Schneider Kreuznach Symmar-S 5.6/300mm

[Taran of Caer Dallnem]

That's what I got today from Switzerland.
Schneider Kreuznach Symmar-S 5.6/300mm on a Sinar Lensboard. No shutter.
What a monster.
I can right away forget ever using it on my 4x5. I should have looked at the weight and dimensions first! LOL
But I got it really cheap, for about $50, p&p included, and it is in fantastic condition.
So, hey, I'll just have to build a camera for it, won't I?
There's some very nice Okoume plywood lying around.

I read it covers 8x10 with movements!
At 8x10 I'll be shooting paper, not film.
Do you think I need a shutter?
If yes, can I mount it into a shutter (I think Copal 3 is the size) myself?
Have never done this before...

I'm really excited...

[towolf]

I can right away forget ever using it on my 4x5. I should have looked at the weight and dimensions first!

What makes you say that?

[Taran of Caer Dallnem]

Amazing. Wonder if my Busch Pressman can stand the strain!

[Adamphotoman]

That is a fantastic price. That aside, I use a Sironar 300mm f 5.6 on a Sinar. Even older. Another big heavy " monster "...BTW The lens is my favourite focal length on 4x5, but it was designed for 8x10.

Your elements will unscrew from the DB lens board and then they should fit right into a #3 shutter. When you do remove the front and rear cells look for any shims. If there are you will want to reassemble in the same configuration.

[Dan Fromm]

The big question about y'r Pressman is whether the lens' rear cell will pass through the front standard.

[Taran of Caer Dallnem]

Checked it: You shall not pass, as Gandalr said to the Balrog.

[Peter Yeti]

Depending on what you usually shoot, you may consider getting yourself a decent Sinar with a Sinar Copal shutter instead of building a wobbly wooden (field?) camera. A #3 shutter is quite expensive and you need to fit the cells in and get appropriate aperture scales. The nice thing about the Sinar system is that you can use many lenses with just one shutter, and the shutter-less DB lenses are much cheaper than if they were in individual shutters.

Peter

[Mark Sampson]

That lens is meant for 8x10, of course. It will be a superb performer when used on 4x5, since you will only be using the center of its field. A few years back we were using one to create test images on Kodak 3412, as high-resolution a film as you're likely to find, and I was amazed at what it could resolve. (We had only used it for 8x10 before, and rarely enlarged past 3x).

[Taran of Caer Dallnem]

Thank you for your input: Mark, I am certainly going to keep the lens - what do you think of it as a portrait lens for 5x7?
Peter Yeti, I must admit the Sinar system is unknown to me. Have you got a good link? I understand the shutter is always behind the lens, so you cannot use any lens?!

[Peter Yeti]

Symmars are razor sharp, not exactly the characteristic of a true "portrait lens". But of course it is a good lens for portrait in my opinion, only be aware that it may show brutally any skin blemish or wrinkle. That's sometimes not appreciated, especially by female sitters.

If I'm not mistaken, Sinar was the world's market leader for monorail LF cameras in the days, when professional photography was heavily based on LF. The P/P2/P3 models are legendary and were found in professional studios all over the world. The system was developed by a Swiss photographer who was very unhappy with the rickety cameras available on the market when he started out. Here is are some links:

http://www.sinar.ch
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinar
http://www.glennview.com/sinar.htm

It's probably not what you want to log around in a backpack but for everything else I haven't found a better system.

Peter