Interested in a tech camera. Suggestions?

[Zerimar]

Hello!

Haven't posted in a while.. I have been thinking of getting a camera with tilt and shift movements for architectural and landscape work..

My main interest is a camera that is capable of that. I have a P45+ in H mount.

Could you name some setups that you would recommend? Also price listing would be helpful.

I was thinking along the lines of a used Sinar P2 with a back adaptor for the P45+, as the Cambo options are a tad expensive at this time for me.

Also considered was a GX 680 with the adaptor.

 

[dougpeterson]

Hi Rick,

The big three in the US are Arca, Cambo, and Alpa (Bias alert: we previously sold Alpa, but now only sell Cambo/Arca). Each have a range of cameras, good US support, availability of pre-owned equipment in the states, and a great reputation for build quality. The Cambo line starts around mid $2k. We have a used Cambo Wide DS for $1250 (with adapter plate) and several used or demo Cambo lenses available, so if you're working with the right vendor the affordability is there.

Both Arca and Cambo announced new bodies at Photokina:
New Arca Swiss R Series Bodies - DT Blog
New & Updated Cambo Wide Bodies - DT Blog

You can find pricing for each on these Arca and Cambo GetDPI threads or PM/email me for more complete pricing information (including pre-owned).

We have a remote demonstration center setup (audio + video + screen sharing + raw file sharing) which we developed largely for tech cameras (since there are only a hand full of places in the world you can see several tech cameras under one roof).

Both the Sinar and Fuji option will be cheaper, but with the following downsides:

Sinar P2
- size/weight
- wide angle lenses are very hard to focus due to use of traditional focus racking
- wide angles require recessed lens board, making lens access a bit annoying
- requires ground glass focusing, which for anything about 30mp or so is very difficult

Fuji 680
- no wide angle lens
- size/weight
- operation with a P45+ requires three batteries, a breakout box, synchronized shutter speed settings, and is prone to errors (usually human or battery caused)

Still, both are worth considering depending on your reaction to those downsides.