OK! I am going to bite the bullet and buy a 65mm lens for 4x5 that is better than the SK 65mm f8 that I have now. Any comparisons between the Fuji 65mm SWD f 5.6 and the Nikon 65mm f4? I have compared specs on both, but would like real experience on issues like exposer fall off, etc. I will probably seldom use this focal length, but would like to have the best. Thanks!!
Never had a 65mm f/5.6 Fuji SWD, but previously had a 65mm f/5.6 Super Angulon. Then came upon a 65mm f/4 Nikkor at a price that I had a hard time of passing up on. The f/4 optic was only one stop faster than the f/5.6 optic, but in the field that additional one stop made a huge difference for me. I found the f/4 optic much easier to focus to a very noticeable degree.
What about actual optical performance? I am mostly curious about exposure fall off and coverage. I will be using primarily on a Pacemaker Graphic so movements are very limited. If necessary, I will mount on a Calumet Wide Angle body.
If you are concerned with fall off then why are you looking at lenses that don’t have center filter for them?Originally Posted by JimboWalker
Oh, come on, Bob. Although Nikon and Fuji didn't make center filters for their w/a lenses, there are Rodenstock and Schneider CFs that do well on them.
Jimbo, use the list to find manufacturers' catalog and look up their coverage claims. And use it to find my article on center filters.
My experience with 65mm on 4x5" format view camera is that resolution is limited by how perfectly the detents for the standards can be set. A fraction of a millimeter off and one side of the horizon is always going to be slightly out of focus.
My experience with 65mm (SA 65/5.6) is that I now leave it on a shelf at home.
Thanks for all the snarky responses. Since you know it all, I will trust myself.
Not trying to rain on your parade. I spent years looking longingly at these since I wanted something wider than 90mm on 4x5, before finally buying both a SA 65/5.6 and a Fujinon-W 75/5.6 within a month of each other (got a great deal on the 65 after buying the 75). I had to make a recessed lens board to use them, so I hadn't had a chance to try the Fujinon-W 75mm before buying the SA 65mm. I had to buy a low-profile filter holder after my first outing. And in the end, I could not get a good image from the 65, and ended up with vignetting on more than half my images no matter how careful I was. But no issues whatsoever using the 75mm, that one lives in my camera bag now.
I can't tell them apart just from image quality, they're pretty much identical in practise for B&W, just about the same size, identical shutters, etc. I would buy on condition/price if I had to buy another, from any of the big lens makers. Unless I needed the extra stop from the Nikon f4.
I have the Nikon 65 mm 4.0. Very good, but tricky to use on a Toyo 45AII.
It is mounted on a 1" depression wide angle board with Toyo's wide angle cable release adapter and the aperture/shutter speed controls are difficult to reach, if you have thicker than average fingers.
The main optical problem is to avoid getting the camera bed in the picture.
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