6x9 wide angle?

Rogier

Rogier

Rogier Willems
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Most folding 6x9 range finders I have found so far have a 100mm lens.
Does any one know of any camera's with a shorter focal length?

Euhh and what about modifying an existing one by putting an other lens on it :eek:
 
have you shot with the 100 / 6x9? Here's a 6x9 shooting a 100mm lens

874511998_f681305720.jpg
 
Changing the lens on a folding camera (not a press camera) isn't as simple as swapping out the lens.

Remember, the focal length of the lens also indicates the distance from the film plane. If you swap out the lens, you must then move the lens closer to the film plane, which won't be simple with a folding camera.

The lens would have to sit partially inside the bellows, which would make it difficult to collapse for storage or portability. A removable lens would solve the problem but would create another -- the need for some kind of dark slide.

There are some cameras with wide angle lens, and the Brooks Veriwide (47mm lens) comes to mind, as well as the Plaubel Makina.

You probably could do a custom mod on a folding camera, using a 6x9 body as a basis for the work.

And I agree that the field of view of a 6x9 camera is quite wide. And of course the amount of detail and tonality is excellent.
 
The Brooks Veriwide is probably your best option if you want something with approximately the form factor of a 6x9 folder and a wide lens.
 
Oeff there obviously there aren't any obvious wide 6x9 folders that have been made in the past. I was hoping that some one would come up with a Voigtlander Bessa xxx or something like that.

Changing the lens is certainly not an easy solution. Having tho take the lens out in order to be able to fold the camera would have been an acceptable compromise. But I forgot about exposing the film to light through that gaping whole ;-)

The Razzle modified Polaroid folder (5x7) can be ordered with a different lens. But this is again a larger camera and I am not sure if I am ready for large format photography.
I think the Razzle can be used with a 6x9 back. But again, its becoming quite a concoction of rather large parts...

I like the Fuji GSW690 its on my list.
If only the Mamiya 7 came in 6x9. I just can't get used to that 6x7 format....

As for the other suggestions, they are more expensive than I am planning to spend and/or to big to easily travel with.


Thanks for all your input!

Smiles across the wires,

Rogier
 
If you don't insist on a folder, there are other solutions. The Mamiya Super Press 23. It isn't a small camera, but it has interchangable lenses and backs. You can get things such as 90mm, sort of accidently wide, 75mm (which may not work well on 6x9 backs, or the 65mm and 50mm lenses, which do work with 6x9. As I recall, in 6x7, 65mm is equal to a 28mm, and the 50mm is equal to a 25mm. In 6x9, they would be a little wider.

But they sure are going to be as portable as the classic folder.
 
I wondered about this question also, but then I realized that the format (6x9) itself is "cropping" every picture to be "wide"-ish.

Like Jan explained above, here's another 6x9 from a 105mm lens:

2634359669_9c2e5ab746.jpg


It feels wide to me :)
 
Rogier said:
Most folding 6x9 range finders I have found so far have a 100mm lens.
Does any one know of any camera's with a shorter focal length?

Euhh and what about modifying an existing one by putting an other lens on it :eek:
Click to expand...

The only cheap version wide angle folder 6x9 must be the Agfa Ansco Plenax PB 20

http://mattdentonphoto.com/cameras/agfa_plenax.html

Hypar 75 mm according to that page. I have no idea what quality it could make. I'm not even sure it is actually 75 mm. Little documentation on the Hypar and most of that refers to the Goerz Hypar which is seen as a portrait lens, a triplet, not used for wide angle normally.

The old and new Plaubel Makinas were expensive folders.

There may be some older Kodak folders with larger film sizes and wider lenses.

Ernst Dinkla
 
I think that if you got an old folder, you could remove the bellows, the struts and even the door and create your own superwide. You just need a lens that would cover that. And remember, if you get a 60mm or 75mm lens, then it becomes a more compact camera.

You probably could fashion some bag-type bellows or possibly an aluminum shroud. Could be a very fun project!

You would just want to make sure the lens is set in a shutter and that it covers 6x9.
 
Guess I have to start learning from the folks who do large format photography about lens - film distance, coverage, and how all this is going to focus with a fixed lenght bellows..
Indeed a fun project!
 
I have been using a Graflex XLW with the Schneider 47mm/8 for many years. It is a relatively compact camera that fits in a small camera bag. I have several backs for it [6x9/6x7/6x6]. Supposedly, the coverage is wider with the Brooks Veriwide camera,but the XLW is less expensive and it has the same lens. The 47mm/5.6 is reportedly a sharper lens, but I find my 47/8 to be very sharp.
 
shadowfox said:
I wondered about this question also, but then I realized that the format (6x9) itself is "cropping" every picture to be "wide"-ish.

Like Jan explained above, here's another 6x9 from a 105mm lens:

2634359669_9c2e5ab746.jpg


It feels wide to me :)
Click to expand...

i dont quite follow what you and Jan mean here?

but as i was typing it hit me you probably mean in comparison to 6x6? and as you say the cropping

because i was thinking of the term 'wide angle' i had in my mind the field of veiw on the width of the film. and is this respect its much the same as other formats i.e about 43 deg for 6x9 using 105mm , 39deg for 6x6 using 80mm, 40deg for 35mm using a 50mm lens and so on.....the 6x9 is a touch more i guess but not much

the field of view in height differs of course from 6x9 to 6x6 using the 105mm lens from about 30deg to 39deg again for the 80mm (theres your crop).

still i dont tend to compare 6x9 to 6x6 much, and if i did then one has to crop of course in which case they are simular then. i tend to compare it closer to 35mm because of the aspect ratio and its much the same, but it does vary slightly to 35mm film, i.e. field of veiw in height using a 50mm lens (on 35mm) at 27deg, and the 6x9 at about 30deg using the 105mm. almost the same though eh

nice pics both btw, the autumn colours are nice. was it a coated or uncoated lens out of curiosity?
 
I have the second version of the Brooks Veriwide, the modular one based on the Graflex XL. It has the original Super Angulon 47/5.6, which is stunning, supposedly sharper than the f/8 (available computed MTF graphs look the same as those for the modern Helvetar, for what it's worth) and definitely with a more ample image circle and less noticeable light fall-off on 6x9. I have replaced the large and dubious original back with a Horseman 6x9 back (a small adapter plate is required for this). The result is a great small package yielding exceptional results. It is not a quick-working setup due to the need to cock the shutter manually and go through the film-advance procedure of the back (involving a metal release switch and a few strokes of the advance lever). The setup is better suited for a tripod than for handheld shooting, but very usable handheld. This is my usual camera for lightweight backpacking.
 
I recall a comment in Shutterbug that the 47/8 can be a dog. Mine is not a dog. [maybe it's a cat]
 
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