WISTA D field camera 4'x5' as enlarger

[BBonte]

I would like to move into LF photography, but have not the appropriate enlarger? Can the WISTA be used as enlarger ? The lens is 105 cm I think.

yours

Bernard

[Ian Grant]

The simple answer is yes any 5x4 camera could be used as an enlarger, it's how to make it practical. You need a good light source, something like a cold cathode or colour head from an old De Vere or Durst would do, anf then a negative holder.

The major problem is the Wista is definately not strong enough to carry any weight so every thing need to be mounted on some kind of frame first.

BTW your lens won't be 105cm, it should be a 15cm / 150mm if it's a standard lens.

Ian

[Roger Hicks]

I would like to move into LF photography, but have not the appropriate enlarger? Can the WISTA be used as enlarger ? The lens is 105 cm I think.

yours

Bernard

Dear Bernard,

Years ago, Linhof actually made a cold light/neg holder to convert cameras to enlargers. I have one somewhere but never use it because the light is very blue and therefore of limited use with VC paper.

Cheers,

R.

[David A. Goldfarb]

More common than the Linhof enlarging heads (they also made a condensor head) is the Graflarger back, which you can usually find cheaply. You can upgrade a Graflarger to a current Aristo V54 bulb for use with VC paper or some people just add a CC40Y filter to old cold light heads for that purpose or just print on graded paper, so that it's not an issue.

The downside of these old cold light heads is that they don't have heaters, so exposure tends to vary quite a lot unless you leave it on all the time and use something like a black card over the lens for the exposure, or use a compensating timer with a probe like the Metrolux, or alternately keep your exposures on the long side.

[MurrayMinchin]

Wow, this takes me back!

Lost in the mists of time, or over 25 years ago, I phoned Fred Picker and asked the same question about the Wista I got from Zone VI. He said it couldn't be done, so I ordered a cold light source and made one anyways.

It was a Medieval torture chamber looking device made of 4x4 cedar posts which were mortice and tenoned and otherwise whacked together with the limited tools my dad had. The camera was mounted to the top centre of the frame by a 2x6 cross piece situated so the home made negative carrier was parallel to the enlarging suface, and the lens was in the middle. I think I used the lens movements to get the lens parallel-ish.

This is were it gets weird...(ahhhh, to be young and that determined against all logic again ). The enlarging surface was a 30x30" piece of 1" plywood raised and lowered by chains from each corner. Because I used a (210mm?) taking lens, the beast was around 7 feet tall.

Go ahead and laugh, but that enlarger printed my entrance portfolio for photography school, and I learned a ton of new stuff trying to figure it all out. Can you believe I never took a picture of it

So, to answer your question, it can be done...as pretty much anything is possible if you can't accept defeat, but buying a second hand enlarger is sure alot easier!

Murray

[Jerevan]

This a Tachihara camera, but the photos of his enlarger should give you some ideas:
http://digilander.libero.it/clabo/tachi/PAGE2.HTM

[MikeM1977]

I would like to move into LF photography, but have not the appropriate enlarger? Can the WISTA be used as enlarger ? The lens is 105 cm I think.
Bernard

At today's going rate for 4x5 enlargers, there is not reason not to find one! That is unless you are cramped for space. I found an old Omega DII at a garage sale for $75 with a Rodagon lens. I ended up stripping the entire enlarger down, painting it, and even replacing the bellows ($30 for an eBay replacement). Looks as good as new!

[Roger Hicks]

More common than the Linhof enlarging heads (they also made a condensor head) is the Graflarger back, which you can usually find cheaply. You can upgrade a Graflarger to a current Aristo V54 bulb for use with VC paper or some people just add a CC40Y filter to old cold light heads for that purpose or just print on graded paper, so that it's not an issue.

The downside of these old cold light heads is that they don't have heaters, so exposure tends to vary quite a lot unless you leave it on all the time and use something like a black card over the lens for the exposure, or use a compensating timer with a probe like the Metrolux, or alternately keep your exposures on the long side.

The Linhof must be more blue than the Graflarger because no amount of yellow filtration I have yet tried has made it more than marginally usable with VC. I'll try the idea about a new bulb, though...

I'll certainly second the point about leaving it on all the time.

Cheers,

R.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Aristo lists bulb replacement for the Graflarger as a standard operation. I suspect they'd charge about the same for a Linhof upgrade. I print mostly graded, so I haven't worried about it, but if I were to start using the Graflarger more often, I'd get another probe to use it with my Metrolux.

[Roger Hicks]

Aristo lists bulb replacement for the Graflarger as a standard operation. I suspect they'd charge about the same for a Linhof upgrade. I print mostly graded, so I haven't worried about it, but if I were to start using the Graflarger more often, I'd get another probe to use it with my Metrolux.

Dear David,

Thanks very much indeed for the information. Maybe I'll see if they can do a new cold cathode head for my 5x7 inch MPP at the same time -- though as I have a De Vere colour head, that's probably money wasted...

Cheers,

R.