I am currently shooting a Cambo sc monorail.I am interested in going to a folding field.I have considered a Shen Hao,Chamonix,or a clean Deardorff.
What is the downside of the Deardorff compared to the newer cameras other than weight?There is a alot of difference in price.
Tachihara or Shen will be your best bet, especially with money in mind. Tach 8X10's can be found for $800 used. Even a Wista can be found for $800 used. Shens do not come up on the used often, but they are a very nice camera, especially the newest 8X10 they brought out. I see no point shooting with a Chamonix over one of the newer Shens. And if you do not mind having just about all the movements of the Chamonix and Shen, get a used Wista/Tachihara for 1/2 the price of a Shen and 1/3rd the price of a Chamonix.Originally Posted by bwaysteve
Deardorff will cost you much more than a same condition Wista/Tachihara and if you want to pay for a used Deardorff, you should buy a Shen.
Give the Deardorff careful consideration. I sold a gorgeous one years ago to get a more "modern" 8x10. After using two other wooden cameras I knew I had made a mistake and searched for a decent deardorff, which I am currently loving and using.One great thing about DD's is the rising front lensboard which gives more rise and fall with a wideangle lens then switching the bellows on other cameras ( no interchangeable bellows on a DD ). It is solid and has plenty of movements and extension. You probably can find a really nice one for under 2000.
Got a nice used KB Canham. What's cool is Keith extends warrantee coverage even if you are not the original purchaser. He wants you happy with his cameras.
I've owned two 8x10 Deardorffs, they were the nicest wooden cameras in any format I've ever owned. I don't know of any real downside to them. Weight isn't that big a deal, 12 lbs is fairly typical for 8x10 except for the Wehman and the Canham light weight. I'm pretty sure the Tachi double extension and the Shen Hao weigh about the same as Deardorff. Some people quibble about the fact that front tilt and rise are controlled by the same knob but that never bothered me. You also have to be careful about what you're getting. Most Deardorffs were owned by pros and have been heavily used. If you buy on ebay just make sure you have a right to return or are buying from a very reputable seller who posts lots of pictures and who can tell you for sure that the bellows is light tight.
As I'm sure you know, there are two 8x10 Tachis, a double extension and a triple extension. IIRC the triple is very heavy - like 15 lbs or more - and you almost never see one for sale used. The double extensions weigh about what a Deardorff does, maybe a little more. They're slightly more common used but not all that common, certainly nowhere near as common as Deardorffs. The odds of finding a used Shen Hao 8x10 are slim and none.
Brian Ellis
Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you do criticize them you'll be
a mile away and you'll have their shoes.
Can't add much to the 8x10 Deardorfs since i never owned one but do a search somewhere on the internet and you might find one with a special treat included.
I usually don't agree to posting links since everyone interested enough does a lot of research to find the good deals. This one is however in plain sight.
IMHO it all depends on what is more intuitive to you. The larger the format, the greater the effort it is just to get the thing out and use it. If your camera is something you truly enjoy using, you'll be more likely to get outside and use it more. I have a vey old, very worn 'dorff I love, but you might find one of the newer cameras more to your liking. If at all possible, try to get your mitts on as many 8x10s as you can to compare them.
That said, I wouldn't turn my nose up at an old 'dorff especially if the price is right. The prices on these classics seem to only go up so you may well make some money on the thing when it comes time to sell.
"I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority"---EB White
I don't have much experience with other 8x10 cameras, but I've been enjoying my Tachihara 8x10 so far! The rear swing may be limited for some folks (it's not really much), and it doesn't have real long bellows. But neither of those hinder my shooting at all. It's a pretty solid camera for a decent price. I would have liked to pick up a more classic camera (Deardorff for sure) but figured I would stick with something newer for now, so that I know it won't need any work to keep it up and running for a while.
Daniel Buck - 3d VFX artist
3d work: DanielBuck.net
photography: 404Photography.net - BuckshotsBlog.com
A mint condition Deardorff might be more expensive then the other choices you listed.
The Shen FCL-810 is much lighter. 4kg? I forget. You can get the add ons still from the factory. Bag bellows which you don't need for 8x10 with any lens that covers 8x10. Reducing backs. Lensboards etc. With the Deardorff the factory isn't making stuff any more so you need to consider that issue.
To me that's the big advantage of a new camera. You can get what you want and not what is on the used market.
OTOH on just the price/performance level hard to go wrong with an Ansco. But it's heavier then the Shen. Doesn't go as wide. etc.
As a Deardorff owner, I can highly recommend them. Remember the camera is just a box to position a lens and a sheet of film. You can't go wrong with any of your choices as all will do what they are supposed to. I think it all comes down to your personal tastes. From a cost standpoint, used will be less than new. There seems to be more used DD's than any of the other cameras you mention. That is not because they are bad cameras, it is because there are a lot more of them out there as they were manufactured for many years and were the choice of many pros. You do have to be careful with what you buy as previously noted.
Kevin
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