Hello all,
I'm interested in getting a 4x5 and could use a little advice. There's a decent chance I'll want to get a used camera but I haven't been looking for very long so I don't know how common it is to get certain models on the used market. As well, I could probably use a bit of general advice on camera choice.
I really got into b&w photography in the early 90's (I was in my early 20's). At the time I thought that I would eventually get a 4x5. Life happened, work happened (more money but less free time), family happened, digital happened. Then a few weeks ago I was having a beer with a co-worker and a friend of his. It turns out that his friend shoots 4x5 and that got me thinking... At first I thought about 3d printing a camera - I'm an ex mechanical engineer and I came up with a simple monorail design years ago that I never made. That very day I received my new Make magazine and they had an article on 3d printing a 4x5. I tried printing a few parts for that camera (The Standard) but I don't think my printer is quite up to it. I'm not convinced it's really what I want anyways. So I started some web searches on what's out there.
I was reading about different wood field camera models when I came across some info on a Toho monorail design. I saw a video of one being used and that really got me interested - while I value small size and weight, I don't necessarily care if the camera folds up into one box. That reminded me of my old monorail design, which at the time I thought would be lighter and easier to make than a folding camera.
Even though I've never used a LF camera before I'm pretty sure I know mostly what I need: vertical shifts and tilts. I don't know if I'd need back movements very often or at all. The 4x5 would primarily be used for landscape photography while hiking. I think I'd try to get a 90 mm lens - almost all of my landscape photos over the years have been shot between 24 and 35 mm. Weight and cost are important to me. The Intrepid 4x5 is interesting and available. I'd really like to check out a Toho but I have no idea how long it would take before I find one of those turning up on the used market. A Chamonix would be great but probably too much money unfortunately.
Any idea on the liklihood of getting a Toho? I also read about a Badger 4x5 that is a copy of the Toho. What other models should I look at? I'm in Vancouver BC btw, for some reason I haven't been able to update my profile.
Thanks!
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