Just to throw in my two cents, seeing as how we've somehow gotten into 6x9 press cameras, here's my Baby Speed Graphic:
She's a beauty -- by the way, does anyone know why people loke the Speed Graphics so much more than the Crown Graphics. The only real difference are the focal plane shutter and the higher weight/size. Since most of the lenses are (leaf-)shuttered anyway, why bother dealing with the higher weight/size? 😕
By the way, just for the record, I have and love my Crown Graphic 23 (and have matching Kodak 80, 101 & 127 lenses, as well as a Schneider 65)...
Only three times in my whole life have I ever spent more than $40 on a camera. These were a brand new Pentax K1000,
i know what to do with the poor unloved Welta Sport that has the Spezial-Aplanet 😉 ... just send her on down she'll be amongst friends hehe 😛generally take half a dozen assorted cameras out with me. Lately I have been trying to figure out what to do with a Welta Sport with an Aplanat lens.
Me either. I just make lots of ridiculously low bids and occasionally I get one. Doesn't happen as often as it used to though. More people are using Ebay these days.
zeiss fan wrote; FallisPhoto, way back when I started buying cameras, it was obvious to me that this could rapidly spiral out of control. So I made a conscious decision to limit what I would buy to primarily German cameras.
I started off getting Yashica rangefinders, but switched to mainly German folders shortly afterward. Yes, it can get out of control if you don't watch it. I have about 100 cameras at present.
Fallis, I'm wondering the best method you have found to store the cameras you are not using. Do you put each one in a bag or container, use a drying agent in with them, or what? I've heard different opinions on storing folders because of the leather bellows.
Any one else please free to comment as well. Thanks! RB
I have the Kodak/Nagel Recomar '18' -- roughly the same camera as the many other plate cameras from that era.
Recomar '18' is 6x9.
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Great camera. And the process with shooting is open hood, set shutter to "T," focus, close shutter (don't forget this step!), remove ground glass back, insert roll film back, remove dark slide, set shutter and aperture and take photo, wind to next frame and repeat.
Best used on a tripod and with a static scene. Probably not the best choice at a sporting event. Or to photograph live wildlife. Or children.
I also have a Recomar '33' (9x12) -- it needs a bit of work.
Fallis, I'm wondering the best method you have found to store the cameras you are not using. Do you put each one in a bag or container, use a drying agent in with them, or what? I've heard different opinions on storing folders because of the leather bellows.
Any one else please free to comment as well. Thanks! RB
She's a beauty -- by the way, does anyone know why people love the Speed Graphics so much more than the Crown Graphics. The only real difference are the focal plane shutter and the higher weight/size. Since most of the lenses are (leaf-)shuttered anyway, why bother dealing with the higher weight/size? 😕
By the way, just for the record, I have and love my Crown Graphic 23 (and have matching Kodak 80, 101 & 127 lenses, as well as a Schneider 65)...
nice baby Fphoto...
its still a folder though isnt it...perhaps just made famous as a press camera becuae the press used it so much eh?
$40 bucks sheeze..wish i could say that! (seems to be getting worse too just lately--have you noticed the US dollar is getting stronger...either that or the Aussie $ is getting weaker) i wouldnt mind the K1000 tho..i always wanted one of them when i was a kid (wanted the Olypus OM1n more and finely got it years later) and had to settle for the Ricoh KR5 which by all accounts is exactly the same camera barring the higher shutter speed.
i know what to do with the poor unloved Welta Sport that has the Spezial-Aplanet 😉 ... just send her on down she'll be amongst friends hehe 😛
I've missed out on few lately--just not prepared to pay the cost--recently there was a old welta 9x12 plate camera here in Oz that i wanted but it went for something like $150 !!! should of been $45-50 tops--someone with 5 feedback bought it and bid like crazy through the whole thing--are they going to regret it down the track
Chippy,
From your description, I take it you never use the mirrored or "press" finders. I can remember using them some, even on 9x12 type cameras.
BTW I just checked, my father's camera was a 13.5 cm lens, so I guess it really was a 9x12. My Leca is also. I think my Welta was also 13.5 cm but I don't recall for sure. I will have to remember what drawer it is in and dig it out and see. The Leca doens't have a bubble, and I don't think the Welta did either. I will get my father's camera out in a little bit if can break free, and photograph it better.
EDIT: I forgot to mention, as did Chippy, that as clunky as using a cut film holder might seem, it wasn't the only option in the day when these cameras were newer. They also had film packs that could be used. Film packs held more than one sheet of film, that was also thinner. If I recall, they held at least 8 and usually 12 sheets. That way if you wished to use the other finders, you didn't have to remove the back each time you took a photo. All you needed to do was pull the tab and bring another sheet to the fore.
Also, people didn't tend to fire off shots so quickly with these cameras. Not like with 35mm, and certainly not like some do with digital these days.
She's a beauty -- by the way, does anyone know why people love the Speed Graphics so much more than the Crown Graphics. The only real difference are the focal plane shutter and the higher weight/size. Since most of the lenses are (leaf-)shuttered anyway, why bother dealing with the higher weight/size? 😕
By the way, just for the record, I have and love my Crown Graphic 23 (and have matching Kodak 80, 101 & 127 lenses, as well as a Schneider 65)...
I actually prefer the Crown Graphic myself - leaf shutter lenses flash sync at all speeds and it's lighter. I have the 4x5 version, and the rangefinder is perfectly accurate.
The one thing I would add: As much as possible, keep your cameras out of the sun.
Yes, but the Speed Graphic allows you to use leaf shutters, barrel shuttered lenses, and non-shuttered lenses. Press people preferred them because of their extreme versatility. Also, focal plane shutters are capable of faster shutter speeds. That last wasn't as big a deal as you'd think with the slow films of the times though.