[nathanm]

And in the red corner weighing in at 2lbs. 8 oz. the Schneider-Kreuznach Symmar-S f\5.6 300mm   
 
Oh sure, I know ya'lls 35mm long zooms are impressive and all, but this baby has a certain kind of glassy mass ya can't beat.  No plastic here, just glass and metal. aa

[Daygloworange]

Wow! 

What does it use for a lense cap? A manhole cover?   

Cheers

[eric the red]

Wow! 

What does it use for a lense cap? A manhole cover?   

Cheers

This might be too small

[toxteth ogrady]

Your lens is muy grande my friend. It's been a while since I've used my Deardorf 8x10 but I'm pretty sure all that glass will cover an 8x10 neg even with movements. Do you use it on an 8x10, or 4x5?

[TONEPUB]

Yeah, but how fast can it autofocus.....

[toxteth ogrady]

Yeah, but how fast can it autofocus.....

Autofocus is for girly men. Same goes for shutters and f-stops. Real men go commando with 19th Century brass lenses and waterhouse stops.

[toxteth ogrady]

Seriously though. If you do shoot large format the older brass lenses with all their funky aberrations make for some outstanding portrait glass.

[TONEPUB]

same thing with digital....

The old lenses have a very nice effect indeed.

[nathanm]

I'm using on a 4x5, which to me actually looks like a "normal" field of view.  It's really almost too much for the camera as with the standards in normal configuration it can focus at something about 15 feet away.  Any closer and you've gotta tilt the front and back standards.  It's also way heavy.  It could probably use an extension tube, but that's even MORE weight out front! Heh!  I am going to do some portraits with it soon.  It looks very nice on the ground glass.  When I got it I couldn't believe how huge it was!  Sheesh!

Seriously though. If you do shoot large format the older brass lenses with all their funky aberrations make for some outstanding portrait glass.

Indeed, I have come across some sites with photos shot with those ancient lenses, very nice!  The highlights flare up and whatnot.  I'm still a little green on the whole barrel lens thing, though.  But really, I have plenty of lenses for now! Heh!  This one was relatively "cheap" as it has a big 'ol dent on the rear element (shutter is wonky too)  Otherwise it works fine.  Unfortunately it does not fit in the front standard without unscrewing the rear element.  Kind of annoying.

[Scott F.]

Hey Nathan,

Very cool camera  Your 4x5 is the equivalent of a Single Ended Triode in todays audio world.

[drphoto]

Hey Nathan, the view lenses sold as 'flat field' like the Schneider G-Claron series are much smaller and lighter and maybe more suited for field camera work. They're pretty cheap too. The downside is they are dreadfully slow, which makes for difficult viewing. I've got a 300mm and it's f9. You might be able to get one of those Beattie bright screens somewhere. I never used one, but supposedly up to twice as bright as regular ground glass.

Yeah, I like funky old lenses and their quirks. I bought a Crown Graphic....one of those old so called 'press' cameras like a Speed Graphic, but without the focal plane shutter, and the lens has a nice diffuse quality to it.

Heck I remember when the hot thing was shooting w/ Holgas and other plastic lens cameras.

[brj]

I will never complain about the weight of my DSLR again!

Nice work, Nathan.... I can't see myself ever going down the path you are now exploring, but it does make for interesting reading!

[nathanm]

The original ground glass was almost uselessly dark.  I got a fresnel\ground glass for it which is much better.  The only lens which is still pretty dark is my 65mm, but outdoors in the sun it's acceptable.  I figured that the 300mm being 5.6  is the reason for the large size, but it seems worthwhile - it is the brightest lens on the groundglass.  There's no expectation of speed and easy portability with this setup anyway, so it doesn't really matter I guess.  I probably could've got a 210mm instead as I would have more bellows room.  I shot some portraits with my 135mm but you have to get right in the subject's face.

Holgas are pretty cool, there's a lot of good shots out there on Flickr using them. Although I see now that some of my Favorites have since been deleted by their owners.  Doh!  Anyway,  I think that a vignetted image just seems to be aesthetically pleasing no matter what.

Thanks brj!  It's actually an extremely light camera once you get in on the tripod!   It's about 7 or 8lbs. with lens.  If I really wanted it could probably be modifed to work as a handheld, although a Fotoman or Crown Graphic would make more sense.  Or check out what this guy has created.  Sweet! 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrbend/307476466/

[JohnR]

The scale-focus cameras like Fotoman and Gaoersi are pretty cool. (As well as the one the guy at the link made.) I'm just wondering -- if you didn't use movements, is there somewhere on the Shen-Hao where you could put a distance/DOF scale?

[JohnR]

BTW I saw this link on a photo board a couple weeks back...

Big lens

[SET Man]

Hey!

   nathanm, nice lens. I'm always wanted a 300mm for my 4x5 lens arsenal, but ever got around to buy one... always ended up buying something else. Than again this is something I will rarely use anyway.

  Good choice there with the Shchneider 5.6f. This would be a nice portrait lens.

  I rarely use my 4x5 now but still I think I should keep my eyes open for one of these for the right price.

   BTW... JohnR. Yes, that is one giant lens. I think this could be a copy lens but I could be wrong.

Take care,
Buddy

[Imperial]

Nice! Awesome lens NathanM!
Dude! I'm getting seriously bitten by the photobug these days!
And you are not helping my newfound vice!!! Oh! Indeed S.E.T like this!

Imperial

[nathanm]

That Rodenstock 1800mm is driving me nuts, I can't find a damn thing out about it; all the links are either aucitions or message boards linking to the auctions.  And it's hard to get a sense of scale in those pics.  I thought they were having a joke at first.  If that is a normal large format lens in the foreground the thing must be enormous!  I want to see it mounted on a camera or next to a human.  Hmmm...

[SET Man]

Hey Nathan,

Very cool camera  Your 4x5 is the equivalent of a Single Ended Triode in todays audio world.

Hey!

   Scott, excellent analogy!

   Personally I own both.... 4x5 Sinar F1 monorail cam and Welborne Lab "Apollo" monoblocs SET. And yes both are about quality rather than quantity

   Wish I had time to use my Sinar more these days.

Take care,
Buddy