[LargeFormat] Rapax shutter CLA

[Les Newcomer]

Call me a mugwump, compartmentalist or fence sitter, but I've done both.
For my architectural high pay work, that won't allow the use of 8x10
contact prints, hey give me Hassy with T*, or in the new millenium, an
arc with a digi back and an APO whatever. I can get the work done in 1/3
the time and the client will love it, scan it, print it and hang it. the
Colors will be zippy and people will go wow. The pics go into my book.

Then there's the personal side where I can get contemplative, not have
to worry about an AD breathing over my neck and wondering if the shot
will fit in his life scheme, or if there's the right fung shway.  I go
play with any number of formats from 5x7 to 8x10 and old lenses from
meniscus to Dagors, most are barrel and even some zone plates (now
THERE'S soft focus for you Clive!) and I never take a meter.


I tank develop (still process) and contact print. The pics go on the
wall. Nothing bigger than an 8x10. This way I won't run out of wall
space for a long time.

It's the same psychological effect of a Wall Street yuppie going on an
Outward Bound trip.--throw away the rules.

A friend, who used to work for Zeiss, and has both old and new glass
showed me an interesting phenomenon.  Using a microscope on the aerial
image, we chucked some MC glass in a Deardorff and focused on infinity,
then we chucked a 14" comm ektar.  With the MC glass you could see the
black mail box a few miles away was distinctly visable. With the Comm
Ektar, the edges of the box were noticably softer, but you could read
the name on the side.

Les


Lee Carmichael wrote:
> 
> Clive,
>         Put me squarely in the modern glass catagory.  For me the whole point is to
> make the image a sharp as possible.  Anything less is a waste of time.  I
> labored for years with junk lenses and my images suffered because of it.
> You might say that Ansel and compatriots used the old glass, true.  But that
> is all they had. They went to the newer glass as soon as it became
> available.  I may be wrong about this but didn't Margaret Bourke-White
> lement in some of her writings about the poor quality of the lenses?  We now
> have the best there is, I say use them.
> 
> Lee Carmichael
> mailto:click76112@home.com
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: largeformat-admin@f32.net [mailto:largeformat-admin@f32.net]On
> Behalf Of Clive Warren
> Sent: Monday, February 26, 2001 7:29 PM
> To: largeformat@f32.net
> Subject: [LargeFormat] Rapax shutter CLA
> 
> Have been putting together a light weight field outfit based on a 4x5
> Korona and a selection of older glass in shutters.  I was intending
> to use the outfit over the New Year break but ended up with the 4x5
> MPP and more modern glass.
> 
> The main lens intended for the wooden field outfit is a 4x5 Gundlach
> f6.3, a lens which I have mentioned here before - there are a couple
> of photos of the lens on the f32 Discussion Forum. The shutter is a
> Wollensak Rapax and it needs a CLA.  The local tame repair chappy
> does a great job on my shutters but he does like to to take his time
> - ie months!
> 
> I have CLAd a few shutters but never a Rapax. This one is quite
> compact and I'm wondering if this is one that would be best left to
> the repair man. Has anyone been inside a Rapax and if so, any
> pointers or should I leave it for the pros.?
> 
> There's something quite special about the look and feel of images
> made from older glass. Multicoating and high contrast is all very
> well but Spring is good for the more natural rendition offered by
> older glass.
> 
> With all this chat about pinholes maybe no glass is the way forwards :-)
> 
> --
> All the best,
> 
>              Clive Warren   http://www.f32.net
>                             Large Format travel and stock photography
> 
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