Cheap 4X5 Cameras are Everywhere

[Bill Poole]

Never having been a "professional" (except to shoot photos to go with my travel writing back in that lifetime), I am perhaps not positioned to comment on your core question. I will point out that you use the word "love" only to apply to your large format work. If you ever think you will photograph primarily for love (perhaps in retirement), maybe keep the gear, exercise the lens shutters occasionally, and wait for that day.

[ic-racer]

The only way to expose 4x5 is with a 4x5 camera. So a 4x5 camera would only be useless to a non-photographer, or someone too lazy to use it for what it was intended ( to expose 4x5).

[Tin Can]

As counterpoint to Cheap 4X5

Old Hasselblad prices...

[Bernice Loui]

If you're never going to do sheet film again, it could be time to pass all this Sinar and related gear on to others that can and will put them back to making images again. All that gear can stay with you for as long as you're willing to have it around for _?_ reasons. Eventually, like all other material items, no one is allowed to take it with them once they are gone from this mortal life.

After nearly four decades of being a Sinar user to this day, the joys of making images on sheet film continue. There continues to be joy and satisfaction of making sheet film images to this day.

It has been said that once any material item/device/noun no longer offers joy, enjoyment or meets a specific need, time has come to pass it on.


Bernice

What would be the reason for me to keep my amazing 4x5 Sinar P2 and many lenses if I am not likely to ever shoot film again?

I haven't touched it in about 15 years, and only work in Digital. I don't shoot in a product studio. I was using my P2 for almost exclusively Architecture, but I lost all of my clients in 2008. If I need to shoot products for a client, I use my Canon digital cameras with my Balcar and Speedotron big strobe packs, dialed way down in power.
Sometimes, assistants looked at all the strobe gear aghast, but even that doesn't stretch it's legs very often now.

Plus, I've left Photography mostly, and now work as a Perfumer.

But dang did I love to shoot buildings and houses with that P2. It is a dream camera, compared to those other lesser view cameras that I learned on. I couldn't believe it when Sinar ran a two year no interest promo on the P2, I jumped on the chance to buy one.

But it has just languished in the case for a long time.
And there does not seem to be a 4" x 5" digital sensor for flash photography that will ever be made, and the scanning backs just aren't what is gonna do it for me.

I just hate to give it up, but there just doesn't seem to be a purpose to keep what I spent $15,000 USD on P2 body, accessories, and amazing and hard to obtain lenses, that is now just rather worthless monetarily.

What are your thoughts? Is there any hope, or need to keep this amazing camera and lenses?

[pdmoylan]

Nostalgia is a powerful emotion. We attach to things that allow us to recall pleasant experiences. Nothing wrong with attachment, which seems somewhat to be expected as we age.

But really, is there a market for a P2? I can’t imagine many potential buyers given its excessive weight and bulk in comparison to say a Shen Hao.

Pricing for used 4x5 is all over the place, even for the same model (eBay). The biggest hurtle by far is obtaining new bellows (and at a reasonable cost); a real issue for otherwise inexpensive LF models.

Over the last 3 years there have been perhaps a half dozen occasions where I felt LF was warranted, both from an aesthetic and practical perspective. Is it worth holding on to gear when you might use it occasionally and for which there is no ready market for prints? I am torn on this.

I’ve scaled my LF lenses down to just a few, and there still seems to be a market for the big 3 (or is that waning also?)

[xkaes]

It has been said that once any material item/device/noun no longer offers joy, enjoyment or meets a specific need, time has come to pass it on.

Bernice

There are too many people that get too attached to their gear. It just sits in the closet until the estate auctioneers basically give it away. This is just one of the reasons why some great gear is still so expensive -- a lot of it never gets on the market.

A friend of mine died last year thanks to the pandemic. I had been encouraging him, for years, to let me sell his Minolta 35mm gear on EBAY. He hadn't used it in decades and it was like new. I knew he could use the extra money, but he hung on to it just the same. In the end, the estate managers had an open house and sold -- gave away -- everything for whatever offer they got. My guess? $25 tops.

[Tin Can]

IMHO

Those that tell others to sell are duplistic

To thine own self be true

[maltfalc]

And there does not seem to be a 4" x 5" digital sensor for flash photography that will ever be made, and the scanning backs just aren't what is gonna do it for me.

http://largesense.com/index.php/prod...ital-back-ls45

[abruzzi]

But really, is there a market for a P2? I can’t imagine many potential buyers given its excessive weight and bulk in comparison to say a Shen Hao.

A few months ago UsedPhotoPro listed about 5 4x5 P2s for about $500 each. I think they got a bunch of sinars from some university photo department. Anyway all those P2s were sold in a couple days. They still have 20 or more lenses on DB lens board that appeared at the same time. So I do think there is still a market.

[xkaes]

To thine own self be true

What goes around comes around.