Travelwide 4x5

Double check the pledge amounts...

Double check the pledge amounts...

JoeV said:
So. I wonder how many 90mm lenses there are out on the used market, and whether their availability will be able to match the 100,000 or so cameras that might be manufactured.

Are we to assume all of these 90mm lenses on the used market have (reasonably) accurate shutters?

And then there's the matter of price inflation of the lenses. If I were bidding on this camera, I'd be looking to acquire a lens right now!

Too bad the cameras don't already come with the lens, that way a purchaser can be guaranteed a functional camera system up front.

~Joe
Click to expand...

One of the pledges is for a 90mm body WITH an Angulon 90mm in shutter.
Also, another pledge is for a 65mm body WITH a 65mm lens in shutter.

It's all been very well thought out. For details look at all the pledge amounts. Frankly the amount for the 90 body with the 90mm Angulon is at a good price point.

Pledges are still being taken. The Kickstarter Project looks like it will have a $10,000 day, today alone. If each remaining day would receive pledges of $5000, that would add another $90,000 for a total of $165,000 and about 1500 camera's. Optimistic....????
 
JoeV said:
So. I wonder how many 90mm lenses there are out on the used market, and whether their availability will be able to match the 100,000 or so cameras that might be manufactured.

Are we to assume all of these 90mm lenses on the used market have (reasonably) accurate shutters?

And then there's the matter of price inflation of the lenses. If I were bidding on this camera, I'd be looking to acquire a lens right now!

Too bad the cameras don't already come with the lens, that way a purchaser can be guaranteed a functional camera system up front.

~Joe
Click to expand...
Joe, it is a function system up front: we will ship the cameras with a pinhole, so you can make images right away if you don't have a lens.

Schneider, Nikon, Rodenstock, Fuji and others manufactured a simply gigantic number of 90mm lenses from the 30s and 40s through the 80s. It's no exaggeration to say there are millions of 90mm large format lenses out there. The shutters tend to be in good shape; they're pretty simple mechanical clockwork shutters.

I guarantee we will not sell 100,000 of these cameras. It's simply not that type of product! We would be lucky to sell 1/10th of that, spread out over the next 10 years. But even that many is highly improbable.
 
JoeV said:
So. I wonder how many 90mm lenses there are out on the used market, and whether their availability will be able to match the 100,000 or so cameras that might be manufactured.

Are we to assume all of these 90mm lenses on the used market have (reasonably) accurate shutters?

And then there's the matter of price inflation of the lenses. If I were bidding on this camera, I'd be looking to acquire a lens right now!

Too bad the cameras don't already come with the lens, that way a purchaser can be guaranteed a functional camera system up front.

~Joe
Click to expand...
Absolutely ridiculous numbers, believe me. Most of the shutters are pretty good, too (Compurs). If, as I sincerely hope, they sell several thousand cameras, it ain't even gonna dent the supply of lenses available.

Cheers,

R.
 
It isn't a rangefinder but the designers cleverly put three shoes on top so you can add whatever you like - rangefinder, light meter, or maybe even a flash.
This is a very nice idea. What you like from traditional large format is perspective control but than can be corrected in post-processing after scanning.
I congratulate the designers on a clever, simple idea.
 
JoeV said:
So. I wonder how many 90mm lenses there are out on the used market, and whether their availability will be able to match the 100,000 or so cameras that might be manufactured.

~Joe
Click to expand...

If they would produce 100,000 cameras, I think Schneider could make a healthy profit putting the 90mm angulon back in production.
The number of cameras that are pledged for are an impressive achievement as it is.
 
I wish you the very best of luck with this. The price is very compelling, and I'd buy one in a heartbeat if I wasn't moving to Australia soon, and I need to shift more "stuff" not buy it.

I already have a 4x5 camera, but a cheaper one I can sling in a rucksack sounds interesting.
 
For those concerned about lenses.

For those concerned about lenses.

FWIW, over the last ten years, I have purchased 7 Schneider 90mm f6.8. Angulons. Have never had a Super Angulon.

I have never waited long for one when I decided to pursue one. They came in various shutters... Linhof Technika, Synchro Compur, Seiko, etc. Not in one case have I had to have one serviced.

As far as alternatives.

Rodenstock Geronar 90mm - there are four on eBay right now, with 4 sold in the last 60 days, as low as $100... mostly $200-300. Modern lens, modern shutters.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk....m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0&_nkw=geronar+90&_sacat=0

listed now or sold last 60 days... Caltar 90mm made for Rodenstock or Schneider for the marketing company CALUMET...25 lenses, again from $150 up. Remember the Calumet Cadet, a monorail 4X5 purchased in huge numbers by schools teaching Large Format photograpy. When purchased with lenses, they most often had Calumet Caltar or CaltarII lenses

-40 active listings of other Rodenstock 90mm
-50+ sold Rodenstock 90mm in the last 60 days
-150 Schneider 90mm angulon and super angulons
-200 sold Schneider 90mm in the last 60 days
-Another 30 assorted 90mm in active listings

There is even a Rodenstock Heligon 90mm in Linhof Synchro Compur shutter that has an f3.2 aperture. OOOOOOOH Boken!!! (pricey),

Link to the Heligon:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Linhof-Rode...29996218?pt=Camera_Lenses&hash=item564b44eeba

The eBay seller selling the Heligon has over 6,000 items listed, mostly photographic gear, and a very good 99.8 positive transaction rating on over 5000 feedbacks.

with regard to two common complaints about hand held and PS large format. Many complain about no movements. I personally have probably NOT used movements on any number of field and monorail camera's over the last decade.

Often people complain about no movements, and don't use them when they have them,.... DUH???

Last, this is the perfect camera for me... particularly on one front.

It's $100!!! Think how much money you have left to spend on lenses. I do.

And, my point here is, there are a ton of lenses out there. Even the most Anal Retentive person in the world can find that perfect lens with the time left before we hold a Travelwide in our hands.

I'm not even financially involved in this project, and it's met goal, and I still say Pledge, Pledge, Pledge, and tell others.

OK.. NOW.. very last point. SK Grimes lists the cost of most shutter CLA's at $100 to $125 if no other significant issues are present. See their new web site at:

http://www.skgrimes.com/
 
kuzano said:
FWIW, over the last ten years, I have purchased 7 Schneider 90mm f6.8. Angulons. Have never had a Super Angulon.

I have never waited long for one when I decided to pursue one. They came in various shutters... Linhof Technika, Synchro Compur, Seiko, etc. Not in one case have I had to have one serviced.

As far as alternatives.

Rodenstock Geronar 90mm - there are four on eBay right now, with 4 sold in the last 60 days, as low as $100... mostly $200-300. Modern lens, modern shutters.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk....m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0&_nkw=geronar+90&_sacat=0

listed now or sold last 60 days... Caltar 90mm made for Rodenstock or Schneider for the marketing company CALUMET...25 lenses, again from $150 up. Remember the Calumet Cadet, a monorail 4X5 purchased in huge numbers by schools teaching Large Format photograpy. When purchased with lenses, they most often had Calumet Caltar or CaltarII lenses

-40 active listings of other Rodenstock 90mm
-50+ sold Rodenstock 90mm in the last 60 days
-150 Schneider 90mm angulon and super angulons
-200 sold Schneider 90mm in the last 60 days
-Another 30 assorted 90mm in active listings

There is even a Rodenstock Heligon 90mm in Linhof Synchro Compur shutter that has an f3.2 aperture. OOOOOOOH Boken!!! (pricey),

Link to the Heligon:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Linhof-Rode...29996218?pt=Camera_Lenses&hash=item564b44eeba

The eBay seller selling the Heligon has over 6,000 items listed, mostly photographic gear, and a very good 99.8 positive transaction rating on over 5000 feedbacks.

with regard to two common complaints about hand held and PS large format. Many complain about no movements. I personally have probably NOT used movements on any number of field and monorail camera's over the last decade.

Often people complain about no movements, and don't use them when they have them,.... DUH???

Last, this is the perfect camera for me... particularly on one front.

It's $100!!! Think how much money you have left to spend on lenses. I do.

And, my point here is, there are a ton of lenses out there. Even the most Anal Retentive person in the world can find that perfect lens with the time left before we hold a Travelwide in our hands.

I'm not even financially involved in this project, and it's met goal, and I still say Pledge, Pledge, Pledge, and tell others.

OK.. NOW.. very last point. SK Grimes lists the cost of most shutter CLA's at $100 to $125 if no other significant issues are present. See their new web site at:

http://www.skgrimes.com/
Click to expand...
And I personally have. Many (I among them) regard movements as one of the major advantages of LF. Why not use them if they're available? Because you don't know how? To quote you, DUH???

There are those who don't use 'em 'cos they don't want to. Fine. There are also those who don't use 'em 'cos they don't know how.

How do I know? 'Cos I was one. Then I learned how to use them...

Cheers,

R.
 
Hmm at the risk.....

Hmm at the risk.....

Roger Hicks said:
And I personally have. Many (I among them) regard movements as one of the major advantages of LF. Why not use them if they're available? Because you don't know how? To quote you, DUH???

There are those who don't use 'em 'cos they don't want to. Fine. There are also those who don't use 'em 'cos they don't know how.

How do I know? 'Cos I was one. Then I learned how to use them...

Cheers,

R.
Click to expand...

At the risk of what I said being a put down to some,

And considering that I don't think you are responding in kind (you've never seemed like the type).

My answer would be PITA and Waste of my talents for other reasons. Admittedly, I don't know much about using them. I've been shooting alongside two other LF shooters for many years, and they are always tweaking their movements. Just can't see it.

Personal choice, and I didn't say people are foolish for using them. I'm just saying this camera is a way to get into LF, and if one finds movements enhance their photography in a way that is meaningful to them personally, go for it.
 
Woot - I even found a 65 at less than highway robbery prices! Hopefully it will work - I didn't notice it was in Synchro Compur until after I did the BIN.
 
The syncro compur, usually mounts the same as the copals. And would be even easier to use in the field. Since it's the 65 version, you might need to shim a bit to get hyperfocal focus right - but you should be all set.

I got to handle the prototype today as well. It looks like a fun system for those who want a basic, hand holdable, large format rig. Very light and easy to handle. Not sure it's for me and the way I shoot, but really a great tool.
 
Liam, Ben confirmed the same as you - I'm golden with this one. Hopefully the condition is as good as claimed!

Now, where did I put the box with my film holders?
 
kuzano said:
At the risk of what I said being a put down to some,

And considering that I don't think you are responding in kind (you've never seemed like the type).

My answer would be PITA and Waste of my talents for other reasons. Admittedly, I don't know much about using them. I've been shooting alongside two other LF shooters for many years, and they are always tweaking their movements. Just can't see it.

Personal choice, and I didn't say people are foolish for using them. I'm just saying this camera is a way to get into LF, and if one finds movements enhance their photography in a way that is meaningful to them personally, go for it.
Click to expand...
Sorry. It was the 'DUH???' that got me. As you say, LF is a broad church, and everyone should use whatever approach they find useful. But it's pointless for either of us to pretend that movements are either useless or the be-all and end-all of LF.

Cheers,

R.
 
bensyverson said:
Hi guys,

I'm the creator of the Travelwide, along with my friend Justin. TRUST ME when I say this camera is lighter and easier in the field than a Graphic. I took a Super Graphic all over Bali a year and a half ago. In October I went to Brazil with the Travelwide, and there is no comparison. 5+ pounds versus less than one pound? It makes a huge difference. HUGE.

Honestly I'm a little surprised to see this camera pooh-poohed by users on this forum. I'm a longtime RFF fan, and I basically made this camera for you. It's lighter than a Zeiss Ikon, which is lighter than an M3. And it's 4x5!

To get a better sense of what's possible, take a look at the sample images on our Flickr:
http://flickr.com/photos/wanderlustcamera

These are not "demo" images. They're real snapshots I took while traveling or hanging out. Most of them are wide open (ƒ/6.8). The Angulon is not a clinical modern lens, so you won't see the detail at 4000 DPI that you would with a Zeiss. But then again, you don't need it. A slightly out-of-focus shot on 4x5 will beat the pants off the best Leica lenses and an M7.

Anyway, this camera is what it is: a tough, $99 hardbody scale focus camera that weighs basically nothing and lets you pack a 4x5 in addition to your normal camera setup. When I was designing it, the RFF community really was foremost in my mind. So I hope you guys like it and spread the word.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

It looks darn cool to me, even if I'm not sure i want to get into yet another film format. I've made my commitments to 6x6 and 35mm, will likely stick there. But .. I never say never. 🙂

G
 
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