Does anyone here have experience with the Linhof shoe-mounted gadget that optica lly and mechanically shows the view seen by different focal lengths? Is it worth the effort to carry it around as opposed to my trusty card with a 4:5 hole cut in it? The ones I have seen on ebay seem to have a maximum focal length of 360 m m; are some longer? Are they still sold new? Does anyone know of alternative (i. e. lighter or cheaper) gadgets other than a simple card?
Thanks.
John Hennessy
The Linhof Multifocus Finder is currently made. It is a zoom type finder for focal lengths from 75 to 350mm (for 45) and accepts rotating masks for formats from 6x7cm to 4x5" including 612cm.
The current masks do not fit the older non zoom type finder. Those are the ones where the image size changes by moving the front and rear lenses apart rather then rotating a ring around the eyepiece.
A second ring corrects for parralax.
The question isn't so much "Are they worth it to lug around?" as it is, can you afford it and do you want to?
Leica made similar devices for their cameras and provided you do the math, they work well. The device I have is, NO! I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP! called an IMARECT. No, it pre-dates viagra.
Bolex also made opto/mechanical viewfinders for their 16mm cameras and they cost even less, although they don't "zoom" like the others do. I think they had three focal lengths to choose from. It's strictly a low cost option you might consider if you bump into one in a parts box at the local camera store.
Zone VI/Calumet makes/sells what amounts to your cardboard card cut- out only it's smaller and has a lanyard to keep it around you neck and a filter which helps you preview a scenes contrast range.
If you shoot regularly and have developed the skill necessary to translate the distance from your eye and the perspective card to a specific focal length lens, that will obviously be the best situation from an economic and logical perspective.
I acquired both a 4x5 and a 5x7 Linhof viewfinder for several personal reasons. 1) Because of my real job and a family, I shoot far to infrequently to be accurate enough with the perspective card. I would love to be making photographs every other day, but that is just not in the cards. 2) I have a wide range of lenses to be able to shoot with and 3) I want to make as sure as possible that where I drop my tripod legs is where I will in fact make a photograph. In other words, these devices save me valuable time getting to where I need to be and 4) I found my viewfinders in great condition used and at reasonable prices and they are an integral part of my pre-shot routine. You can get along fine without them. The botom line is determining if you will make enough use of one to justify a purchase. If you do decide to get one, I would recommend used and prepare to spend around $200+ for one in decent shape.
Cheers!
I have one of these (expensive) beauties and here are my experiences and opinions FWIW: (1) It's heavy, due to the glass, to use as an independent viewfinder. It weighs 250g and I carry it in my shirt pocket with a string around my neck. If I leave it out of my shirt pocket it can damage my ribs as it swings while I walk. (2) It is WAY overpriced, like many Linhof accessories. It costs about twice as much as a Canon 75-300 Zoom EF IS Auto Focus but has way less functionality, if you think about it! Makes no sense. (3) It has focal lengths of 75mm to 360mm. (4) I DO like using it better than the card with a 4x5 cutout and the knotted string, which I used for some time before acquiring the viewfinder. (5) If I lost or broke the thing, I would go back to the card with cutout as the cost does not exceed the benefit, IMO.
"It costs about twice as much as a Canon 75-300 Zoom EF IS Auto Focus but has way less functionality, if you think about it! Makes no sense."
Except for scale.
Would you think that Linhof could possible handmake and sell as many in two years as Canon can machine make and sell in one week?
If Linhof could make, and the market was as large as Canon's you would see a price more in line with Canons.
And, of course, the German employees making them would be willing to make less per year and get fewer vacations and fewer benefits to aid in keeping prices down. And the DM would have the same value as the Yen.
It isn;t as simple as you may think.
Bob is right, it doesn't work that way. If it did, a Linhof Technika would have about a third as many parts as a Honda Civic (it costs about a third as much) or the car would have only about a few dozen moving parts.
Prices have to do with production volume. If you sell many pieces, you can price them lower and still recover your initial costs, if few, like Linhof then you have to price them high.
And I hope this does not introduce any doubts that the Linhof is a fine, fine, FINE camera. None better.
I have one of the earlier finders (when you zoom it all the way out, the image gets really tiny) and I love it -- but I have the Tech IV camera to go with it. Without the camera, owning it wouldn't make a lot of sense - unless you intended to carry it in your pocket and pull it out and use it to "scope" where to shoot from or what lens to use before you unpack your 4x5 kit.
Mounted on my camera, I can easily compare the view between the finder and the ground glass. If parallax is adjusted properly, the finder works very well.
I think Toyo also made or makes a variable finder for their 4x5 -- probably pretty expensive.
One could figure out what the equivalent focal legnths were with a 35mm and carry a 35mm slr camera and a zoom. If you have time to burn maybe try making one out of 2 brass or copper pipes that fit together like a old pirate telescope and have a mask at the far end --- match the view to your existing lenses. You could make a proto- type out of toilet paper tubes. I'm sure that at some point someone like Hama has made some sort of cheap version of this for photographers, film directors or art directors to "eyeball" their shots -- scour ebay.
"I have one of the earlier finders (when you zoom it all the way out, the image gets really tiny)"
That's is why the current zoom version is so much better. On yours at 360mm the image is the size of your small finger nail.
On the zoom type the image at all focal lengths is large and easy to use.
This is for Bob Soloman:
How can one tell a current model from the old model? And what is the current retail USD price? The prices on ebay seem to fluctuate like the biblical reed in the wind.
John Hennessy
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