Sold off medium gear and now trying my hand at large format. I'm using a Horseman FA with Rodenstock 90mm f6.8 and Sinar 210mm f/5.6 for landscapes involving a fair amount of hiking. Recently purchased a Sinar P for shots close to the car, and occasional some still life. Aside from new #1� lensboards will I need a wide angle bellow for the 90mm and or extension rail for the 210mm. Also considering a Nikon 300mm f/9, which I believe works with both camera? Experienced advise appreciated.
Don't know about the Sinar, but the Horseman will NOT focus a 300mm Nikkor M at infinity. You need about 290mm of flange-focal distance, and the FA will only give you about 245mm even with the back extended on the posts.
If you're going to keep the Horseman, I'd suggest finding (or having made) an adapter board for the Sinar. That way, you can leave the lenses mounted on the Horseman boards, rather than swapping them back and forth. If one isn't available commercially, S.K. Grimes (www.skgrimes.com) can likely make one for you.
I use a Toyo 45AX field camera, which has about the same bellows draw as your Horseman. I use a Nikkor 360T telephoto design lens with it, and can focus to around 8-10 feet or so. A 300mm lens of conventional design would be too long, though.
You will want to have a bag bellows to use the 90mm lens. With the standard bellows the movement is restricted by the tightly compressed bellows. You don't want to force it and crunch the bellows. If you have only the base rail unit you will most definitely need an extension for the 210 and 300mm lenses. You might be able to focus at infinity with the base rail and the 210 but not much closer. Does the Horseman FA use a Technika style board? I have made adapters to use these boards on a Sinar and it worked well.
Thanks for the information so far. As you may summize LF is all new to me, hadn't factored in the need to re-attach lens to Sinar board. The adapter suggestion sound's like the way to go. Regarding the Technika board, I'm not sure. The Horsemen takes 4" square boards.
I thought the lens boards for the Horseman FA were 80mm square.
Horseman field boards are not the same as Technika boards. However, Horseman does offer a somewhat pricey adapter board that allows you to fit the small Horseman field boards to cameras that use the large Sinar-type boards, which are the same as the boards for Horseman monorails.
Ralph is right - I just measured one of my Horseman field boards, and it is indeed 80mm square.
Hi
It is possible to use a 300mm on a Horseman FA you only need an extention board from Horseman for it. I use for exemple an APO Ronar 300mm and have also a Sinar lensboard wich I can use the little Horseman boards on the Sinar P and F!
Forrest, how close can you focus the 210mm lens on your Horseman FA? I am building a field camera and the Horseman replacement bellows are by far the least expensive - $117 at B&H. The lenses I plan to use are in the 90mm to 210mm range. I currently have a 150mm and 210mm. I think that 6ft is the closest I would ever want to focus the 210mm and 1:3 is the closest I would ever want to focus the 150mm.
Edward
PS Sorry for hijacking your thread but I thought this was close enough to topic.
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