Thank you for this video. I found this camera in my father's effects. I like the look of it, the weight, even the smell of it. Happy to see that some people still care about this type of camera.
I can definitely relate to dropping a camera and the emotions thereafter. My Nikon digital camera recently slipped out of my hands and hit the floor. Ouch! Have you ever seen a grown man cry like a a baby?
Definitely agree on the point of viewing through the lens - it's the main reason I love shooting polaroids on my RZ. Also, this may be a cliche thing to say, but I really like the bokeh I can get with the RZ as well. I've seen plenty of Land camera conversions that use a leaf-shutter lens hacked onto the front plate, but you still end up with a rangefinder (which you then have to calibrate to the new lens???). Also, seeing the mechanical functions on the outside is totally rad - it's one of the features that keeps me reaching for my Leica IIIf. The first time people see that shutter speed dial spin on release and advance, it blows their minds. I've been holding onto a pack of 3000b that I bought just before it was discontinued. I was holding out for a proper Land camera to come into my life so I could shoot it full frame, but maybe I'll look into this option sometime next year. I do love tinkering.
+Dustin Hern yea i cant get over having to shoot polaroids with a rangefinder. it just didnt feel magical to me at all idk maybe im just crazy. ive made a polaroid land conversion with an old lens on the front and managed to calibrate the RF to the lens itself. but it just doesnt have a whole lot of substance when shooting it . i would say that converting this camera to shoot polaroid was about as much work as grinding up a land camera to put a new lens on it haha
Hi Travis, First of all, BRAVO for the great photography you did with this set-up (the Polaroids you show at the end of this vid). Secondly, BRAVO for a good vid. I'm also the owner of a couple of Graflex SLR's. As far as it being the "only" SLR capable of shooting Polaroids, don't forget the Mamiya RB67 & RZ67, as Dustin Hern points out below, but also all the medium format SLRs that allow a Polaroid back. (I wouldn't put the SX-70 in the same game as those cameras due to its fixed lens). True, the Graflex will give you the full image area of the Polaroid paper size, but I believe that the RB & RZ gives a 6x8cm image size on a Polaroid, which is close to full size. Nonetheless, you're absolutely right to treat the Graflex separately, if only because of the particular look in the resulting photos. The Mamiyas (or the other medium format cameras) obviously won't give the same look , nor the same pleasure of use -nor the same awe from onlookers as you shoot with the camera! As a trival point, notice that the Mamiya RB & RZ design -and, in part, its name- is completely modeled on the Graflex RB. Note the identical way you have to lower the mirror with a lever on the side of the camera after each exposure, for example. Graflex medium format film backs can even be used on the RB! Lastly- regarding your broken Graflex (sorry about that... I'd be in 'mourning' over it)- a great repair source is Jo Lommen, in Holland. I know that may be far for you to send (I'm in Paris), but he's got all the parts -or makes them himself, included lots of stuff for the AERO-EKTAR- and he's passionate about his work. Plus, his prices are reasonable enough that it may even justify the shipping costs. I use him alot...Check him out here: lommen9.home.xs4all.nl/ Thanks for passing on the passion for these cameras (and the others in your collection).
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed the video I actually tried many times to make this video so I'm happy that the end result was well received. And yes it's not the ONLY slr that shoots a Polaroid however it is the only SLR that shoots a full frame. I've shot Polaroids on my Hasselblad as well as an RB67 and that little bit of black frame lost really makes a huge difference in my opinion. Whilst shooting a Hasselblad is nice for its size and flash sync i would never load a pack in that before the graflex mostly because it still can't compare. As far as comparing an sx-70 to this camera goes.....they aren't even in the same ballpark haha. Thanks for watching and I hope you enjoy some of my other videos as well!
This is such great info. A friend of mine gave me a Series B about 20 years ago and I haven't yet figured out how to use it, but this got me super psyched to make it work. I *think* I just need some film backs. (the back it has now is for pack film, I think) If you have more info about the Series B I'd love to know it. Thanks so much for this video!
@Travis bummer on that $275 loss, great vid through bro! I might have to hunt one of those down. I do love my RB67 Polaroids but you're right would love to get that full frame back! :) random related question. They don't make sheet film properly sized for that camera anymore, right?
You should do a quick google search for RB67 Arca-Swiss Polaroid or RB67 Nagaoka Polaroid. Both produced options to cover the whole Polaroid frame with a sliding mechanism that lets you shoot diptychs. As far as film made for this camera I’m assuming you mean the original format. There are still several companies producing film in old cut film sizes but it’s usually by custom order.
I love these Graflex SLR cameras. I'm currently working on putting a Belair Instax back on a Graflex compact 3x5 as it appears that it'll fit perfectly (dimension wise) once an adapter is made. I'd like to try and put a packfilm back on them but since Fuji has nixed FP film I'm not sure it's worth the effort even with the film I have left.
I was thinking the same thing!! Would you mind sharing some tips or images of how you made the conversion? I am not all thumbs, but at least 50% thumbs so any help would be appreciated! :-) Good luck with your project!
So the 3x5 compacts take a bit more work but should be worth it. If you go to the Graflex Camera group on Facebook you can see many progress photos and posts. The back is not converted over yet as the camera itself was stripped down to the wood and refinished. It also needed the brass mirror rod remade, new bellows and a new capping shutter. Go check that group out!
I have successfully adapted an instax back but the only problem is the added distance to the film plane making focus impossible through the ground glass. I'm assuming you haven't got to that part yet? It's a problem I have yet to solve.
You are correct. It appears as though I have about 9/12 mm of leeway on the ground glass (Top Viewfinder) but until I know how much the variance will be on the new back it's hard to tell. I know that many other graflex cameras have less wiggle room with the viewfinder. The 3x5 compact has the glass recessed whereas my 4x5 auto has it at the very top almost flush with the wood under the lid. There's also the issue of replacing the second surface mirror with a first surface replacement that moves the mirror reflection about 1.6mm closer than the original second surface. I may send the back to SKgrimes to see how close they can get belair back..If I am under 10mm I should be safe.
Yea I mounted the instax back to a 4x5 film holder that I can fit into my converted 3x4. But the depth of the film plane is probably 15mm or so deeper then the original film plane. In order to raise my ground glass to compensate I would probably need to build a wooden frame inside my finder to raise it. I'm really not sure I've resorted to trying the belair back on other things because it's not practical to focus on my graflex SLR
Pretty sure Dorothea Lange did NOT shoot her most famous photograph candidly. She did shoot a series with the Migrant Woman photograph, but it looks more like she was directing her subjects much like a modern portrait photographer would have. This does not take away from the excellence of the photograph or her ability... on the contrary. Unfortunately we can't ask her for sure. The Polaroid SX-70 was an SLR. You can shoot electronic flash with a Graflex... though you have to jump through some hoops... and it works best with a leaf shutter. Polaroid made some of the best light sensitive materials in the world throughout their existence, but most of their cameras were pretty rinky-dink. Mating Polaroid with a Super D was a stroke of genius. Might have to look into doing it with a Speed Graphic.
You've got a lot of misinformation on this video. 2:55 "This truly was the first of its kind as far as a single lens reflex camera" Actually the first production SLR camera with a brand name predated the first Graflex SLR by a whole FIFTEEN years. 4:26 "In 1925 this camera sold for $140. Now a new car would have been about $500 in that time, so just think about that, it was about thirty or forty percent the value of a brand new car." $140 is 28% of $500, I guess math isn't your strong suit. 5:03 "Only the most professional photographers could even afford one so that explains why a lot of photography's greats were using this camera because it was pretty exclusive" By comparison a 4x5 Speed Graphic is listed in their 1927 catalog at $129. Were 4x5 SLR's expensive in their early years? Yes, but so were other professional 4x5 cameras. It was hardly the "exclusive" camera you make it out to be. 8:07 "If you shot a Hasselblad or a Mamiya, that would be the exception however it's not the full Polaroid" Arca-Swiss and Nagaoka both made a sliding Polaroid back for the Mamiya RB67 that cover the entire frame. 10:58 "You don't get that experience and therefore you don't get the same kind of images, inevitably" An f/2.8 lens will have the same depth of field (on the same format) regardless of if it's on a rangefinder or an SLR. Because you prefer to see your actual DOF while shooting doesn't mean others can't visualize it and take the same shallow DOF photos while using a rangefinder. 15:57 "This camera does shoot flash but it only shoots flashbulbs" This camera is fully capable of syncing with modern electronic flash using a bipost to pc sync cord and setting the shutter to 0. This is known as the drop flash technique and is perfectly adequate for studio work. 19:52 "I'm not out there shooting portraits in fields" 21:05- Portrait in field Furthermore, your conversion doesn't account for the fact that the film plane on a graphic back camera is approximately .075-.080mm deeper than a standard Graflok back, so while your Polaroid holder fits, it's not holding the film at the same distance from the back as a slotted 4x5 holder. Unless you shim your focusing screen, this modification won't give you critical focus in extreme shallow DOF situations like closeups or faster apertures. Stopped down it might still be passable.
hellothisiskyle thanks for the lengthy critique. I didn’t realize you were such a fan of mine to actually watch a whole video start to finish 👌🏻 thanks for the comment.
@@ForesthillFilmLab Awe dang it! The dude only has 3 videos last I looked, and they have nothing to do with photography. BUT hey, he gave you a thorough critique on photography that seemed believable.
Thank you for this video. I found this camera in my father's effects. I like the look of it, the weight, even the smell of it. Happy to see that some people still care about this type of camera.
I can definitely relate to dropping a camera and the emotions thereafter. My Nikon digital camera recently slipped out of my hands and hit the floor. Ouch! Have you ever seen a grown man cry like a a baby?
Definitely agree on the point of viewing through the lens - it's the main reason I love shooting polaroids on my RZ. Also, this may be a cliche thing to say, but I really like the bokeh I can get with the RZ as well. I've seen plenty of Land camera conversions that use a leaf-shutter lens hacked onto the front plate, but you still end up with a rangefinder (which you then have to calibrate to the new lens???).
Also, seeing the mechanical functions on the outside is totally rad - it's one of the features that keeps me reaching for my Leica IIIf. The first time people see that shutter speed dial spin on release and advance, it blows their minds.
I've been holding onto a pack of 3000b that I bought just before it was discontinued. I was holding out for a proper Land camera to come into my life so I could shoot it full frame, but maybe I'll look into this option sometime next year. I do love tinkering.
+Dustin Hern yea i cant get over having to shoot polaroids with a rangefinder. it just didnt feel magical to me at all idk maybe im just crazy. ive made a polaroid land conversion with an old lens on the front and managed to calibrate the RF to the lens itself. but it just doesnt have a whole lot of substance when shooting it . i would say that converting this camera to shoot polaroid was about as much work as grinding up a land camera to put a new lens on it haha
Thanks for a very useful video. I bought a nice old RB Auto Graflex last week and look forward to hopefully start using it.
You never,ever cease to amaze!
Hi Travis,
First of all, BRAVO for the great photography you did with this set-up (the Polaroids you show at the end of this vid). Secondly, BRAVO for a good vid.
I'm also the owner of a couple of Graflex SLR's. As far as it being the "only" SLR capable of shooting Polaroids, don't forget the Mamiya RB67 & RZ67, as Dustin Hern points out below, but also all the medium format SLRs that allow a Polaroid back.
(I wouldn't put the SX-70 in the same game as those cameras due to its fixed lens).
True, the Graflex will give you the full image area of the Polaroid paper size, but I believe that the RB & RZ gives a 6x8cm image size on a Polaroid, which is close to full size.
Nonetheless, you're absolutely right to treat the Graflex separately, if only because of the particular look in the resulting photos. The Mamiyas (or the other medium format cameras) obviously won't give the same look , nor the same pleasure of use -nor the same awe from onlookers as you shoot with the camera!
As a trival point, notice that the Mamiya RB & RZ design -and, in part, its name- is completely modeled on the Graflex RB. Note the identical way you have to lower the mirror with a lever on the side of the camera after each exposure, for example. Graflex medium format film backs can even be used on the RB!
Lastly- regarding your broken Graflex (sorry about that... I'd be in 'mourning' over it)- a great repair source is Jo Lommen, in Holland. I know that may be far for you to send (I'm in Paris), but he's got all the parts -or makes them himself, included lots of stuff for the AERO-EKTAR- and he's passionate about his work. Plus, his prices are reasonable enough that it may even justify the shipping costs. I use him alot...Check him out here: lommen9.home.xs4all.nl/
Thanks for passing on the passion for these cameras (and the others in your collection).
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed the video I actually tried many times to make this video so I'm happy that the end result was well received.
And yes it's not the ONLY slr that shoots a Polaroid however it is the only SLR that shoots a full frame. I've shot Polaroids on my Hasselblad as well as an RB67 and that little bit of black frame lost really makes a huge difference in my opinion. Whilst shooting a Hasselblad is nice for its size and flash sync i would never load a pack in that before the graflex mostly because it still can't compare.
As far as comparing an sx-70 to this camera goes.....they aren't even in the same ballpark haha.
Thanks for watching and I hope you enjoy some of my other videos as well!
Great video ! Are there more modern large format reflex cameras? I know only Plaubel makiflex..
Hi man! Coming back to your video! Do you know how to adapt a digital medium format back to a graflex 4x5 or a 3x4? Regards!
great video...and I love the photographs.
great video's love your passion for photography. love film
Good stuff man, enjoyed it and learned something at the same time. Win-Win.
I miss my Crown Graphic. Loved doing macro with such a large negative. Wish I hadn't sold all my slide film.
"And it would be fucking awesome." The most accurate statement lmfao
Haha sometimes the truth just slips out like that!
I see that also this camera can use for 120 Roll Filming. I'm ma look into this Camera. Looking very elegant and very interesting.
Man I really want to do that poloroid conversion, but they dont make the poloroid anymore! So disappointing how they had to discontinue those
This is such great info. A friend of mine gave me a Series B about 20 years ago and I haven't yet figured out how to use it, but this got me super psyched to make it work. I *think* I just need some film backs. (the back it has now is for pack film, I think) If you have more info about the Series B I'd love to know it. Thanks so much for this video!
Do you have the conversion video to polaroid?
Awesome vid which has turned into a new project for me too!! Thank's :-)
@Travis bummer on that $275 loss, great vid through bro! I might have to hunt one of those down. I do love my RB67 Polaroids but you're right would love to get that full frame back! :) random related question. They don't make sheet film properly sized for that camera anymore, right?
Yea I plan to get my other camera repaired hopefully. They actually do still make film for this camera. It's Fuji fp100c.
You should do a quick google search for RB67 Arca-Swiss Polaroid or RB67 Nagaoka Polaroid. Both produced options to cover the whole Polaroid frame with a sliding mechanism that lets you shoot diptychs. As far as film made for this camera I’m assuming you mean the original format. There are still several companies producing film in old cut film sizes but it’s usually by custom order.
Good stuff, thanks.
You missed out on the Polaroid SX-70 SLR camera. The foldable one.
But obviously the SX-70 doesn't shoot Polaroids as big as 3 1/4 x 4 1/4
I love these Graflex SLR cameras. I'm currently working on putting a Belair Instax back on a Graflex compact 3x5 as it appears that it'll fit perfectly (dimension wise) once an adapter is made. I'd like to try and put a packfilm back on them but since Fuji has nixed FP film I'm not sure it's worth the effort even with the film I have left.
I was thinking the same thing!! Would you mind sharing some tips or images of how you made the conversion? I am not all thumbs, but at least 50% thumbs so any help would be appreciated! :-) Good luck with your project!
So the 3x5 compacts take a bit more work but should be worth it. If you go to the Graflex Camera group on Facebook you can see many progress photos and posts. The back is not converted over yet as the camera itself was stripped down to the wood and refinished. It also needed the brass mirror rod remade, new bellows and a new capping shutter. Go check that group out!
I have successfully adapted an instax back but the only problem is the added distance to the film plane making focus impossible through the ground glass. I'm assuming you haven't got to that part yet? It's a problem I have yet to solve.
You are correct. It appears as though I have about 9/12 mm of leeway on the ground glass (Top Viewfinder) but until I know how much the variance will be on the new back it's hard to tell. I know that many other graflex cameras have less wiggle room with the viewfinder. The 3x5 compact has the glass recessed whereas my 4x5 auto has it at the very top almost flush with the wood under the lid. There's also the issue of replacing the second surface mirror with a first surface replacement that moves the mirror reflection about 1.6mm closer than the original second surface. I may send the back to SKgrimes to see how close they can get belair back..If I am under 10mm I should be safe.
Yea I mounted the instax back to a 4x5 film holder that I can fit into my converted 3x4. But the depth of the film plane is probably 15mm or so deeper then the original film plane. In order to raise my ground glass to compensate I would probably need to build a wooden frame inside my finder to raise it. I'm really not sure I've resorted to trying the belair back on other things because it's not practical to focus on my graflex SLR
Pretty sure Dorothea Lange did NOT shoot her most famous photograph candidly. She did shoot a series with the Migrant Woman photograph, but it looks more like she was directing her subjects much like a modern portrait photographer would have. This does not take away from the excellence of the photograph or her ability... on the contrary. Unfortunately we can't ask her for sure.
The Polaroid SX-70 was an SLR.
You can shoot electronic flash with a Graflex... though you have to jump through some hoops... and it works best with a leaf shutter.
Polaroid made some of the best light sensitive materials in the world throughout their existence, but most of their cameras were pretty rinky-dink. Mating Polaroid with a Super D was a stroke of genius. Might have to look into doing it with a Speed Graphic.
Great video travis! I hope someday I can have one if these. I'll make sure not to kick it over
Yea that's a big deal not kicking it over they really don't like that.
+ForesthillFilmLab don't worry about it though. I had forgotten my canon 60d and lenses at a skatepark and it got stolen a few years ago
Do you have the Minolta 7s?
+Ryan O'Riordon no i do not. i have had one before but havent really shot with one personally
A favourite of Edward Weston as well.
You've got a lot of misinformation on this video.
2:55 "This truly was the first of its kind as far as a single lens reflex camera" Actually the first production SLR camera with a brand name predated the first Graflex SLR by a whole FIFTEEN years.
4:26 "In 1925 this camera sold for $140. Now a new car would have been about $500 in that time, so just think about that, it was about thirty or forty percent the value of a brand new car." $140 is 28% of $500, I guess math isn't your strong suit.
5:03 "Only the most professional photographers could even afford one so that explains why a lot of photography's greats were using this camera because it was pretty exclusive" By comparison a 4x5 Speed Graphic is listed in their 1927 catalog at $129. Were 4x5 SLR's expensive in their early years? Yes, but so were other professional 4x5 cameras. It was hardly the "exclusive" camera you make it out to be.
8:07 "If you shot a Hasselblad or a Mamiya, that would be the exception however it's not the full Polaroid" Arca-Swiss and Nagaoka both made a sliding Polaroid back for the Mamiya RB67 that cover the entire frame.
10:58 "You don't get that experience and therefore you don't get the same kind of images, inevitably" An f/2.8 lens will have the same depth of field (on the same format) regardless of if it's on a rangefinder or an SLR. Because you prefer to see your actual DOF while shooting doesn't mean others can't visualize it and take the same shallow DOF photos while using a rangefinder.
15:57 "This camera does shoot flash but it only shoots flashbulbs" This camera is fully capable of syncing with modern electronic flash using a bipost to pc sync cord and setting the shutter to 0. This is known as the drop flash technique and is perfectly adequate for studio work.
19:52 "I'm not out there shooting portraits in fields"
21:05- Portrait in field
Furthermore, your conversion doesn't account for the fact that the film plane on a graphic back camera is approximately .075-.080mm deeper than a standard Graflok back, so while your Polaroid holder fits, it's not holding the film at the same distance from the back as a slotted 4x5 holder. Unless you shim your focusing screen, this modification won't give you critical focus in extreme shallow DOF situations like closeups or faster apertures. Stopped down it might still be passable.
hellothisiskyle thanks for the lengthy critique. I didn’t realize you were such a fan of mine to actually watch a whole video start to finish 👌🏻 thanks for the comment.
@@ForesthillFilmLab Wow I'll check out his videos to see if I can critique them as well. While we're at it, I hope he can critique my vids too.
@@ForesthillFilmLab Awe dang it! The dude only has 3 videos last I looked, and they have nothing to do with photography. BUT hey, he gave you a thorough critique on photography that seemed believable.