What starter lens for the Tachihara 45

[shadowless]

Hi,

I am looking at getting into large format (4x5). Would like to find out what lens should i get for the Tachihara45.

Hope someone can advice.

Regards,
Wei

[Gem Singer]

The usual answer to this oft asked question--- start with a "normal" focal length lens that was manufactured by one of the major optical companies.

More specifically, a 135,150, or a 180 that was made by either Schneider, Rodenstock,
Nikon, or Fuji.

Later, you can add a 90 wide angle and/or a 210, 240, 300. The Tachihara's bellows length is maxed out at about 300 mm.

The classic three lens set that can easily be handled by a 4X5 Tachi: 90, 150, and 210.

There are recessed lens boards and extension boards for the Tachi that allow the use of slightly longer, or shorter focal lengths.

[Dennis]

If you are thinking of doing detail photos or relatively close focus work I would get a 180 over a 210. I started my studio commercial work with a Tachihara and a 210 and was forever running out of bellows or working right at the limit of my bellows doing table top stuff. So I got a camera with more bellows.

[John Kasaian]

How much money do you want to spend? What types of photography interest you?
Whose photographs do you admire? John Sexton and Roman Loranc, for example, have used 210mm for most of thier landscape masterpieces, while nearly every architectural photographer around puts a 90mm SA to work.
If you want to learn about all the movements your new tachi can give you, just about any lens with generous 4x5 coverage (generally these will be medium to long focal lengths) will work.
Enjoy and have fun!

[Brian Ellis]

If you don't have a clear preference for one particular type of photography - e.g. portraits, close-ups, etc. - that call for particular types of focal lengths then try to see what your favorite lens is for 35mm and multiply that focal length by 3 or 4. You won't get the same photographs because 35mm and 4x5 have different aspect ratios but you'll be in the general ball park. If you haven't been doing 35mm or have no particular favorite lens in that format then a 135mm, 150mm or 210mm is a good place to start. 150mm is generally considered the "normal" lens for 4x5 (much like a 50mm on a 35mm camera), 210 is long normal, 135mm is wide normal. I'd guess that most LF photographers who use 4x5 cameras have or have had at least one of these three lenses in their bag.

[Walter Calahan]

A good 135 or 150.

[Ken Lee]

If you have made photographs in other formats, what length of lens do you use: Long ? Short ?

[Robert Skeoch]

I would start with a 135 or 150... then add the 210 and 90/75 down the road.
-rob

[Donald Miller]

I will recommend something a bit different than a normal 150 or 135 lens. I don't know about others but I find photos taken with normal lenses to be booooring!!!

What I found to be of benefit when I moved into 4X5 over 25 years ago was I paid attention to what lens I used most in my medium format or even 35 mm photography...I found that consistantly I used a short telephoto. So a 210 fit usage on 4X5 better than any of those booorrring normal lenses.

As time has passed my visual tastes have changed (I enjoy both wide and long lenses now) but I have never gotten to the point that I like the pablum of normal lenses.

My advice, if I am to have any, would be to pay attention to what you have used before on the format that you have used before and emulate that type of lens on 4X5 to begin. You might just save yourself the money spent on one of those common lenses.

Donald Miller

[Bruce Watson]

Would like to find out what lens should I get for the Tachihara45?

Like most people here I suggest a "normal" lens. The reason is that it's much easier to learn camera movements with a normal lens.

Once you've seen how tilts and swings look on the ground glass, and gotten a feel for how to use them, you can branch out to longer and shorter lenses. But until then a normal lens makes it much easier to see what the movements actually mean to the image. Remember, the ground glass always tells the truth. No matter what you think should happen, trust your eyes and the ground glass as they will tell you what truly does happen.