Because 100mm is a common portrait length for 35mm and its equivalent is about 300mm in 4x5. If you are shooting portraits you'll probably want a f5.6 lens and modern plasmats are big. A 210mm plasmat is much easier to use on most cameras and is a much more common choice even though it is only 65-70 (depending on how you calculate it) in 35mm terms. Just trying to illustrate the point that lens selection is a bit more complicated in 4x5 because of the twin issues of bellows extension and weight. You really need a monorail to shoot fast long lenses in 4x5.
Another thing to consider is the Image Circle of the lens in use and what film size you are working with.
A lens that throws an image circle of 325mm just covers 8x10 film and can cause problems with smaller formats at times. The larger image circle may cause light bouncing off the inside of the bellows. Using a lens with a smaller image circle will generally see few problems with this. See the Fuji 210 lenses. One covers 8x10 while the newer versions throw a smaller image circle. Some have found light bounce problem with the bigger image circle, solved by moving to the newer lens with a smaller image circle. Possibly the newer coatings help as well?
” Never attribute to inspiration that which can be adequately explained by delusion”.
I started using LF in 1962. I have used an old Ansco, Sinar 45 to 810 and Linhof when I had my studio. I have sold Sinar as a rep for EPOI and was Product Manager and Sales Manager for Linhof from 1979 to 2015 and for Wista from 1990 to 2015 and for Rodenstock from 1986 to 2015.
In all that time, using, managing and selling LF your perceived problem never occurred. Not once!
The use of proper material to make a bellows and the pleats in the bellows and the proper finish inside the camera makes this a folk tale!
What is correct in your post is the image circle is of equal importance as fov and, if you use direct or indirect displacements, even more important!
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