Help me choose 4x5 camera to buy in 2022

[maltfalc]

a field or press camera with a rangefinder if you want to do any handheld stuff. speed graphic, crown graphic, linhof master technika, wista rf, beseler type c-6...

[Greg]

I'd get a new Chamonix. It's lighter than some of the older cameras. Use it for a year or two, and see if you run into limits.

Big plus... If you turn out not liking it in a year or two, you will most probably be able to sell it for almost if not all of what you paid for it. I'd also definitely get the Chamonix 4x5 reflex finder. Bigger question is what lens or what two or three lenses to acquire with the camera. I'd start another post as to what first lens to initially get with the camera... I'm sure that you would get many opinions and recommendations on that subject. When I was a student at RIT in the 1970s, a 210mm was recommended. After many years of shooting, I'd beg to differ... depends on what the photographer wants to concentrate on shooting.

[Tin Can]

Order now

[Bob Salomon]

LInhof Master Technika.

[Mark Sampson]

I'd like a Linhof Master Technika 4x5 myself, but B&H lists it at $12000 or so. I won't say it's not worth that much, but I can't afford it.
Nor can I advise the OP about which camera to buy, although the many posts in this thread may help his decision-making. Best of luck!

[hiroh]

Hmm, I like the look of Linhof Master Technika, but there are several models, with a very big price range difference.

[hiroh]

I'd like a Linhof Master Technika 4x5 myself, but B&H lists it at $12000 or so. I won't say it's not worth that much, but I can't afford it.
Nor can I advise the OP about which camera to buy, although the many posts in this thread may help his decision-making. Best of luck!

Yeah, I also checked quickly checked the internet and saw that B&H lists 3000 model for $12K+ and then there are several other Masters on eBay for less than $1000, so I'd really have to dig into this and see what's the difference and which one is the right for me.

And the fact that it's German (being Leica and Rolleiflex fan and user), I have not to look further

[Bernice Loui]

More questions, more to ponder on..

35mm and 120 MF roll hand held camera needs already addresses and experiences and own/used. These hand held cameras simply work for "decisive moment" images. No need for a tripod, quick to react then create an image based on serendipity.. This image making goal and need should be addressed given the current 35mm/MF cameras available to be used.

This LF view camera stuff is much about crafting images, essentially the opposite of "decisive moment" images. Before even considering any of this LF sheet film stuff. What are your expectations from creating sheet film images.. how might these sheet film images meet a need/goal that your current 35mm/MF cameras cannot do or achieve? LF view camera images require a tripod majority of the time does this add or subtract from your image creative style?

Yes, indeediee there are hand held_range finder 4x5 sheet film cameras easily available. They are more a niche sheet film camera that fits into a very specific need within this LF view camera image making universe..

~Does this far slower way, process, technique, process of image creation add or subtract from your image goals/needs?

~This is a question only you can answer as to why LF view camera and it this method of image making has specific benifets for your needs.

Adding more to this LF view camera stuff, what about post process? Film processing, print making via wet darkroom or scan/digital or ?


Once the entire LF view camera image creation process-system is considered, the camera is a tiny aspect of the much greater whole..
Bernice

I don't have a particular subjects that I usually photograph. I photograph studio portraits and landscapes, street photography and more-abstract-less-real subjects. Really everything that I feel photographing that day. And I use both 35mm and MF cameras in almost all scenarios. Deciding factor is 1) the look I want for the particular photograph, and 2) the weight I'm willing to carry that day, as my Rolleiflex kit is heavier that 35mm, so if I'm going with kids on a local beach, I'll most likely bring 35mm (but not always), or if I'm going alone outside in the woods and I know I have a whole afternoon, I'll most likely bring Rolleiflex with the tripod (but not always).

So, I understand the questions about choosing what to photograph, but that will vary from day to day. Maybe over time, I'll figure out in what situations I'll bring 4x5 camera, but at the moment, I don't know, I guess it will be the situations where I need tripod, where I have time and where I don't have anything else to carry. But then, I have a studio where I shoot portraits, so why not use LF camera for that too?

[hiroh]

More questions, more to ponder on..

35mm and 120 MF roll hand held camera needs already addresses and experiences and own/used. These hand held cameras simply work for "decisive moment" images. No need for a tripod, quick to react then create an image based on serendipity.. This image making goal and need should be addressed given the current 35mm/MF cameras available to be used.

This LF view camera stuff is much about crafting images, essentially the opposite of "decisive moment" images. Before even considering any of this LF sheet film stuff. What are your expectations from creating sheet film images.. how might these sheet film images meet a need/goal that your current 35mm/MF cameras cannot do or achieve? LF view camera images require a tripod majority of the time does this add or subtract from your image creative style?

Yes, indeediee there are hand held_range finder 4x5 sheet film cameras easily available. They are more a niche sheet film camera that fits into a very specific need within this LF view camera image making universe..

~Does this far slower way, process, technique, process of image creation add or subtract from your image goals/needs?

~This is a question only you can answer as to why LF view camera and it this method of image making has specific benifets for your needs.

Adding more to this LF view camera stuff, what about post process? Film processing, print making via wet darkroom or scan/digital or ?


Once the entire LF view camera image creation process-system is considered, the camera is a tiny aspect of the much greater whole..
Bernice

Bernice, yes, I'm very well aware of that it's a slower process, requires more thinking and time (and tripod), than 35mm and 120 formats. I don't plan to shoot decisive moment type of photography on the street with LF cameras. I love to shot scenes that I've created in my studio, or portraits, or even landscapes and these are all perfect for LF. When not using digital, I prefer my Rolleiflex for this type of images, but sometimes square format is not ideal. Yes, I can crop, but I'd rather try different camera. I never crop my images and 100% of my photos has visible borders (not to show my framing abilities, but because I love the look with the border). And after all, LF provides a different look than MF, which I like for years but hesitated to make a move.

Also, one more reason why I want LF is that I can develop for one shot only, rather than the whole roll of different exposures. Sometimes I need that. I need to add more contrast to the particular shot, but not the whole roll, etc.

I mostly digitize my film these days. I have Negative Supply pro kit, and I already have everything needed for scanning 4x5 format.

[Peter Lewin]

You have been given excellent advice by quite a few experienced LF users. I think every single one has, as I have, owned a number of different view cameras, both field cameras and monorails, before working out which compromises work best for us. I use the word compromise intentionally, since every view camera is a compromise between weight, precision, flexibility, and probably a few more criteria. And that is before we even discuss lenses. For what it’s worth, my smaller format cameras are a Leica M6 and a Rollei 6006, a similar set to yours. But if you really want us to short circuit the process for you (which I think is a really bad idea), the view camera brand that I think offers the greatest precision of feel (sort of like a Leica) it would be Arca Swiss. They make a collapsible monorail system (their f-line) which is a good set of compromises. Linhoff makes a similar series, and you are probably arguing Rolls Royce vs. Bentley. And predictably my camera is neither, it is a metal Canham DLC. But you asked …