Hey all, I'm glad to have found this forum and this site, tons of useful information here.
I originally was going to wait until summer to dive into large format, but I'll be headed out on a West Coast trip this winter and I don't want to pass up having the opportunity to have that much fun shooting.
I wanna get a 4x5, rail, I want to be able to have adjustments. Looking at the options on the market I see the options as:
- Cambo/Calumet (4x5 Legend, 45N)
- low end Toyo (45C)
- low end Sinar's (F series)
I've been told the Sinar cameras are the worlds greatest, both because of their construction and their full line of accessories. Accessories being available sound like a huge plus, which is also why the Calumet/Cambo's seem interesting.
So my first question is, are there any other camera bodies that I should be considering?
On to lenses. I'm probably going to be (attempting to) shoot a lot of landscape stuff. I've been told that it's not difficult to get away with a lens that has a small image circle (170-180mm), but then again I'm buying a view camera for the adjustments, so I feel like I'd rather pay a bit more for more functionality in this regard.
I want to get a slightly-wider than normal lens, something around 120-130mm. I've heard positive things about the Rodenstock 135mm F/5.6 Sironar-N It has a 190mm circle, but unfortunately I really don't have any experience with 4x5 to know if that will give me room to play.
I'm concerned about mounting the lens on a lens board, so if anyone knows any NYC local camera stores that would provide such services, and possibly be able to help me out and answer some questions that would be amazing.
thanks a bunch
-Omar
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