Still have and use a Sinar F camera I bought in 1984. Never thought twice about not taking it into the field. In fact in 4x5, have never owned a folding box field camera.
Still have and use a Sinar F camera I bought in 1984. Never thought twice about not taking it into the field. In fact in 4x5, have never owned a folding box field camera.
"Photographs don't lie, they just don't tell the truth" - Lawrence Clark Powell
With the customizations I've recommended in the following link, the F1 Sinar can be just as functional a camera as an Arca Swiss. The Arca has some nice features. But, the F1 can provide both functionality and economy.
https://www.photrio.com/forum/thread...camera.172997/
they are always cheap when you arent shopping for one!
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Another consideration, those new to this view camera stuff might not fully understand or appreciate what camera movements can and will do for the sheet film image as these view camera specific capabilities is not common at all with a fixed lens box camera be it digital or film. Those venturing into this view camera stuff is likely going to want a camera that is familiar to what they have been using and will likely use the sheet film camera in similar ways to a fixed lens box camera. Until the usage and how to properly apply ALL possible view camera movements is fully appreciated and understood, the benefits of a monorail -vs- light weight field folder might not be fully and completely appreciated.
For some, view camera movements are of near zero importance or significance, for others, view camera movement capability and ability for the camera to be built up or altered as needed to meet the image goals is the primary view camera selection factor.
Different tools to meet different needs,
Bernice
this right hereOriginally Posted by Paul Ron
I dont follow the 4x5 camera market, but the last time i was browsing 8x10 equipment, cameras, lenses , film and film holders were all much more expensive than when I started 8x10 12 years ago.
Market $ of sheet film view camera stuff has gone up lots from the early 2000's. Seems the bottom market $ for film GEAR was about 2007-2010, then the $ began to increase again. Today, seems much of the market value of film GEAR is what it once was with some exceptions. There was a time when it was easy to purchase a 210mm f5.6 modern plasma view camera lens for $100 U$D in fine condition any time was easy, A good 4x5 Sinar F cost about $100 and many others. There was also a glut of old film due to lack of interest. Peak sales years for digital cameras was about 2007 t0 2012 which corresponds to the trough of film and film camera GEAR interest and market value.
Film could have died during that time, for reasons still not fully understood (much chatter about this to this day) film gained popularity again driving up market value and demand for specific film gear. In ways this is a good thing, if market demand for film based images died, all this film GEAR would be mostly ornamental and relegated to a display or trophy case.
Bernice
We, if needed can make emulsions
I have everything for that
I prefer film until that time
While I have a lot of X-Ray, I also have a lot of REAL film as some touts insisted for a decade
Tin Can
Yeah, in that 2010 time frame the bottom fell out of the film camera market. Digital was now good enough for anybody, and had so many advantages for both pros and amateurs alike. I bought a lot of large and medium format stuff at the time, since people were almost giving it away for anything they could get. I could never have afforded any of this stuff only 10 years earlier.
Fast forward to 2022, and medium format gear especially has gone through the roof, but I think that's because it's still hand holdable with a bit of dedication, and offers something "different" for those now bored with digital. Large format is a different kettle of fish. It's probably a stretch too far the vast majority, and always has been. 4x5 pricing is all over the map. There's still lots of stuff going cheap, but the rarer items are still very expensive. It's the usual supply and demand thing. The basic commodities are still cheap (other than film) since the demand is low, but the sky's the limit for something that's hard to get or rare.
Monorails make excellent studio portrait cameras. Plenty of bellows draw for head or head and shoulder shots!
Just get a lens board that converts to Technika style boards and you can easily swap lenses between your monorail and field camera.
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