Handheld 4x5?

[William Barnett-Lewis]

Hello all,

Just doing some research here and I'm not finding what I'd like to know about.

I have an Anniversary Speed Graphic. It's a marvellous camera as far as it goes. At that other, way far other, end is the Linhof camera that has essentially no limitations re movements, etc as far as 4x5 is concerned. So my question is simply this:

Is there a field camera capable of being handheld with a good ol' grafmatic tucked into it's back other than a Graphic (or Graphic like - a Busch Pressman appears close enough to be indistinguishable from a Graphic for this purpose) or a Linhof? The search being for one with more capability than my current Anny Speed Graphic, though I'm not sure I need as much as a Linhof would offer since I do so much handheld shooting. I don't think so, from what I've been able to find, but I learned the limits of that a very long time ago.

Thanks in advance,

William

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Hi there,

Burke&James made 4X5 press cameras with more movements, show up on ebay often.

Deardorff made a super tricked out press camera, rare and expensive.

Kalart made press cameras, heavy and expensive, getting rare.

Have fun with the search.

[William Barnett-Lewis]

Thank you. Those are exactly the things I hoped to learn tonight. Kalart is the real surprise given I'm still looking to retrofit one of thier RF's on my Anny. The idea of a Deardorff press is very near as close though. Just when I think I understand this history...

William

[james mickelson]

What is it that you are looking for the camera to do that a Speed or Anniversary can't do? Movements aren't that useful when you are shooting from the hip. A rangefinder isn't that fast either for any kind of action shot. I shoot with an old Speed and I don't need any movements. My main problem is flash. I've gone through three capacitors in my Hieland flash unit.

[Neal Wydra]

Dear William,

If you have not already seen this, check out: http://www.littman45single.com/

[RJ Hicks]

Wista also makes a 4x5 rangefinder model of its metal field cameras. The rangefinder is set up for the 135, 150 or 180 Nikkor w lenses and I read somewhere that it could also be set up for other makes in these focal lengths. Seems from the pictures of the camera that I have seenand other stuff I have read to be a pretty good contestant for a handheld 4x5. I use a crown graphic handheld, with a kalart side rangefinder, and it works great handheld.

[tor kviljo]

Since you like the ann. speed graphic, the closest up in the row of cameras with more movements would be the Super or Super Speed graphics. These rotating-back - much more movements - (speed)-graphics with metal bodies were meant for hand held use but at the same time trying to rival the capabilities of the Linhof tech of the same vintage. The Super Graphics is priced a bit to expensive in my opinion (at least when I last looked at them on ebay). Then there is the toyo field: Toyo redeveloped the Super Graphic after this company went defunct, so earlier Toyo fields are very much like the super graphics, and useful for handheld use. Newer versions is less for hand held use - more made as portable view camera for tripod use. Other excellent metal-field cameras with much movement is the Wista metal field: 3 versions with and & w/o range-viewfinder and micro adjustment back. Quite heavy - even more than a tech V I belive. Very well made, but not too common. From UK there is the Linhof clone: MPP field: technical back and much movement but less expensive than the tech. Finders etc. available. From US the rather scarce Meridian: a US Linhof Tech lookalike with "all" movements. In 4"x5" metal-field, I personally have used versions of Technika + the Wista, not having hand-on knowledge of the others, but knowing them from litterature. others will help here. Oh, I had a B & J press briefly: Mine were an ugly piece put together of low quality aluminium castings with ample space between about everything that you expected would fit snugly, and the focussing wheel whirred freely on the axle...... Maybe other samples were better made - mine were a disaster and left for the bin shortly after the first meeting (no catastrophy: bought very inexpensive from Midwest) .

[Don Wallace]

The Super Graphic is good option. Although it has no back movements, the back is 360 degrees rotatable. It does have quite a few front movement, certainly enough for most landscape work. The downside of using one of these hand-held is that really fine focus can be an issue. These were press cameras, used when photographers shot wide open with giant flash units.

I am also interested in why you want a hand-held camera WITH movements? Is it that you really want two cameras in one? i.e, a hand-held for candid shooting, and a field camera? If that is the case, then the Super Graphic is a good option. The Crown Graphic has almost no movements but is lighter and easier to use hand-held than the Super. I tried doing it all with one camera for a while and just gave up. I bought a Wisner field camera and got an RB67 for point and shoot. My life is a LOT more simple now.

[John_4185]

Built to be hand-held, no movements, lightweight and rugged: Printex 4x5 with Kalart RF and batteryless flash.

elearning.winona.edu/staff_o/jjs/printex/

[mark blackman]

Why not look at a Hobo camera, available in 10x8 and 5x7 from Bostick and Sullivan:

http://www.bostick-sullivan.com/Hobo/welcome.htm?