Lens boards for Wista 45D - same as Technica?

[Paul Ron]

thats weird hovoc... i have a wista and the offset lens board does center the lens perfectly. when i first started using the wista i thought it was strange to have an offset hole till i pulled the bellows all the way back n measured where the center was in relation to the film... its centered!

maybe the wood wista is what you are refering to? im not familiar with that one.

[B.S.Kumar]

I can only reiterate that Linhof and Wista cameras are designed to use lens boards with holes offset downwards, and that such boards center the image on the film. The standard lens boards manufactured by Wista and Linhof have offset holes. Wista lensboards for Copal 3 and 3S shutters, and extension boards have center holes.

Kumar

[Oren Grad]

I can only reiterate that Linhof and Wista cameras are designed to use lens boards with holes offset downwards, and that such boards center the image on the film. The standard lens boards manufactured by Wista and Linhof have offset holes. Wista lensboards for Copal 3 and 3S shutters, and extension boards have center holes.

A technicality: Wista has offered boards with centered holes in all sizes, not just #3. See, for example:

https://www.wista.co.jp/show/acces/rens.html

So one needs to be careful about the exact specifications even if one is buying a "Wista-branded" board.

[Havoc]

I'm not at home right now and they are not on the ftp since I changed provider. I'll post them again when I'm home.

[B.S.Kumar]

I was wrong, and Havoc is right. When used with a Wista field camera, lens boards with mounting holes offset down will shift the image down, while a board with a centered hole will center the image on the film. However, since Wista field cameras do not offer front fall, their standard #0 and #1 lens boards are offset down by 7mm. This gives a built-in fall and it is necessary to raise the lens by 7mm if one wants a centered image. In real life usage, it does not matter what lens board is used. However, if maximum rise is desired, a center hole board is better.

I've used a Wista 45D for 15 years, and learned something new today.

Thank you, Havoc.

Kumar

[Havoc]

Back home, I remade the photos to show it very clearly. Kumar explained it already but I promised the photos so I'll post them anyway.

Setup was the Wista on a tripod and a self-leveling laser cross beam. I set it up so the center of the laser cross was centered on the opening of the Wista front standard:

Looking at the ground glass you see clearly that this cross comes in the center of the negative:


So now I put an offset lens board on it. This was a Toyo branded one:

And looking at the ground glass:


To me the lens opening is shifted down from the center of the negative.

[Havoc]

Now I put a Wista branded lens board with a center hole in it:

And the ground glass looks like this:


For me this confirms that a lens board with a centered hole also centers the lens in the middle of the negative.

It is as Krumar notes, the Wista doesn't have down fall if the front standard is in the neutral position and you use a centered lens board. It is very dangerous to extrapolate from other brands/types of cameras.

So what you use as a lens board is likely determined by your use of rise/fall. I'm mostly photographing buildings so I always use rise. For me these offset lens boards rob me of 7mm rise!

[B.S.Kumar]

The photos explain it clearly. I used a distinctly low-tech approach to come to the same conclusion:
1. I taped a piece of tracing paper on a Wista offset #0 board
2. I found the center of the circle by drawing two lines intersecting each other.
3. Then I mounted the board on the Wista camera, and pushed the front standard as far back as it would go.
4. I removed the focusing screen and inserted a thin bamboo skewer into the paper at the intersection.
5. I put a tiny blob of Blu-Tack on the point of the skewer and replaced the focusing screen.
6. Holding the skewer as straight as possible and touching it to the back of the focusing screen showed me that Havoc is right.

Kumar