Printable View
My second conversion of the incredible HARMAN TiTAN 4x5 pinhole into a lightweight 4x5 super wide point and shoot. Without a shoulder strap, the first conversion was a bit tricky to use alongside a DSLR. Using the same dual ARCA plate configuration that I figured out for an earlier camera, this camera now has a vertical tripod mount, side handle and shoulder strap mount that works perfectly on a lightweight camera like this one.
Wow! How much work was it is to get the focus sorted? Presumably fixed focus at infinity? Looks great.
That’s great. Like Keeds also wonder about focus. Did you go for a hyper focal distance at a given aperture or did you set at infinity (or as close as you could measure).
Have you visited the Cameradactyl site. He sells a 3D printed 4x5 with a focusing helical for various focal lengths, including the 65mm Angulon. No doubt you already had your Titan but for someone starting out without a body he sells his for $240 which includes the focusing helical.
But it doesn’t appear he has a cone adjusted for the type of lens on your camera.
Focus is shimmed to 25 feet (approx) and stopping down between 11-16 pretty much covers everything. It's remarkable perfect this camera is for a conversion, my first Harman conversion (and a whole bunch of my other custom cameras) can be see here if you are interested:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dirkfletcher/albums
Dirk
Thanks for the link. Wow! I'm always creating cameras, mostly with found (read here, free or at least very cheap lenses). But my creations are burn barrel fodder compared to your efforts. Like my handle says, hobby plywood is my favorite basic construction material and I'm really good at making sawdust and bits of scrap.
Now I remember seeing some of your other projects. Please keep posting, it's very interesting.
First thing I thought of when this camera first came out...perfect opportunity for such a conversion! I'm guessing that those "bellows like" bumps help to mitigate internal reflections, and the thing must weigh next to nothing without the lens!
Are these still available anywhere? Is (or was there ever) a 5x7 version? Could see doing this with the addition of a focussing helical.
The 4x5 is still available. There is an 8x10 as well, no 5x7 so far. These are actually made by Mike Walker for Harman, so he might be the one to ask for more information.Quote:
Originally Posted by John Layton
I too am interested in the general approach of converting existing pinhole or fixed-focus box cameras to "full function". I have an 8x10 Hobo that was originally designed as a fixed-focus camera for the 120 Super-Angulon, that I had SK Grimes convert with a focus helical. This required remodeling of the extension cone that was part of the camera, to allow for the extra extension introduced by the helical mount. For those box cameras that don't use a cone as part of the structure, where the FFD for a given lens is "baked into" the box itself, modification to include a helical is more difficult.
EDIT: The Travelwide nicely illustrates this - the body was designed to work as a 65mm fixed-focus camera, but with a helical it accepts a 90mm lens. Depending on the dimensions of the helical used, perhaps the 4x5 Harman TiTAN camera would work as a focusing camera with various longer focal lengths than the 65 that Dirk shows here.
A little while back a modified a 3D printed WillTravel 4x5 (not the Travel Wide, the similarly named injection moulded camera) to accept a focusing helical instead of the larger PVC looking one that prints with the camera. That helical rotated the lens as it focuses and I already had several of these helical. I ended up spacing the helical the exact same distance as on a DIY 6x12 camera so I could just spin off the helical from the 4x5 wide camera and mount the same lens and helical to the 6x12 camera.
I'm not a super huge fan of 3D printed cameras for the long haul. The opportunities that 3D printing opens up are HUGE, I just prefer aluminum, hobby wood, stainless steel hardware (often epoxied or caulked over) and other materials that can withstand years of use for camera projects. I have been on the lookout for the 150mm lens cone to see about adding a helical focusing 120-150mm helical mounted lens as an option.
Here is a link to my pimped out WillTravel-
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dirkfl...57714457785873\
Here is link to the original WillTravel post and downloadable files. Its a fantastic camera that offers a lot of lens options and flexibility. He also makes 8x10 and 5x7 versions with free downloadable plans:
https://film.kolve.org/darkroomdiy/w...endly-cameras/
Dirk