Almost forgot how to do front fall...Horseman FA 4x5

**ic-racer** · 5-Jun-2020, 14:33

I needed some front fall and had not done it with this camera in quite a while. My first shot was with the bed dropped, but the bed drop on only stops in one position and is not variable. Then I saw the tripod mount on the side and remembered this way to do it which was much better:

Click image for larger version.

Name: IMG_0634 copy.jpg
Views: 49
Size: 84.2 KB
ID: 204468

**Vaughn** · 5-Jun-2020, 14:38

Not familar with the camera...Is there not sufficient drop to use front rise to vary the amount of drop?

**ic-racer** · 5-Jun-2020, 15:07

The Horseman FA is very compact and light, but is a little 'minimalist' when it comes to the complete movement set. With the lens pulled out on the rails, there is NO drop available, only rise.

The camera comes with a tripod socket on the side and the back can be rotated. This allows the generous "Front Shift" to become "Front Drop."

The Horseman FA manual does not show this, I suspect someone could own one of these for years and not realize you can do this. I actually forgot about it when I first setup the shot.

**ic-racer** · 5-Jun-2020, 15:20

Originally Posted by Vaughn

Not familiar with the camera...Is there not sufficient drop to use front rise to vary the amount of drop?

Good point. Yes, the front rise will work to tailor the amount of drop when the bed is dropped. However, dropping the bed tips the lens forward. If one wants to keep the lens and film parallel (like I needed for my shot) there is no detent when swinging the lens up to make the lensboard perfectly plumb and parallel with the back (which does have a bubble level). This makes getting perfect focus a little difficult. Not impossible, but just fiddly.

**Jason Greenberg Motamedi** · 5-Jun-2020, 17:07

I do the same thing with the Horseman VH (2x3). It took me a while to figure out.

**Vaughn** · 5-Jun-2020, 17:08

I thought that Horseman would design that into the system...but one never knows. I am use to working with a 4x5 camera with no indents, but they are nice to have!

My 4x5 can be set vert or hort, but difficult to change in the field. So I flip the camera like you do, but just on the tripod. Works, but the front rise/fall becoming shift confuses my poor brain at times.