5x4 Field Camera - advice needed

AshleyC

AshleyC

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Just saw this in my local shop and have fallen in love

Big thing

I know absolutely nothing about them but id love it :) I did pick it up and have a poke and i was suprised how light it was which makes me want it even more!

But any opinions out there from people who know about these things? Film prices, developing , printing etc. Ease of use. What would that lens equate to on FF?
 
The Wista is a nice little 5x4 field camera, which means it is primarily designed to be taken out and about, with the compromises that entails. For leaning on, and for 99% of any pictures you are likely to take these compromises are fine.

The lens equates to a roughly normal FOV, so 50ish on a 35mm camera. The aperture is nice and wide so focussing shouldn't be too hard.

The things to check on the camera are that all the fasteners tighten nicely by hand and don't require excessive force to move, that the focussing bed moves smoothly, and when everything is tightened down that there is no play in any of the joints.
I would also take a powerful torch and use it to check the bellows for pinholes. The occasional very small pinhole isn't too bad, but on something being described as excellent condition I'd want none, or certainly only a couple
As with all things, check the shutter speeds sound accurate and that the aperture stops down nicely and is in good condition. Check the lens for marks, but if it is a Schneider lens there may be small silvery marks which appear inside the lens. This is a common problem (known as Schneideritis) and doesn't really affect the lens too much, but again could be a bargaining point

You will also need film holders (commonly misnamed as dark slides), a reasonably heavy tripod if you don't already, a loupe will be useful, and some film (and a changing bag to load and unload the film)

If you do make the jump to 5x4 prepare for an enjoyable learning curve, and going out for the day with the reasonable expectation of only taking a couple of shots. It's hugely rewarding though :thumbs:
 
I don't have a Wista but I do have a Nagaoka 4x5 which is very similar. I got mine from a guy on the TP forum, Ed Bray and he's knowledgable and helpful. Film prices aren't cheap about £35 for 25 sheets of FP4 and over £40 for 10 sheets of Porta. Processing seems to be £3-4 depending on where you go, I don't know about scanning and printing as I do that at home but its not cheap.

For equivalent focal lengths have a look here...http://www.viewcamera.com/images/focalchart.gif.

If you want to take you kit out into the countryside, slow down and get great image quality then 4x5 field cameras are the way to go but it's pricey.
 
I have not used a Wista but they are similar to a Gandofi that I was brought up on.
Wood and brass cameras like this fold very small and are far lighter than their metal counterparts either technical, press or monorail.

You can get 6x9 and 6x7 roll film holders for them which make them far more economical to use than the full 5x4 cut film.

If all the joints are solid and the bellows light tight, and movements smooth, you can't go far wrong.
You will find a wide angle lens is essential some give full coverage on 5x4 and 120 others do not , so it needs checking.

Dark slide or slide is perfectly acceptable, and is the original term used by most people. a "Film holder"or insert was the original term used for the adaptor used to convert Darkslides from Glass to film. In the old days I always took 24 double sided "fidelity" slides with me, some unloaded, so that I could load them in the field with different emulsions using a changing bag.

Unfortunately You tend to spend quite a lot more on lenses and accessories. Most camera even allow you to change to bag bellows, so that you have less restricted movements when using wide angle lenses.
 
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Terrywoodenpic said:
In the old days I always took 24 double sided "fidelity" slides with me
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Ouch! Thats a whole lot of bulk to carry. Weight wise they are fairly negligible but that must have needed a bag all of its own to transport around

The Wistas etc are incredibly small for what they offer, and if it's in good nick you will likely never outgrow it technically. Lusting after an even bigger negative is another thing though :D
 
thanks peeps. All good info :) The bulk of it all was the biggest concern. I trust the shop to not sell a lemon, used them for years now and theyre a good bunch of people in there, real enthusiasts.

I'd probably need a bigger tank for developing the negs. Ive a petterson for my 6x6's at the moment. Although in another thread here someone mentioned about looping it round and using a little rubber band to hold it in shape in the tank.

I would of liked a wider lens on it for landscapes though so will have to google a bit to see if i can get a second one.
 
raathistle said:
Ouch! Thats a whole lot of bulk to carry. Weight wise they are fairly negligible but that must have needed a bag all of its own to transport around

The Wistas etc are incredibly small for what they offer, and if it's in good nick you will likely never outgrow it technically. Lusting after an even bigger negative is another thing though :D
Click to expand...

I mostly used very heavy kit ...so extra plates was no problem. At one time
A black case for for my MPP mororail, three lenses extra bellows, bellows lenshood, 12 slides and black and red dark cloth and exposure meter.
A second equal sized case for a Dozen Bowen flash bulb guns and cables My extra dark slides changing bag and boxed film. filters etc a third larger lightweight case with Dozens of pf100/97 flash bulbs ( each the size of a 100w bulb) a few rolls of gaffer tape.
A heavy tripod, a 6ft step ladder. and twelve light stands.

And that was the basic kit. It took several trips from the car to the location on most occasions.

I have a very bad back now,,,,,
 
That's crazy, I thought I was bad with my 5x7, 3 lenses and normally about 10 holders. Most of what I do is landscape though, so the need for a stepladder is minimal :D

In terms of lenses theres a 90mm for sale in the classifieds at the moment from Woodsy, its a nice little f8 angulon (maybe super, can't remember) and they're good performers. Developing wise you can just use a normal tank and the rubber band method, or there's the mod54 insert you can get if you want to spend some more money

You'll be surprised how the restriction to a single lens on these isn't the burden it might appear. You have so much real estate on the neg that cropping in isn't a problem, and while you're learning to use it a nice normal lens will probably be the best starting point
 
raathistle said:
That's crazy, I thought I was bad with my 5x7, 3 lenses and normally about 10 holders. Most of what I do is landscape though, so the need for a stepladder is minimal :D
Click to expand...

At that time I specialised in store interiors.
 
ok well ive just splurged out and put a deposit down for it, pick it up in a couple of weeks when i get paid :)

A couple of questions about 5x4 film though that i didnt think of in the shop.

Wheres the best place to buy b&w and colour 5x4 film and

Once you take the shot how do you store the negative, you have 2 negatives in the film holder, exposed, and you have some more film that you want to put in. How do you store the unprocessed negatives till your ready to do them or, in the case of colour, send them off for processing.
 
essexash said:
ok well ive just splurged out and put a deposit down for it, pick it up in a couple of weeks when i get paid :)

A couple of questions about 5x4 film though that i didnt think of in the shop.

Wheres the best place to buy b&w and colour 5x4 film
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http://www.discountfilmsdirect.co.uk are in the UK and they have decent prices, not a massive selection though. There's a german site that has a huuuuge film selection, but I can't remember what it is for the life of me.

and
essexash said:
Once you take the shot how do you store the negative, you have 2 negatives in the film holder, exposed, and you have some more film that you want to put in. How do you store the unprocessed negatives till your ready to do them or, in the case of colour, send them off for processing.
Click to expand...

You'd have to unload the film in the darkroom and store it in a light tight box - I usually just leave the shots in the holders and process them myself. DIY processing saves a lot of money in the long run if you plan on shooting a lot :thumbs:
 
You must have it. Go and get it now!

EDIT: Note to self - read all of a thread before answering!

essexash said:
ok well ive just splurged out and put a deposit down for it, pick it up in a couple of weeks when i get paid
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And well done.


Steve.
 
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I suspect the German site Nick mentioned above would be

http://www.macodirect.de/

I've used them and provided you make the minimum order value (not hard if it's large format stuff) they were reasonable even including the shipping charge.
 
djguru said:
I suspect the German site Nick mentioned above would be

http://www.macodirect.de/

I've used them and provided you make the minimum order value (not hard if it's large format stuff) they were reasonable even including the shipping charge.
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that's the one! :thumbs:
 
How easy are lenses to fit onto the boards? ive got my eye on
this lens

But the board might not fit. I cant see anything obvious on the lens ive already got that would pop it in and out of a board though.
 
They're really easy to change, having a lens wrench is useful but not absolutely necessary.
 
That 90 is a bargain at the ment, if I didn't already own one I'd definitely be going for it. The boards are a cinch to change, especially on anything relatively modern
 
yeah i just found a youtube vid showing how its done. Looks easy enough with one of those spanners,

I was bidding for another 90 earlier, but the bots clearly kicked in at the last couple of seconds and it went for a crazy price.
 
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