A Beginner’s Guide to Technical Cameras — Architectural Photography Almanac

[TechTalk]

Linked below is an article written by Albrecht Voss which may be of interest to some readers. He is the winner of the 2021 Hasselblad Masters Award in Architecture.

https://apalmanac.com/gear/a-beginners-guide-to-technical-cameras

There are other camera brands not mentioned in the article such as Silvestri which makes an interesting line of cameras and accessories. There are a variety of other cameras which may be adapted for digital use as well, but the article provides a good starting point.

 

[Alan]

His camera type names are completely off from any use I've ever heard, which could be very confusing for someone looking for a "beginner's guide". Has anyone ever heard Alpas, Arca R or Cambo WRS referred to as "flatbed cameras"?

 

[dchew]

His camera type names are completely off from any use I've ever heard, which could be very confusing for someone looking for a "beginner's guide". Has anyone ever heard Alpas, Arca R or Cambo WRS referred to as "flatbed cameras"?

No I haven't heard that term before, but I suppose it's not any worse than "pancake."

Kudos to Albrecht; I appreciate the effort he put into the article. It's nearly impossible to get everything right, and the more articles out there the better. My biggest issue with technical cameras is how to help people decide between brands and models. The differences are sometimes subtle, yet personal and important. It really requires hands on experience. In most markets, that is extremely difficult to accomplish.

I do wish he added an asterisk to the Cambo "flatbeds" that tilt is built into the lens mount.

Dave

 

[ThdeDude]

There are other camera brands not mentioned in the article such as Silvestri which makes an interesting line of cameras and accessories.

Yes, I agree. Silvestri has an interesting line of cameras, accessories, and now even a lens. But somehow they never seem to have caught on like some other camera manufacturers.

(Disclaimer: Have a Silvestri Flexicam)

 

[DNN]

wow - 360- degree swing and tilt on some cameras! That is some advantage ;-0

 

[ThdeDude]

... There are a variety of other cameras which may be adapted for digital use as well, but the article provides a good starting point.

Having three metal 4x5" from my film days, I looked into adapting them to digital use. Linhof even offers a digital adapter. However, I decided it would be too much of a compromise with the sensor sizes available. Not too likely that we will see a 4x5" sized sensor in the foreseeable future.

 

[TechTalk]

...Kudos to Albrecht; I appreciate the effort he put into the article. It's nearly impossible to get everything right, and the more articles out there the better. My biggest issue with technical cameras is how to help people decide between brands and models. The differences are sometimes subtle, yet personal and important. It really requires hands on experience. In most markets, that is extremely difficult to accomplish...

Dave

Your comments carry the weight of having tackled this kind of writing task yourself. Your article Field Techniques for Technical Cameras should be read by anyone looking to explore the technical camera world! Your other articles should also be on their reading list.

 

[4x5Australian]

The term "flatbed camera" is a well-established category name for those large format film cameras - such as the Linhof Technika - in which the lens is extended forwards along a flat panel (or bed) that usually folds down from the side of a box. The other major category is a "monorail camera".

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/find/Product_Resources/largeformat1.jsp?msockid=3a77b15910fa661a32d9a58e11ea67e2

Pancake cameras such as the Alpa 12, Cambo WRS and Arca-Swiss Rm3di are not flatbed cameras.

 

[rmueller]

Thanks for sharing @TechTalk, great read.

I for myself decided many moons ago that I'm not investing in Tech Camera + digital back which I guess saved me a lot of money. I do love going out with my Linhof Master Technika 3000 and few film holders loaded with Portra 160/400 though.

For digital, my HTS adapter on the H6D-50c offers everything I need, it is not perfect and certainly not comparable to a Techno or Alpa but it does a pretty decent job IMO.

Regards, Ralf

 

[rdeloe]

These kinds of posts are very hard to create and it's easy to make errors or oversight that catch the eye of experienced people. Kudos for the effort.

I wonder if the author left the F-Universalis off the list for a reason, or just be accident.

I noticed the flatbed thing too right away and thought it strange. That's an easy edit if he's inclined.

 

[ThdeDude]

As they say about classifications and categorization: there are the lumpers and there are the splitters.

Here are my two cents as to technical digital cameras:

Monorail
The classical technical "studio" camera with a front standard holding the lens, a rear standard holding sensor, both standards having all movements, connected by a bellow and a monorail (monorail could be a flatbed). Both standards are moveable along the monorail but are not foldable. Not really practical for outdoor use in the film days, but may be for smaller digital versions. (Added 10/22: But there is a sub-group of 4x5" cameras - field monorails! - that is easily transportable and suitable for field use. For example, Linhof Technikardan, and the Toho FC-45X is the most compact and lightweight 4x5" camera I know.)

Pancake camera (called "pancake cameras" due to their flat appearance at the film days!)
A housing holds both the sensor and the lens, the lens being focused using helical focus mount. Best suited for very wide to normal focal length lenses. Good example are P1's XC cameras and ALPA cameras. Often designed for hand-held use.

Flatbed camera
No monorail but a flatbed. Both standards can be folded down onto the flatbed for easy transportation and storage. Practical for outdoor use. Nice example, http://svedovsky.com/11x14-camera/. Don't recall having seen yet a digital flatbed camera.

Technical field camera
The rear standard is fixed or integrated to flatbed (Linhof Techno) or rail (Silvestri Flexicam), hence no rear tilt or swing movements (but both examples have horizontal rear shift), any tilt or swing movements must be via the front standard. Not foldable.

P.S. My dream camera would be a sized-down Linhof Techno, from 6x9 to 645 format, with just enough extension for Digaron-S 180mm.

 

[daz7]

wow - 360- degree swing and tilt on some cameras! That is some advantage ;-0

I had a Horseman LX camera before switching to more lightweight Sinar cameras, and it could swing around freely -it was a very useful feature for transport - you could lay it completely flat when swung by 90 degrees, without taking off the rail.

 

[4x5Australian]

As they say about classifications and categorization, there are the lumpers and the splitters.

Here are my two cents as to digital cameras:

Monorail
The classical technical "studio" camera with a front standard holding the lens, a rear standard holding sensor, both standards having all movements, connected by a bellow and a monorail (monorail could be a flatbed). Both standards are moveable along the monorail but are not foldable. Not really practical for outdoor use in the film days, but may be for smaller digital versions.

The lighter-weight sub-group of monorails termed "field monorails" are certainly practical for outdoor ('field') use.

Architectural photographers loved them because they combine portability with large amounts of front rise/fall and lateral shift.
A lot of landscape photographers used them too.

Field monorails include:
Arca-Swiss F-Classic 6x9 and F-Classic 4x5 (with non-geared movements),
Arca-Swiss F-Metric 6x9 and F-Metric 4x5 (with geared rise/fall and lateral shift plus optional Orbix geared tilt),
Arca-Swiss F-Universalis (with geared rise/fall and lateral shift plus Orbix geared tilt) for DSLR, digital backs or 4x5
Toyo VX125 4x5
Linhof Technikardan / S 4x5.

It's a great shame that newcomers were / still are generally steered away from field monorails towards flatbed cameras.

Most flatbed cameras are unable to provide sufficient front rise with wide angle lenses to capture large, impressive structures, either built or natural. Consequently, the new images they are able to make differ little from those they make already with their medium format cameras, except with a lot more bother, and they give up without ever experiencing the almost-magical ability of capturing compositions that look impossible.

Rod

 

[AlanS]

I started in the late 70's with an old MPP but quickly moved onto a Linhof Super Colour std. I must agree with Rod that the flexability of the Linhof was a major advantage even on landscape work. It also was surprisingly compact in that it fitted into a medium size "Pro" shoulder bag with 3 lens, spotmeter and 1/2 a doz. darkslides.

 

[Paul Spinnler]

Nothing beats Dave's write-up though!

 

[abruzzi]

Linhof Technikardan / S 4x5.

there is also a 2x3(6x9) Technikardan, which is sized better if you dont need to shoot 4x5 as well.

It's a great shame that newcomers were / still are generally steered away from field monorails towards flatbed cameras.

I started with flatbed camera—first a Shen Hao, then a Master Technika. Neither clicked with me, but then I got a Technikardan 45, and LF became easy and intuitive. I use a flatbed for 8x10, and occasionally 5x7 due to scale, but 4x5 I’m 100% monorail.

 

[ThdeDude]

The lighter-weight sub-group of monorails termed "field monorails" are certainly practical for outdoor ('field') use.

Was mostly thinking in terms of 4x5" studio monorails which are really not practical for field use.

Different story for digital, for example the Cambo Actus looks small enough to be easily transportable for field work. (No personal experience)

 

[4x5Australian]

Was mostly thinking in terms of 4x5" studio monorails which are really not practical for field use.

I agree with you on studio monorails.

However, field monorail cameras are an important - and often overlooked - sub-group of monorails that were designed specifically for outdoor use and were - and still are - very successfully used for architecture and landscape.

My Arca-Swiss F-Metric 4x5 with Orbix front geared tilt is easy portable in the field. It replaced a Toyo VX125 4x5. I carried the VX125 around Morocco for a month without drama and made many images with it that would have been impossible with a flatbed camera. The F-Metric provides up to 85mm of front rise and enables full use of the huge image circles of the SK Super-Angulon 72XL and 90XL and Super-Symmar Aspheric 110XL and does so easily and quickly.

Rod

 

[rdeloe]

Was mostly thinking in terms of 4x5" studio monorails which are really not practical for field use.

Different story for digital, for example the Cambo Actus looks small enough to be easily transportable for field work. (No personal experience)

My first 4x5 was a Linhof Kardan Super Color -- a classic studio camera. I only used it in the field. You are absolutely right though -- practical it was not. I built a wooden suitcase for it, which I strapped onto an aluminum backpack frame harvested from a grotty backpack. I looked ridiculous, but I hauled that thing over hill and dale.

My next cameras as a proper field camera: a Wisner Technical Field in 4x5. I bought it new, and only learned later that in light of Ron Wisner's business practices, it was nothing short of a miracle that I received it. Things were rough for Ron at that point and I believe it was near the end of his business.

 

[Doppler9000]

My next cameras as a proper field camera: a Wisner Technical Field in 4x5. I bought it new, and only learned later that in light of Ron Wisner's business practices, it was nothing short of a miracle that I received it. Things were rough for Ron at that point and I believe it was near the end of his business.

Wow - I just did a quick read on Ron - very interesting.