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These DIY lenses can be used for any subject, not just landscapes and portraits.


http://www.subclub.org/fujinon/softfocus.htm

I'm only slightly familiar with the Speed Graphic. I assume, given its name, that it is designed for "fast action". Do you think it could catch flying dinner plates?

There have always been too many young people that don't have enough fear of failure, and they end up dead or in a wheelchair for life. Fear is a good thing if it's realistic, but it can often grow...

Certainty is never obtainable. Are you certain your roof won't collapse in the next five minutes?

There's a difference between the need for certainty and procrastination. Some people have a fear...

I hope that wasn't your "take-away" from today's hearings!

Here's a Fujinon C 300mm in a Copal. It's not mine, but exactly like mine -- and all my other Fujinons:

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If the scale is "silk-screen", "stenciled", "painted" on, your only option would...

I can't speak to all Fuji & Nikon lenses, but all the ones I've seen have had metal, screw-on scales. The Fujinons I've seen all have a small number on the end, for example 54, indicating what...

What's the width of the opening on the front of the camera without a lensboard attached?

If you have a shutter that is too wide to fit on the front standard of the camera, an adapter like the one...

Usually the shutter is attached with a lock ring/jam nut on the rear, but I don't see one. I assume the entire shutter & lens are simply screwed in to the board. Those three bolts on the rear...

Another approach would be to start with a contrasty film and working your way DOWN -- Tech Pan, LITH, etc. comes to mind -- instead of using a normal contrast film and working your way UP.

The "f64 group" started this "everything in focus" idea one hundred years ago. Fortunately it was a craze that died out. Every photographer has to make their own decision every time they make an...

B&H carries it -- $7 for 10 grams

I see that Kumar just sold a very nice Wollensak Verito 8.75" (222mm). It's a beauty, for sure, but it makes me appreciate my home-made "Verito" even more.

Congratulations on the new darkroom. I'm sure it's a big relief.

All you need to do is a simple test.

Turn off the safelights. Put a piece of paper (use a high contrast MG filter) in the...

I'm always a fan of "To avoid GAS, use what you got".

Should you want to learn some more about Verito-type lenses, here is a good summary:
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Thanks for the link. You are absolutely correct. There is no need to use two close-up lenses for soft-focus/portrait work. You can use just one, and it can be an inexpensive one, as well. But in...

And it's easy enough to make your own soft-focus/portrait/verito lens:

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All you need are the correct supplementary lenses to make the above design -- a weak meniscus lens in the front and...

Sounds like the perfect portrait lens!

Exactly. If the tower has any color in it -- other than sky blue -- use a complementary color filter to make the tower darker -- and/or wait for a cloud to show up behind the tower.

You might find this Ph.D thesis regarding the history and nature of portrait & soft-focus lenses interesting/revealing/informative/helpful/etc. I know I did:
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Most shutters have a single contemporary PC connection, and most are X-synch. Some shutters have a switch such as FP or X synch. Just make sure your shutter has a contemporary X-synch PC...

All of a sudden, today, there are a ton of them showing up on EBAY. They all appear to be new but I don't have time or interest to check them out.

I wouldn't exactly call them "close-out"...

Very interesting material, and very helpful.

I don't know if it's my operating system or software, but only about half of the "figures" show up on my computer. All of the text is fine, but lots...

If you have a way to figure out the diameter and the pitch, these should be easy to find on EBAY, etc.

The eyes have it.

I'm of the same opinion. I've successfully performed surgery on several darkslides -- without problems -- but largely for the purposes of simplifying exposure tests or repairs.

Without...

I'm not so sure about the "Lens-related Trivia Award", but certainly the "Lens-related Myths Award" -- starting with their early Rectar lenses, which as rumor had it were filled with water.

An excellent point. I have a Testrite CS-3 copy stand which is very inexpensive, and very versatile, but an enlarger has extra benefits. It comes with a light source -- maybe even a color head --...

Some people love DIY so much, they end up spending an exorbitant amount of time, effort, and expense for something they could find at a thrift store for just a couple of bucks.

If you want to talk about global warming there are tons of places to do that -- and you'll get much better information there than you'll get here.

If you want to argue about global warming there...

Lens and shutter adapters are pretty easy to come by. I have a few myself -- but they often come with limitations. Can I put a 300mm f4.5 lens on a #0 shutter? Probably, but I won't waste my time....

I've got a Kyvytar catalog, and it confirms the above.

It also lists APO-Kyvytar convertible lenses -- f6.8 in shutters and f9 in barrel. The only ones listed in #1 shutters are the 150mm & 210mm...

I just think it's interesting that FUJI continued to sell this particular lens (W 250mm f6.7) -- no other W lens -- for ten years after the W series was discontinued. And at higher prices!!!
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FUJI lens brochures and price lists have errors, of course, but none of them lasted for 1o years long. You might as well believe in the man on the moon.

Keep in mind that the wider the lens gets the less need for lens movements. Longer lenses need more movement to "make a difference".

Just a guess -- f8.0?

Really?

It's just too bad that FUJI, for some very odd reason, did not take the same path with any of the other,. old-stock, W series lenses -- when the new NW series arrived on the scene. They only kept...

I guess we've got to thank those crazy guys at FUJI. Instead of having a fire sale to get rid of an old, discontinued lens stock, they simply raised the price on the f6.7, and kept it in their sales...

In 1988 Fuji had a suggested price for the f6.7 that was $100 more than the f6.3 -- even though the f6.3 was faster and had EBC coating. The only thing the f6.7 had over the f6.3 was a much wider...