Accidental 8X10 purchase

[Richard Walker]

For some reason I ended up as owner of an Agfa/Ansco 8X10 view camera -- just th e basic frame, bellows and ground glass. One of those late-night Ebay things.

I'd like to ask basic advice on lenses. What would be the experienced photograph er's choice for a wide-angle lens for 8X10 -- not too wide, but wider than stand ard -- for someone on a very rigorous budget? I'd like a shutter, but I'm willin g to use a Packard-type shutter or even a lens cap if I have to, in return for i mage quality and a bit of flexibility on lens/film movements. Also, advice for a longer than standard lens. The wide angle to be used for landscape but also som e architecture, the longer lens primarily for still life. Again, what is the bes t all round value, rather than the the best lens in the world? I like sharp, cri sp lenses, but having said that I've had some of my best results with a 1930s un coated 105mm Zeiss Tessar on 6X9 b+w film. In other words, I'm open minded.

Also, should a beginning large format photographer spend money on modern dark sl ides, or buy old gear?

I'm sure there are many experienced LF photographers out there that have faced e xactly these challenges, and have wisdom to communicate.

Richard Walker, London, UK.

[Kevin J. Kolosky]

two ideas come to mind. the first is a wide field Kokak Ektar in 10 inch.

Second, think DAGOR.

Kevin

[michael_1487]

what about a process lens. i hear that nikon's process lenses are unbelievably s harp. i saw a couple go by on ebay a coupel days ago for under 200 (though i did n't follow through until the end of the auctions).

-m

[david clark]

Hi Richard,

I've had good luck with used film holders. Check to make sure the dark slide is not cracked, and then check to make sure the tape holding the bottom locking piece is still OK.

I'd recomend looking for a lens that is in a shutter. Also, you have to ask whoever is selling it to you if the speeds are on the mark in the range of 1 sec. to 1/25th of a sec should get you started. If they don't know, don't buy it. Looking around I've bought nice and interesting lenses very cheaply and in working shutter. As above, some of the older DAGORs might be fine. But there might be some fine older English or German lenses too. For mild wide angle, maybe 10'/250mm or there abouts. But you might want to just experiment with a 12" for a while. I think you can do a lot with 12". Good luck. Have fun. David

[Colin Carron]

Richard,

Yes, what is it about late night Ebay ? There should be a health warning.

You may not find many dagors in the UK so you would have to resort to ebay again ! In the UK a good place to pick up older and odder stuff is the photographic collectors fairs. These are advertised in the mags esp AP.

For the best value I would think you might look for older barrel lenses without shutters. Just check them carefully for faults before buying.

In the UK the Ross Xpress is a home grown Tessar copy and is usually good esp the post war coated ones. Also the really old rapid rectilinears still make good portrait lenses and many were designed for big whole plate cameras so might well cover 8x10. Ross and Dallmeyer made them but they sometimes aren't called RR but some other name. They sometimes have the plate size conveniently engraved on the barrel.

[neil poulsen]

A Schneider 240mm g-claron, an f6.7 Fujinon 250mm, or the 250mm wide-field ektar as your moderate wide-angles. In the past few months, I've seen some 240mm g-clarons at very reasonable prices on EBay.

For something a little longer than normal, a 360 Commercial Ektar is a possibility. I think these are a little old-fashioned, though. To improve contrast, I would look for something more recent. While it's a huge lens, Schneider Symmar-S 360mm (same as Caltar-S II) have been selling for some reasonable prices. Another possibility between this and the Commerical Ektar would be a 360mm Schneider convertible Symmar.

[Ed Balko]

In the spirit of late night eBay and Michael's suggestion about a process lens, perhaps you might consider a process lens by a different maker.

"NuArc" lenses often sell on eBay for under $20 (often astonishingly wide field, usually coated as these can often be 10-15 years old). Combine this with a used Packard shutter (similar price range) and you'll have quite a usable lens/shutter combination.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I'll go with Kevin's first post--10" Wide-Field Ektar as a moderately wide lens with loads of room for movement. Then get an inexpensive longer Artar in barrel and you can front mount it on the Ilex #5 shutter with a simple threaded adapter. I have a 10" WF Ektar and I use a 12" Gold Dot Dagor and 19" Apo Artar on the same shutter in this way with great results and at low cost (fortunately, they both use the same adapter). While this may seem like a kludge, it actually works quite well if the shutter is roomy enough for the lens, it lets you carry more lenses in your kit without the weight and bulk of a big shutter for each one, and you get more consistent shutter speeds in the bargain.

Alternately, look for something like a Turner-Reich triple convertible, which would give you three focal lengths at reasonable cost to start with.

Filmholders can be costly--about $115/pair new. You can find used ones in excellent condition for around $40 each. Wooden ones are even cheaper, but they will be older and subject to warping, so don't buy any you can't check out personally. You can get started with 3 holders.

[John Kasaian]

Richard, FWIW the 8x10 Ansco was a favorite of Ansel Adams. For lenses, I agree that the 10" Wide Field Ektar and 10 3/4" Dagor are worth while(both were Ansel Adams favorites as well) but finding a good one, especially the Dagor, on a budget might take awhile. The 270 and 240 G-Clarons from Robert White aren't all that much more (perhaps they are if you have to pay VAT) I think something like a 12" Commercial Ektar in a good Universal shutter for $275-325 would be a good place to start---a sharp, single coated lens that you should be able to get your money out of should you want to trade it in later on(personally I use a 14" Commercial Ektar and just move the tripod foreward or back if I want either a "wide" or "long" shot. Most of the time this works just fine. For film holders I've had better luck with the old wood Eastman- Kodak- Graflex than either the wood Agfas or the Liscos(both new and used ones.) If you can find them locally you'll be better served. Midwest Photo Exchange is where I purchased my last batch, but I find that most come from studios and have often been well used. Any given batch of old Kodaks will usually have a few "stinkers" that need to be returned. Might be a pain if you have to send them overseas. The prices for these on Ebay seem way out of line to me, but I subscribe to the philosophy that says if you can't steal it don't buy it on ebay. What you're probably going to need is a rock steady tripod that can hold the wieght of your Agfa-Ansco. The mathematical formula to look for is: Used+Big+Heavy=Cheap.Remember: 8x10---its not just a format---its an adventure! Good luck!

[David Vickery]

Hello, I would like to suggest that you not ever turn down a good deal on a good process lens(no more than a few hundred bucks for a lens in good shape--I paid $35.00 for a 21.25" Kodak copying Ektanon;one of my favorite lenses, $200.00 for a brand new 455mm nikkor process lens in the box,$100.00 for a 240mm apo-ronar and $100.00 for a 35" apo-ronar----all far sharper then really necessary for contact prints). For a shutter I use a patterson roll film developing tank. It will fit over all of my process lenses from 240mm ronar to a 47.5 inch artar(yet to be used). I seem to only use these lenses in situations where I need a lot of depth of field so my exposures are almost always long and the tank works great. It is better than a lens cap because it is bigger and easy to remove without moving the camera. I have a piece of gaffers tape on the side that I use to attach it over the lens while I remove the dark slide. If you can find a large lot of film holders you may get some bad ones in the batch but you'll be able to strip parts off of them to repair the others. You really don't have to spend a lot of money to get into 8x10 photography, although you may have to be a little more determined.