Linhof Technika for Portraits

[Bokeh Guy]

I've got the new equipment bug and thought of taking a dive at 4x5. Does anyone use a Linhof Technika for portraits? If so, how is it? I ran across a guy on Flickr who uses one and I really like his results. He emailed me and said that, out of all his equipment including Rolleis, the last camera he'd give up would be his Linhof.

[Venchka]

I was gifted a Technika V a couple months ago. Mine is missing the cams for the rangefinder and the optical finder. I could see how the Linhof would be nice for portraits if.................

You have a working rangefinder for a 150mm or longer lens.
You have the matching optical finder.
A rollfilm back would be a nice bonus.

On the other hand, Frank Petronio makes lovely portaits with a Crown Graphic.

[David A. Goldfarb]

A Technika is great for portraits if you have a cammed lens, because you can check focus using the rangefinder with a sheet of film ready to shoot--or six sheets using Grafmatics.

[Ulrich Drolshagen]

The German photographer Jim Rakete published a book with portraits taken with a 5x7 Technika: 1/8 sec. - Vertraute Fremde. You may see what can be done with such a beast here: http://www.art-magazin.de/kunst/3394...rtraute_fremde

Ulrich

[msage]

I use my Technika for portraits all the time, but I don't hand hold it and use ground glass focusing.
Michael

[eddym]

I've used mine with 180mm cammed lens and MF viewer. Works great; I do use it on a tripod though, because it ain't no lightweight!

[David A. Goldfarb]

I use it both handheld and on a tripod. There is no reason not to use the rangefinder to check focus when you've got a moving subject, even when the camera is on a tripod.

[boilerdoc]

it's a superb camera for portraits, either handheld (a monopod is a big help) or on the tripod. I take it to various festivals and want to try nudes next.....
I used the 180 or 270 tele with the cam for focussing. Works great!
Steve

[Bokeh Guy]

Here's a question. I have a Rolleiflex Tele that I've used some and it works (and is cool, etc.), but I'm wondering if I trade it in for a Linhof. I have a 2.8F and I could be wrong on this, but sounds like the Linhof would give me a little more flexibility with portraits (I'm talking lenses). Any thoughts?

[David A. Goldfarb]

It's a bit of a different style of shooting. On a Technika, you either focus on the groundglass view-camera style, and there's some delay after focusing before you close the shutter, stop down the lens, put in the filmholder, pull the darkslide, and make the exposure, or you can compose on the groundglass, load the filmholder and pull the darkslide, check focus with the rangefinder, then check framing in the viewfinder before making the exposure. It's not a single-window rangefinder-viewfinder, so you can make more dynamic portraits than you can with a view camera that doesn't have a rangefinder, but not as dynamic as you can with an SLR or TLR, where you can focus and compose right up to the instant of exposure.

You have more flexibility in terms of lenses with a Technika than with a fixed-lens camera, but for portraiture, you'll probably use mainly one lens anyway, possibly two, if you need a range for, say, tight headshots and full length group portraits. If you like the Rolleiflex, you could use a Tele-Rollei and a standard Rolleiflex and have the same flexibility with the ease of use of a TLR.

Yet another option is something like a Graflex SLR, which would give you SLR composition and focusing with a large format negative, but if you're using strobes, I don't think you can have sync and the SLR functions at the same time (in their day, the options were open flash technique or FP flashbulbs that would burn over the full length of the focal plane shutter exposure).

There is also the Gowlandflex, which is a 4x5" TLR that can be set up with interchangeable lenses. There were also 5x7" and even a half dozen 8x10" models, but most of these are 4x5". This will work with strobes. Normally they are set up with a shutterless viewing lens matched to a shuttered taking lens, and there is a cam dedicated to the focal length of the lenses that adjusts for parallax as you focus. It is possible to change lenses on these cameras, but I'm not sure it's easy to do.