What is the largest format camera that you have seen ever?

[ryanchapman]

Hello Photographer,
What is the large format camera that you have seen ever?

TIA

[ericantonio]

I live by the Tustin Airbase in Southern California. I didn't see it in person at the time, but there was an article in the local newspaper and I drove by hopefully to see it. It was before they started building homes and apartments around it. But it was considered THE LARGEST PINHOLE CAMERA.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Picture

[Bob Salomon]

Including graphic arts process cameras?

[Tin Can]

Here is the longest and tallest I have ever seen in person. I own it.

The first pic is 5 years ago when I first assembled it and cut the uprights down from 13 feet to 7 feet. Originally they were 20 feet tall! As used by Mongomery Wards Catalog division in Chicago.

The second pic is after I installed 3 new bellows, allowing 6 feet of bellows extension, which I have used with a 900mm Jena shooting macro. That back is 5X7.

The third pic shows the Deardorff S11 with new Richard Ritter 11X14 back and my handmade DIY GG. The camera is upside down shooting an 11X14 X-Ray film macro in my cramped studio.

1-1-1-11x14 Deardorff (2014_11_19 06_51_07 UTC) by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

1-1929 S11 Deardorff by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

Upside down by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

[Tin Can]

Including graphic arts process cameras?

You are right Bob, our factory had a monster Process Camera, it took up 2 rooms. Perhaps 4X4 ft imaging door and 20 ft of bellows.

[Bob Salomon]

You are right Bob, our factory had a monster Process Camera, it took up 2 rooms. Perhaps 4X4 ft imaging door and 20 ft of bellows.

Our photo lab in the USAF had a big Robertson like that l could open the back in one room and actually walk into it and stand up inside it!

But there was also the Polaroid 20x24. It was also large format but it wasn’t a view camera. Would that be included?

[ericantonio]

Our photo lab in the USAF had a big Robertson like that l could open the back in one room and actually walk into it and stand up inside it!

But there was also the Polaroid 20x24. It was also large format but it wasn’t a view camera. Would that be included?

A 20x24? If it isn't a view camera, what would it be? Okay, now we have to define what a view camera is right? The 20x24 didn't have a bellows? I'm intrigued now.

[Bob Salomon]

A 20x24? If it isn't a view camera, what would it be? Okay, now we have to define what a view camera is right? The 20x24 didn't have a bellows? I'm intrigued now.

It had no camera movements, no tilt/swing/shift/rise. It had a big bellows that could be focused.

In other words, like the process cameras and the pinhole cameras, it was a very large box Brownie!

In my mind a view camera has movements that lets the user control the plane of focus and subject shape as well as direct displacements that let you shoot from one spot and make it appear that you were at a different spot!

[ericantonio]

In my mind a view camera has movements that lets the user control the plane of focus and subject shape as well as direct displacements that let you shoot from one spot and make it appear that you were at a different spot!

Ahhhh okay, good point!!

[Mark Sampson]

The largest view camera that I know of was made by Douglas Busch in the late 1980s. A field camera that took 30"x40" film; he had a lens specially made by Rodenstock. I read about it in 'View Camera' magazine, some people here may remember it.