, they're going to take notice when you hold up this big piece of plastic to your face. I'm expecting a lot of "What the hell is that?" questions. Send me some business cards, Ben, and I'll hand them out to people when they ask.

So, guys, what has been your experience shooting the camera on the street. Do you get much attention? I'm thinking about taking a road trip in March, hope I get the camera by then. No pressure. ;-)



Ha, funny. Pulling the dark slide is going to be a whole new experience for bystanders, LOL. Nobody does that anymore, and I bet that most people don't even know what a dark slide is, or why it is needed.

Most? Hell, almost NO ONE will now what the darkslide is.

[Brian Puccio]

So... what's going on guys ?
It's been a while and we're still awaiting for some real news concerning the availability of the Travelwide 90 !
I know the Chinese can be difficult to work with (had some trouble at work !) but can we expect sometime soon to be able to place some order (for the non early adopters) ?
Thanks by advance...

What does the Travelwide have to do with Chinese people?

I had some issues with an American once, now I avoid all of them and bad mouth them on the internet.

[MOZ]

What does the Travelwide have to do with Chinese people?

Must be my mistake, i though they were making them in a china factory... and that the delay was due to troubles there...
Sorry for the misunderstand...

[Larry Kellogg]

Here is a link for the company, Xcentric, that is doing the injection mold work:

http://www.xcentricmold.com

They're in Michigan, I believe.


Must be my mistake, i though they were making them in a china factory... and that the delay was due to troubles there...
Sorry for the misunderstand...

[DougD]

The Nov. 25 update on Kickstarter indicated that they were dealing with a minor defect that resulted from manufacturing. Which means that the production run was delayed and that once the run is complete, they still need to do whatever hand assembly is required and ship them. I would guess we're looking at late January for delivery. All in all, not too bad given that this is a "from the drawing board" product.

[Roger Cole]

I can wait. Winter is crap for going out and using a camera like this anyway, not that there aren't days for it, but generally so gray and blah and ick around here, if not actually all that cold, that I do little photography anyway, at least at the camera. It's often a season for working on darkroom backlog but even that isn't happening this year for me. :(

[Andrew O'Neill]

Ya, winter is crap here, too. Nothing but rain, rain, and more rain... snow is in the forecast tonight and tomorrow. YAY!

[munz6869]

Meanwhile, it's summer here (40 degrees Celsius yesterday), and I'm shortly leaving work for a camping holiday up the coast... I'll have to take the Wista instead!!

Marc!

[zuiko90]

Same yuk here in Olympia also Andrew. I'm heading up to Hornby island in March. Lots of not much to do and that's why I go in the off season. Might catch the herring run though.

[willrea]

Going to love dealing with all the people dealing with driving in the snow 'for the first time' in the morning.


Same yuk here in Olympia also Andrew. I'm heading up to Hornby island in March. Lots of not much to do and that's why I go in the off season. Might catch the herring run though.

[zuiko90]

Willrea,
Whew, Capitol way is bare and wet outside my window at 7 AM so it looks like, at least in town, going to be a regular friday.

Back to topic, I have a feeling we are not going to see cameras delivered till Feburary or March anyway. This is a very ambitious project even for Justin and Ben. They seem to have the design and engineering chops but are also feeling their way with actual production using a contracted source and that is the unknown (and perhaps unknowable) factor. The lessons learned with this camera will, I'm sure, be applied to future projects. Ben says they have more really cool ideas in the pipeline. Besides just the backers I hope they can sell a boatload of these cameras and make a few bucks. They deserve it.

One more thing to consider. The Harman Titan 4X5 pinhole camera sold over 1000 units in just 3 months and it retails for more than twice as much (although it includes about $25 worth of paper and film). It dosen't have provision for a lens and does not have a helical, pinhole only as shipped. With the Travelwide you get a pinhole and depending on how much you want to search, a wide angle lensed camera. My slightly rough looking but working Angulon was $100 and so, for the cost of a Titan I'll have both a pinhole and wideangle 4X5, not a bad deal all around.

[Larry Kellogg]

Most? Hell, almost NO ONE will now what the darkslide is.

Well, in New York, I have people come up to me all the time who have shot 4x5 and know something about large format cameras. Still, most people don't know anything.

Speaking of the darkslide, how long can we walk around with the darkslide pulled out before taking a shot? I guess this would be a good test of light tightness. It would be easier on the street to be ready to take the shot, instead of having to pull the darkslide one second before taking the shot.

[zuiko90]

Well, in New York, I have people come up to me all the time who have shot 4x5 and know something about large format cameras. Still, most people don't know anything.

Speaking of the darkslide, how long can we walk around with the darkslide pulled out before taking a shot? I guess this would be a good test of light tightness. It would be easier on the street to be ready to take the shot, instead of having to pull the darkslide one second before taking the shot.

Last spring I built a plywood box 4X5 for a 130mm f7.7 Kodak Anastigmat salvaged off of a 1930ish Kodak folder. The lens has front cell focusing to 6 feet so I only had to build a square box and make sure the lens was shimmed to infinity. When I took it out on the street I got all kinds of inquires and comments from both old timers and young folks. Even the young folks seemed to recognize the purpose of the dark slide or at least had seen cameras that use filmholders.


In a couple of hours I got more comments about that camera, probably 10~12 people asked questions, than any time I have walked around with old film cameras. Most times no one says anything about either the camera or taking pictures.

I pull the darkslide right before I release the shutter, then flip it to the 'exposed' side and replace it immediately.

[Tim Meisburger]

Cold in Bangkok. 65 degrees this morning as we prepare to go out on a train ride to Lopburi to view (and shoot) the sunflowers. Wish I had that travel wide...

[jibanes]

Yeah, it would be nice to have one, maybe sometime next summer they might have some available, I'll get a 90 for sure (I already have a 65).

[pierre506]

Any further information?

[Roger Cole]

In years of shooting 4x5 off and on I have never ONCE been approached by anyone who knew what a view camera or dark slide or sheet film were but I've been asked many times why I had to put a cloth over my head. Of course it's possible those who know just smile to themselves and go on their way and those who don't stop to ask. I've never shot in New York either or even inside Atlanta itself for that matter generally preferring natural sorts of subject matter so this camera will be a departure for me in that way.

[Larry Kellogg]

In years of shooting 4x5 off and on I have never ONCE been approached by anyone who knew what a view camera or dark slide or sheet film were but I've been asked many times why I had to put a cloth over my head. Of course it's possible those who know just smile to themselves and go on their way and those who don't stop to ask. I've never shot in New York either or even inside Atlanta itself for that matter generally preferring natural sorts of subject matter so this camera will be a departure for me in that way.

I think New York is a special case, as there are a lot of photographers in the city, and we still have a thriving film scene, in terms of labs and schools.

On one outing with my 5x7, I was interrogated by someone who taught photography, and while we were talking, someone else came by and said that they used to shoot 4x5 all the time.

Another time, when I was in Central Park, a woman and her daughter came up and said they were reading a book that had a scene in it with an old wooden camera, so they were interested in how the thing worked. People get excited when they see the scene on the ground glass.

[Regular Rod]

I think New York is a special case, as there are a lot of photographers in the city, and we still have a thriving film scene, in terms of labs and schools.

On one outing with my 5x7, I was interrogated by someone who taught photography, and while we were talking, someone else came by and said that they used to shoot 4x5 all the time.

Another time, when I was in Central Park, a woman and her daughter came up and said they were reading a book that had a scene in it with an old wooden camera, so they were interested in how the thing worked. People get excited when they see the scene on the ground glass.

What a brilliant idea for some photographer's PR! Let passers-by have a peep under the dark cloth! Wonderful, I bet they get a real buzz when they see the image (like we do of course...).

RR

[Roger Cole]

Oh I've shown people the view on the gg plants of times, and had lots if polite interest, I just never encountered anyone who knew the first thing about LF when they walked up.

[Steve Pitchford]

Any further information?
Well, I bought a lens and a view finder/range finder and 10 more film holders, but alas Santa did not bring me a Wanderlust camera for Christmas. I've looked at the various components many times, even looked at other pinhole cameras to compare and quite my excitement. It's almost the New Year; please Mr. UPS man ring my doorbell with my new toy! Come on guys - how about an update???
P.S. FreeStyle is still out of stock for Arista EDU 400 ISO.

Happy New Year to all,

Steve P.

[willrea]

Well, they're preparing to open preorders for people who missed out on the campaign. So maybe that's a good sign for those waiting for the pledge rewards?

[Roger Cole]

Did anyone seriously expect a camera by now? I don't in any way doubt their good intentions nor that I will get my camera. I just know that with a project this involved unforeseen delays are almost certain.

Already had the lens, holders etc. Bought a viewfinder. I'll get a camera when I get it and enjoy it then.