Brand 17 4x5 view camera

**Merg Ross** · 29-Dec-2020, 22:20

Originally Posted by Kinografx

Hi!
As a happy Brand-17 owner I can tell you that it’s unfairly maligned, and it’s a great, useable camera. It’s very compact for a double rail, not heavy at all, and it’s just fun and easy to use. The other 4x5 that is one of my favorites (and one that everyone else rags on,) is the burke and james press or”watson” - way more movements than a pressman or graphic, cheap, and easy to use.

Noted earlier, my first 4x5 camera was a Brand 17, purchased in 1953. It served me well for ten years as my only 4x5 camera. With a 10" Tessar lens, and sometimes a 7" B&L, it did all that I asked of it, in a simple and reliable manner. When I started my commercial venture, I needed a more friendly camera for short lenses, so purchased a couple of Calumet 400 Series cameras. You are quite right, the Brand 17 has been unfairly maligned. The cameras I have owned over the years, more expensive and with more bells and whistles, have not made me a better photographer.