Graflex.org

[jmccl@yahoo.com]

I stumbled on this in the big e-bay and I got to thinking that I might make a big leap from MF to LF and combine my septuagenarian American flesh and bones with a septuagenarian American camera and travel various National Parks capturing images to see what the outcome might be. I don't want to spend the money on the camera if it doesn't have all the required components, for example, where do the sheet holders slide into the camera? I guess framing and focusing is all done on the rear glass as I see no view finder. Here is the link to the e-bay post:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/221581711236?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Please advise me on this so I don't drop a bunch on a pretty piece of wood and brass that would require additional components to make the vintage tool work.

Thanks all.

Jim

[Dan Fromm]

I think the camera is complete. It has a spring back, shown clearly in the fourth picture. The ground glass focusing panel is held to the camera by the two leaf springs visible in that picture. Sheet film holders go in front of the focusing panel.

The lens on the camera is a 127/4.7 Ektar, a decent tessar type lens that barely covers 4x5. If you buy the kit and want to use movements you'll have to replace the lens.

You should buy a book on view cameras and study it before buying a camera. You might also want to visit the US large format site http://www.largeformatphotography.info, read the FAQs and, perhaps, ask questions on the forum. Posters there recommend two books, Steve Simmons' Understanding the View Camera and Leslie Strobel's View Camera Technique.

I have no idea what the going rate for Century view cameras is so don't know whether your eBay find is a good value.

[45PSS]

Its a complete camera.
I think you could find a better view camera for field work for the $500 shipped price but it appears to be a nice copy if you want the vintage.
Many times the extension is not included. Its a + for using long lens or macro work.
See this site article: http://graflex.org/articles/graphic-view/CrownView.html
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The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

[Billy Canuck]

I have a 127mm lens on my 1947 Speed Graphic. Press photographers liked this focal length because it gave them a slightly wide view. As Dan Fromm said, this lens will not allow movements, but press photographers had no use for them. Normal lens for a 4x5 is around 150mm, with many preferring a slightly long 210mm. These will allow movements, the extent of which depends on the coverage of the particular lens.
The seller describes the camera as a collector's piece, which makes me wonder about the condition of the bellows, the lens, the shutter and the included film holders. (The bellows looks not bad in the photos, but you can't really tell from photos.)