I'll offer my vote for the Ansco 5x7. It's a great camera - depending on what you want it to do. If you're backpacking or taking architectural shots, there are better cameras, to be sure. But for studio and portrait work, it really can't be beat, at least for the price. One point worth mentioning is that the lensboard is 5 1/4" square. For the format, that's substantial. And it gives you the option of using some neat lenses you couldn't fit onto a 4" Deardorff board - if that's your schtick. An Ilex #5 shutter will fit on it. In my own bit of self-indulgence I have a Kodak 305mm Portrait (Ilex #5), a 12" Velostigmat variable SF, and an 11 1/2" Verito set up to work on the Ansco. I know that's not everyone's thing. But if you like working with old lenses, it's a very capable platform.
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