Wide lenses for 4X5

[Henry Ambrose]

I'm thinking of buying wider lenses for my 4X5.

I currently have a 110 that I'm very happy with. My original plan was to buy both a 65 and an 80mm to cover the real wide end.

I'm renting a 65 Nikkor now for a job and the light fall off without a center filter is a bit more than I'd like so I wonder if I'd be better served with a 75 and a 90 pair. I know the 75 and 90 have more coverage and I'm guessing less fall off as well. I think the angle of view of the 75 may be wid e enough for me that I would trade for less fall off.

Will the 75 have less fall off than the 65? Is it enough to matter?

Do any of you who use 65mm, 75mm and 90 mm on 4X5 have specific comments on thos e lengths and the use of center filters?

Any favorite lenses I should look at or dogs to avoid?

I'll use them mostly for interior/exterior architecture in color and B&W. For co lor I'll probably use color neg only - no more E6 than I have to!

Thanks in advance.

[David R Munson]

You probably don't need the ridiculous amount of coverage, but I've grown very fond of my 90mm Super Angulon XL. A wonderful lens for architecture, but probably overkill for most other applications.

[Merg Ross]

As an architectural photographer I found a 90mm to be the ideal focal length. My clients, architects, thought that any shorter focal length produced unpleasant distortion. The 90mm Super Angulon worked well without a center filter. I would strongly advise an f:5.6 over an f:8 for ease of composition and focus.

[Michael S. Briggs]

My opinion is that 90 mm is quite close in focal length to the 110 mm that you already have. For your next lens I suggest a shorter focal length. My wide lenses are 72 mm and 110 mm. The extreme coverage of the 72 mm Super Angulon XL is great for architecture. I generally use a center filter with the 72 mm.

[Thomas Vaehrmann]

If you look at the data sheets you will see that you will always have a fall off towards the edges because the lens design is the same for 65, 75 or 90 mm. The only thing that changes is the size of the image circle. If you're going to shift a 90mm you will need a centre filter to compensate the fall off as you will always need with 65mm because there is no room for movements. You wouldn't need a center filter on 90mm if you stay in the center and avoid shifting. So check what you need: more angle of view or more image circle or both.

[Bob Salomon]

"You wouldn't need a center filter on 90mm if you stay in the center and avoid shifting."

Not necessarily. Doing base tilt or swings can also require a center filter.

[Ellis Vener]

Will the 75 have less fall off than the 65? Is it enough to matter?

Depends on the design but probably the fall off won't be that much less. of course it won't cover the same degree of view either.

Do any of you who use 65mm, 75mm and 90 mm on 4X5 have specific comments on those lengths and the use of center filters? <I use the 65mm and the 90mm regularly and depending on what I am photographing the filter is sometimes necessary.

Any favorite lenses I should look at or dogs to avoid?

I like Nikkors and Rodenstock. not fond of Schneider Super Angulons.

I have no idea why you want to avoid E6. Could you elaborate?

[Julio Fernandez]

If you do landscapes, David Muench's book "Plateau Light" is a mine of information on the subject you raise. This book indicates the lenses used. A great many of the pictures are taken with the 75mm and a surprising many with the 47mm. Remember, he uses a Linhof Technika 45.

[Neal Shields]

There are 75mm Biogons out there that are government surplus (no shutter). I have seen some great deals on Ebay, even if you have to pay to get them put in a shutter. Most people say that they don't need a center filter. I put one on my 8X10 and didn't see much fall off. The image circle is 175 but I think that it is quoted a f4. Some of the other mfgs quote at smaller F stops. You need a strong back though, they weigh about 4#! They can also be a trick to get mounted in a normal bellows as the rear element is so large that when you tilt the lens to get the board in the bottom catches on a Linhof, the top of the rear element pushes on the bellows.

[Fred De Van]

There is wide and then there is WIDE! I use a 65mm 5.6 Super Angulon, a 53mm 4.5 Ziess Biogon, and on occasion a 47mm 5.6 Super Angulon, on my Granview and Cambo 4x5s. The Biogon on the Granview is stunning and much easier to use than when I had it on a Technica V. I have two Granview cameras and can show that the 53mm Biogon has less fall off than the 65mm Schnieder glass. Being a subjective art far more than a math excersize, the end photographs from any extream wide angle are usually enhanced by the fall off anyway, and the combination makes the image work, visually. It closely approximates what the eye does naturally. The effect of fall off from extreame wide angle lenses is minimized once you put a 6x12 back on your 4x5. Vast expanses of sky or any other monotone is why you are even aware of it. With a busy subject matter it looks quite normal, cause that is how the eye sees the scene. Our brain is the compensating device. It scans.