Alpa 12 camera with film

[essense]

I recently became the lucky owner of a second hand Alpa 12 SWA camera.

Unlike most users these days I tend to use it with film, no digital back for me.
Are there any other Alpa photographer who use this camera with film on this forum?

I bought it together with the Super Angulon 47mm XL for the large image circle.
As I want to use it mainly for architecture firm.

Still doubting if the Alpa Helvetar 48mm wasn't a better option. It seems to be sharper wide open for handheld usage.

 

[Shashin]

I have not used this camera, but I did use a Horseman SW612 with a 55mm Grandagon and that experience will be similar. The Schneider 47mm is a view camera lens. It is not designed to work at maximum aperture, but rather at f/11 or smaller. My 55mm was really helped with a center filter to reduce vignetting. The Schneider will also benefit with a center filter.

Having said that, I did use the Horseman handheld and for most of the work I did with it. I even shot it wide open without the center filter and I was shooting with a 6x12 back. Vignetting is a problem with light falloff and color shifts. Yet, if you understand the limits and use it within those, you can get some great images. If you are trying to get technical perfection under those conditions, then you may be disappointed. If you are shooting a 6x7 back, then vignetting will be much more tolerable.

 

[epforever]

I was using an SWA with both film and digital (H5D50) for the last 1.5 years. Just sold it to cover various house expenses. It's a great system. I had the Schneider 35mm Digitar and the Rodenstock 55mm Apo-Sironar Digital. I found it to be terrific with film -- handheld medium format with shift. Hard to find that elsewhere.

I can't say whether the 48mm Helvetar would be sharper wide open. It is the same lens as the Schneider 47mm Digitar, but I believe the 47mm Super Angulon you have is different. And I believe if you research that question online, you'll find a wide range of varying opinions.

Enjoy it!

 

[Pelorus]

Actually it's not the same lens as the 47 Digitar. A quote from Andre Oldani - one of the Alpa owners:

Andre Oldani , Sep 01, 2003; 02:25 p.m.
The Schneider ALPA APO-Helvetar 5.6/48mm is a new lens for the ALPA 12 system. The construction is unique and based on the no longer produced Schneider Super Angulon 47 (non XL and in this version and barrel construction exclusively available for ALPA at the moment). In fact the image circle is smaller - 123mm at f2 - than the actual SA 47XL. It covers 6x9 easily with the big advantage of producing good results even fully open. The classical medium/large format lenses of that type normally perform best at f11 and up and full aperture is only for focussing purpose.

As said the Helvetar doesn't need to stop down for good results. XL lenses are optimised for a very large image circle so that you can use them also on y 4x5". The price you have to pay for this is a very soft image at full aperture. That's why the Helvetar has also in this respect a special status.

Nevertheless, the Helvetar offers for the 6x9 format still some shift reserves: 16mm landscape and 12mm in portrait (a center filter is recommended). It is a very compact lens. To make it easier for the customer it's construction is done for the same filter diameter as other Schneider lenses (filters, hoods in 67mm thread) and the front tube acts even as a small lens hood.

This lens calculation should also deliver a very good quality with digital backs. Here it should not be used over an image circle of some 80mm.

Actually I am testing on of the first batch/pre series lenses and I am very pleased with the results. The angle of view one gets from it at 6x9 is the same as the Carl Zeiss Biogon T* 4.5/38mm on the special ALPA format 44x66mm (both with 2:3 ratio). I hope to come up with results on www.alpavision.ch in some weeks. For the moment one can find product pictures of the Helvetar at www.alpavision.ch/press.

I can't say whether the 48mm Helvetar would be sharper wide open. It is the same lens as the Schneider 47mm Digitar, but I believe the 47mm Super Angulon you have is different. And I believe if you research that question online, you'll find a wide range of varying opinions.

Enjoy it!