Wista 45DX focusing problem, astigmatism? Try a bright screen?

[laphotographe]

Shooting with 2 Wista 45DX field cameras (4 and 6 years old, new when purchase, original Wista fresnel screens)
Primary lens: Nikkor-W 135 mm f/5.6
Secondary lens: Nikkor-W 105 mm f/5/6
Loupe: Wista 5x standard loupe

I have been shooting with a pair of Wista 45DX cameras for about 6 years, and I’ve had a problem with focus fairly consistently throughout this time. I have been loosing more negatives than I should to bad focus. Typically the focus fall just in front of where I intended to put it. I primarily shoot portraits and end up with the person’s garment in focus instead of the eyes, for example. I tend to shoot at a distance of 3-10 feet from my subject. My solution has been to stop down as far as the lighting situation will permit (f/11-ish), throw a little fill strobe and hope for the best. I use a loupe and a proper dark cloth. Admittedly this method works, but not as well as I’d like.

Over the years I’ve had my eyes checked regularly and I wear appropriate glasses, yet the problem remains fairly constant. I have astigmatism in both eyes, and I wonder if this contributes to my problem focusing. I am only 33 and my eyes are not that bad, however.

I’m wondering if any of you have dealt with a similar problem, or if you have any suggestions to improve my focusing issue. I’m wondering if this is a problem with my cameras/lens/loupe, or my ability to focus. Would it be helpful to have a bright screen installed on my camera? Would a right-side up viewer be of any help (I am one of those photographers who has to turn her head upside down to compose the photograph)? Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

[darr]

I too wear glasses and have astigmatism in both eyes. The only time I know I have had problems with focus is when I have opted to wear my contact lenses instead of glasses. Shooting portraits with LF can be a challenge with limited depth of field and the inability to "live focus" with your subject. How is your focus results with still objects at the same overall settings?

[Adrian Pybus]

And do you focus using the same fstop that you will expose with?

[Brian C. Miller]

I have been loosing more negatives than I should to bad focus. Typically the focus fall just in front of where I intended to put it.

Your eyes may be good enough, but your ground glass position may have a problem. Do you have a loupe you can use on your ground glass? Try this test: Get some box cardboard, and cut it into strips to make a series of steps. Glue a piece of newspaper on each step. Using the loupe, focus on the middle step, making sure you can read the print. Now make a normal exposure, develop the film, and see if the middle step is in focus. If it isn't in focus, then your ground glass is out of alignment with the film plane.

When I bought my Super Graphic, the ground glass had been replaced with normal ground glass instead of the original glass and Fresnel combination. I bought a Brightscreen replacement, and after futzing around, shimmed it into place with a strip of sheet film negative and a strip of 35mm negative. (Previous thread: Registration)

If you don't want to get artsy-craftsy like I did, then send your camera to a repair tech for adjustment.

[Vaughn]

I suggest photographing (wide open) a newspaper taped to a wall at your normal working distance and see how your focus is on the neg. The other way is to focus on a ruler (say at the 6" mark) and see where the actual focus is on the negative. Nail down the exact problem.

If your focus is fine in the above circumstances, then perhaps your subject moves a little away from the camera after you focus.

If your focus is off, then perhaps, even tho the cameras were new, the film is not ending up on the exact plane as the GG.

[Bob Salomon]

Have you adjusted the loupe to be in focus on the grain side of your ground glass? That should be step #1 for all cameras.

[laphotographe]

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts.

I ran some tests based on Brian's and Vaughn's suggestions and I should have the film back in the next few days.

Bob, I'd like to ask you to clarify your question regarding focusing the loupe on the grain side of the ground glass. My loupe is adjustable, but I thought that it should only be adjusted like a diopter based on eyesight. Given that I wear glasses, I didn't think I needed to adjust the loupe, but perhaps I am wrong about this? How would I focus on the grain side of the ground glass?

Adrian, I focus wide open.

Darr, I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who cannot focus with my contacts in. I just did a test to see if my focus is good with still objects as I'm honestly not sure.

[Bob Salomon]

To adjust the focus of your loupe properly. Turn on a light in front of the camera, remove the lens. Focus your loupe on the ground glass until the grain of the gg is in sharp focus. Now put your lens back on and shoot.

Assuming that you have a Wista gg and a Wista fresnel installed on your camera and assuming that you had not focused your loupe then when you placed your loupe on the fresnel and focused you were out of focus by the thickness of the fresnel + the thickness of the gg + any space between the 2.

If you don't have the fresnel then you would have been out of focus by the thickness of the gg.

In photographic terms those can be large errors in focus.

[laphotographe]

To adjust the focus of your loupe properly. Turn on a light in front of the camera, remove the lens. Focus your loupe on the ground glass until the grain of the gg is in sharp focus. Now put your lens back on and shoot.

Assuming that you have a Wista gg and a Wista fresnel installed on your camera and assuming that you had not focused your loupe then when you placed your loupe on the fresnel and focused you were out of focus by the thickness of the fresnel + the thickness of the gg + any space between the 2.

If you don't have the fresnel then you would have been out of focus by the thickness of the gg.

In photographic terms those can be large errors in focus.

Great, this is helpful. When I adjust my loupe I can focus either on a sand pattern (which I assume is the grain of the glass?) or on a series of concentric thin black lines (the fresnel?). I should focus on the sand pattern, right?

[E. von Hoegh]

Great, this is helpful. When I adjust my loupe I can focus either on a sand pattern (which I assume is the grain of the glass?) or on a series of concentric thin black lines (the fresnel?). I should focus on the sand pattern, right?

Correct.