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Thread: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

  1. #41

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    Oct 2019
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Quote Originally Posted by Corran View Post
    It really is that simple. Make sure the bellows are extended a moderate amount, else the leaks will not be as obvious.
    Narrator: "It really was that simple."

    Yep, there one is. Glad I found it. Thanks for the advice.

    In fact there are two. I think I'll ask KEH for a replacement bellows.

    -- Mike

  2. #42
    Les
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Just saw a dozen+ on CL in SF.....some with lens, some larger LF and B&J (what ?) for $150 ? Aaand, that's a 5x7 :>)
    Good luck.

    Les

  3. #43

    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Quote Originally Posted by Leszek Vogt View Post
    Just saw a dozen+ on CL in SF.....some with lens, some larger LF and B&J (what ?) for $150 ? Aaand, that's a 5x7 :>)
    Good luck.

    Les
    Unfortunately, I'm in England where these things seem to be far less common - I'm probably looking at importing from the US or Japan.

  4. #44
    Les
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Sorry, oooops. Tho San Francisco is in US :>)

    Les

  5. #45
    Huub
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    You should take a look at the offerings of ffordes - not in England, but at the other side of Hadrians wall. I have dealt in de past with him and his service is great.

  6. #46
    Paul Ron's Avatar
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    i restarted shooting 4x5 last year. i bought a wista metal camera n a few lenses. the camera is wonderful n my lenses are beautiful. pictures are still just as crappy as my MF shots but thats not gunna change with equipment. the negatives are gorgeous! that created another expense... an enlarger to handel 4x5.

    my only sugestion... get a lighter more compact camera. lugging my kit around in my backpack is a real burden. im shopping for a wood field camera this year.

    btw i do have a surplus of film holders should you need?

    enjoy!

  7. #47
    Corran's Avatar
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Quote Originally Posted by mikeacar View Post
    In fact there are two. I think I'll ask KEH for a replacement bellows.
    Before you go through the trouble, small light leaks are a cinch to repair with liquid electrical tape. I have a 5x7 that really needed brand-new bellows due to them being Swiss-cheese but a generous application of LET enabled me to use the camera just fine. Really bad bellows should be replaced but a couple small pinholes aren't enough to need a whole new set.
    Bryan | Blog | YouTube | Instagram | Portfolio
    All comments and thoughtful critique welcome

  8. #48

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    Sep 2008
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Looks like a Houghton/Sanderson or something similar.................?

    Anyhow and fwiw I've been down 'the restoration route' too many times. if there's a real urgency to have the project finished there are always a handful of obstacles and as you will already have realised, the bellows looks shot. Recommend if you can to make your own since a new one may well out weigh the little cost that you (would have) paid...... Also the tripod issue, this will require a circular metal ring with tripod 'socket's plus a wooden tripod. Not all of these are universal. Quite often this has been overcome by attaching a piece of light weight wood to the base and drilling in a modern socket, which are pretty cheap. Also and probably there's more, film holders............these Cameras used the British style wooden book holders and here again the size wasn't universal as each Manufacturer pretty well had their own size

    Anyhow Bertie good luck with this, I'm also in the UK if you want to contact me

    best regards

    Andrew

  9. #49

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    Sep 2008
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    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Hi Bertie

    Your best bet could well be an entry level Sinar F, bags of extras always available, great value and robust. If you drop if (without a lens) you are very unlikely to cause any damage

    Also it breaks down into three pretty flat parts, that's apart from the board and the rail and attachment. Very quick to assemble, even a mechanically minded numpty like me isn't phased..............difficult to beat imo and...........and...........it has pretty well all of the movements possible. I've been big 'in movements' in the past, if you're into abstracts and part out of focus areas in your images, see what can be achieved by moving both or either of the back or front standards around - literally opens up a new world when compared to the sole image plane that one gets with 35mm or most MF cameras

    good luck and best regards

    Andrew

  10. #50

    Re: Kit recommendations for a complete beginner

    Quote Originally Posted by Andrew Plume View Post
    Looks like a Houghton/Sanderson or something similar.................?

    Anyhow and fwiw I've been down 'the restoration route' too many times. if there's a real urgency to have the project finished there are always a handful of obstacles and as you will already have realised, the bellows looks shot. Recommend if you can to make your own since a new one may well out weigh the little cost that you (would have) paid...... Also the tripod issue, this will require a circular metal ring with tripod 'socket's plus a wooden tripod. Not all of these are universal. Quite often this has been overcome by attaching a piece of light weight wood to the base and drilling in a modern socket, which are pretty cheap. Also and probably there's more, film holders............these Cameras used the British style wooden book holders and here again the size wasn't universal as each Manufacturer pretty well had their own size

    Anyhow Bertie good luck with this, I'm also in the UK if you want to contact me
    Thanks, I appreciate that! It's actually a Thornton Pickard Imperial Triple Extension. I think it's all there, including the tripod base (but excluding a lens, which I need to find a replacement for). It looks in a bit of a state, but I'm hoping most of it is cosmetic. The bellows do look pretty dead, but I'm going to try some things to bring them back to life. If that fails, making my own sounds like a plan.

    I paid £65 for it, including postage. That's a bit more than I'd normally spend on something in that state, but I talked the seller down from a £150 starting price. Fingers crossed it gets here intact and I can do something with it!

    Thanks for the recommendation re: Sinar F. eBay UK have a 10% off offer today, on anything over £100, so I'm going to see if I can find something. I had been waiting for something with a lens included, but I might just bite the bullet and buy separate bits.

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