Light weight field camera

[Songyun]

What is the lightest field camera 4X5 (yet very rigid) that you have used?
Is a 3 lbs camera a good candidate?

[steve simmons]

I would be more concerned about getting the features I want in the camera.

steve simmons

[Brian Ellis]

"Lightest" and "very rigid" don't go well together. You're better off IMHO finding a compromise between "light but not the lightest" and "rigid but not the most rigid." The Tachihara is a good compromise, weighs about 4 lbs and is plenty rigid but it isn't the lightest camera there is. I've never used one of the super-light weights such as the Toho (which isn't a true "field" camera in the traditional sense of the word) or the wood Japanese cameras such as the Nagasaki (?), both of which weigh in the 3 pound range, so I can't comment on their rigidity. But in general I think it's safe to say that the lightest camera around isn't likely to be "very rigid," at least not in comparison with really rigid cameras such as the Linhof Technika.

[Ole Tjugen]

I haven't used any of them, but two of Argentum's models weigh less than 2 lb - and one (xl) less than 1 lb.

[Christopher Perez]

The lightest practical 4x5's I have used (in the sense that you have plenty of movements and "sufficient" rigidity) are the Ikeda Anba/Nagaoka camera. They weight 2 3/4 pounds.

[Songyun]

What I know about this camera that I mentioned, is that the bed is made of carbon fiber, that reduced some weight. as for the functions, it has front shift, swing, axis tilt, rise and fall. rear base tilt, swing(not much), no shift, rise. If it is as rigid as Tachihara, if not better, does that sound good?

I might have a try of that camera, so that I can reduce my gear to 10lbs + tripod on a hiking trip.

[Songyun]

forget to mention that the camera has max bellow extension 390mm

[David A. Goldfarb]

My lightest LF camera is a Gowland 4x5" front-moves camera. I don't know that I'd want it as my only LF camera, but it lets me carry a 4x5" camera when it would otherwise be impractical. I often bring it along with my birding kit--a 600/4.5 and Canon F-1N--for landscape and macro shots between bird photo ops like this one--



This week we're traveling for the first time with our new baby, so there's lots of extra stuff that needs to be carried, including the baby of course, so I'm bringing the Gowland and a lightweight tripod that fits in our regular luggage. The Gowland kit weighs less than my Bronica S2a kit.

[Paul Droluk]

As long as you don't require movements, the Fotoman 45PS weighs in at 2.4 pounds. Remove the handles and your down to 1.65 pounds. That's for the complete camera. Body, Cone (65mm lens), Helical Focus Mount and Viewfinder. Rigid?... perfectly.

[Bruce Osgood]

I just got to use my new-to-me Tachihara this Saturday. It is everything I could dream of in a Field Camera. Ridged enough to hold a MM G-Claron without shake, enough swing, tilt and rise to keep me happy for a long time. (AND, it is a chick magnet. )

If you research the Tachihara you will find it is among the lightest in weight with more than adequate movements for landscape work. It is a pleasure to use.