A 60mm shift lens option

Way out here on the fringes I'm using enlarger lenses as taking lenses for tilt and shift on my Fuji GFX 50R. I really like "normal" focal lengths, so a good 60-ish mm lens is important to me. I've tried all the main options and have found an excellent one.

At 60mm in the enlarger lens family, there are four main choices:

• Schneider Kreuznach Componon-WA 60mm f/5.6
• Bogen 6x6 WA 60mm f/4 (and variants sold as Hoya, Osawa)
• Rodenstock Rodagon-WA 60mm f/4
• Schneider Kreuznach Apo-Componon HM 60mm f/4 (also known as Apo-Componon Marko-Iris 60mm f/4 in its machine vision variant)

Those familiar with the Schneider Kreuznach Apo-Digitar line will know about two other options at 60mm: the Apo-Digitar 60mm f/4 and Apo-Digitar 60mm f/5.6 XL (but see below for an interesting twist).

I listed the above four enlarger lenses in my personal order of quality. In my view, the SK Componon-WA 60/5.6 isn't worth the bother. The Bogen was a sentimental favourite because it's mechanically lovely, but it isn't always excellent at the edges. The Rodagon-WA is a contender, but it's not nearly as good as the Apo-Componon 60/4. The Rodagon-WA needs to be at f/11 to be acceptable, and even then is a bit dodgy.

Long story short, the SK Apo-Componon 60/4 is an excellent lens. It's sharp from wide-open at f/4, although light falloff (vignetting) at f/4 is heavy.

My copy is the industrial machine vision version in the "Makro-Iris" mount. It was designed for scanning printed circuit boards and uses an unusual mount. However, the optics are identical to the enlarging lens version labelled Apo-Componon HM. Interestingly, the optics also appear to be identical (as far as I can tell) to those of the Apo-Digitar 60mm f/4, which Schneider sold for digital medium format backs.

Robert O'Toole's excellent Close-Up Photography web site has pictures and details on the Apo-Componon Makro-Iris version of the lens: https://www.closeuphotography.com/schneider-apo-componon-60mm-f4-test

In Schneider's lineup, the Apo-Digitar 60mm f/4 lens was replaced by the much more expensive Apo-Digitar 60mm f.5.6 XL. I've never used one of those, but apparently it's stellar. Most likely Schneider released the new XL version because the Apo-Digitar 60/4 (and the Apo-Componon 60/4) have a modest 60mm image circle at infinity.

Happily, Schneider was being conservative when it published that 60mm image circle, because I can shift 9mm at infinity on my VX23D plus GFX 50R outfit. That's much more than should be possible with a 60mm image circle. I think there's another mm or two of shift available, but 9mm at infinity is all that's possible before the lens board bumps into the camera board on my setup.

Of course this lens would be equally great on a Cambo Actus GFX setup, and can be used with a macro bellows arrangement, a Novoflex Balpro T/S, or anything else that can get it where it needs to be in front of the GFX sensor. I just happen to use it with a Toyo VX23D.

If I've piqued your curiosity, here's a link to a flat-stitched panorama I made on a dark and gloomy Guelph day. This is f/11, with 9mm of left and right shift. The point of focus is the cell tower in the centre of the frame (around 3 km from my shooting position). Only light development is applied to the stitched panorama in Lightroom. In the full resolution version, notice how image quality is strong right across the shifted frame.


SK Apo-Componon 60mm f/4 on Fuji GFX 50R -- panorama from 9mm left and right shift -- infinity focus

Link to a full-resolution JPEG file for this panorama is here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tSTUsGOe9_LRQKgRvJm-UJBBF1TjEDVm/view?usp=sharing

For more information about using enlarger lenses for tilt and shift with a Fuji GFX 50R: https://www.robdeloephotography.com/Pages/Toyo-VX23D-and-Fuji-GFX-50R

Posts without replies are just sad. It's like throwing a birthday party as a kid, and nobody comes. The only thing that's sadder is posting on your post that got no replies so that it's no longer a post with no replies. Now that's double-sad. ;-) But I don't care. I'm doing it!

The big question when posts like this show up is usually, "Huh?", followed by "Eh?" or "Uhm, why?" Well here's why: this is my little 60 working its magic in a way no fancy-pants Fujinon GF lens could do.

This is a section of a tiny intermittent stream; I'm doing a project on intermittent and ephemeral streams. I know, you probably can't believe you didn't think of this project first, right? Anyway, these are little streams that only run for short periods after rains. They're crucial for keeping bigger streams and rivers flowing, but they get no love. They never have names, and most people think they're just annoying wet spots in the woods.

This little intermittent stream is flowing over a rock outcrop. It's even carved itself a nice little channel. For this picture to be what I wanted, I needed some water (which isn't always there), I needed the morning sunlight to liven things up, and I needed everything in the frame to be sharply in focus. The water, the bedrock, the little boulders, and the stones in the creek bed -- everything needed to be detailed and focus for what will be a good sized print.

I hate the mushy/cloudy water look that comes with blending different pictures of water, so no focus stacking. Tilt to the rescue! My little 60 is a star at tilt, even with its undersized image circle.

This is one frame, no focus stacking or other fanciness.


SK Apo-Componon 60mm f/4 used as a tilt lens.

Rob de Loe said:

Posts without replies are just sad. It's like throwing a birthday party as a kid, and nobody comes. The only thing that's sadder is posting on your post that got no replies so that it's no longer a post with no replies. Now that's double-sad. ;-) But I don't care. I'm doing it!

The big question when posts like this show up is usually, "Huh?", followed by "Eh?" or "Uhm, why?" Well here's why: this is my little 60 working its magic in a way no fancy-pants Fujinon GF lens could do.

Click to expand...

Does it help to know that you're not alone?






This is the 90



--

JimKasson said:

Does it help to know that you're not alone?


This is the 90

Click to expand...

I do recall a while ago you mentioned you were experimenting with enlarger lenses. It's great to see you're still at it.

How's that 90 working out for you? I've heard mixed reports, but most suggest it's a very strong performer.

Rob de Loe said:

Posts without replies are just sad. It's like throwing a birthday party as a kid, and nobody comes. The only thing that's sadder is posting on your post that got no replies so that it's no longer a post with no replies. Now that's double-sad. ;-) But I don't care. I'm doing it!

The big question when posts like this show up is usually, "Huh?", followed by "Eh?" or "Uhm, why?" Well here's why: this is my little 60 working its magic in a way no fancy-pants Fujinon GF lens could do.

This is a section of a tiny intermittent stream; I'm doing a project on intermittent and ephemeral streams. I know, you probably can't believe you didn't think of this project first, right? Anyway, these are little streams that only run for short periods after rains. They're crucial for keeping bigger streams and rivers flowing, but they get no love. They never have names, and most people think they're just annoying wet spots in the woods.

This little intermittent stream is flowing over a rock outcrop. It's even carved itself a nice little channel. For this picture to be what I wanted, I needed some water (which isn't always there), I needed the morning sunlight to liven things up, and I needed everything in the frame to be sharply in focus. The water, the bedrock, the little boulders, and the stones in the creek bed -- everything needed to be detailed and focus for what will be a good sized print.

I hate the mushy/cloudy water look that comes with blending different pictures of water, so no focus stacking. Tilt to the rescue! My little 60 is a star at tilt, even with its undersized image circle.

This is one frame, no focus stacking or other fanciness.


SK Apo-Componon 60mm f/4 used as a tilt lens.

Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing!

Best regards

Erik



--
Erik Kaffehr
Website: http://echophoto.dnsalias.net
Magic uses to disappear in controlled experiments…
Gallery: http://echophoto.smugmug.com
Articles: http://echophoto.dnsalias.net/ekr/index.php/photoarticles

Rob de Loe said:

JimKasson said:

Does it help to know that you're not alone?


This is the 90

Click to expand...

I do recall a while ago you mentioned you were experimenting with enlarger lenses. It's great to see you're still at it.

How's that 90 working out for you? I've heard mixed reports, but most suggest it's a very strong performer.

Click to expand...

I haven't done much with it, since there's no way to get focus bracketing to work, but I thought you'd like to know that you're not the only one. By the way, I think I bought that lens in the 80s or early 90s, for use with my Omega D5 and MF negs. I gave away all my other enlarging lenses, but kept that one, because it was special.

--

Hi,

I had a really pretty little runoff stream when I lived on my hill in the Taconic mountains of NY. Really, it only ran during the spring snow melt. It looked like the Niagara river then, complete with a model of the American falls. The rest of the time it was a gouge in the shale.

I have one here on the farm in NC. In the middle of which is my pond out behind the house. This one is always a ugly little thing. This year, it hasn't been dry much, if at all. Other years, it flat disappears into the forest floor to be tripped over. It feeds into the upper end of the Cape Fear river just downstream of Hector's Creek, which is itself a candidate for what you are shooting.

Stan

--
Amateur Photographer
Professional Electronics Development Engineer
Once you start down the DSLR path, forever will it dominate your destiny! Consume
your bank account, it will! Like mine, it did!

JimKasson said:

I haven't done much with it, since there's no way to get focus bracketing to work, but I thought you'd like to know that you're not the only one.

Click to expand...

I appreciate that. Thanks.

JimKasson said:

By the way, I think I bought that lens in the 80s or early 90s, for use with my Omega D5 and MF negs. I gave away all my other enlarging lenses, but kept that one, because it was special.

Click to expand...

I had the XL version of that enlarger for 4x5 negs, with a really nice Ilford Cold Light head. In the mid-2000s, when I took out my darkroom, I had a hard time keeping it out of the landfill. Nobody would give me a penny for it, but I finally found someone to take it all away.

Stan Disbrow said:

Hi,

I had a really pretty little runoff stream when I lived on my hill in the Taconic mountains of NY. Really, it only ran during the spring snow melt. It looked like the Niagara river then, complete with a model of the American falls. The rest of the time it was a gouge in the shale.

I have one here on the farm in NC. In the middle of which is my pond out behind the house. This one is always a ugly little thing. This year, it hasn't been dry much, if at all. Other years, it flat disappears into the forest floor to be tripped over. It feeds into the upper end of the Cape Fear river just downstream of Hector's Creek, which is itself a candidate for what you are shooting.

Stan

Click to expand...

I can almost visualize these streams from your description Stan. They're like the tiniest blood vessels in the body, each making its own little contribution to the overall health of the watershed.

On the day I made this picture, I met a hiker who was grumbling that his normal route -- which ran right through this temporary pond -- was under water. It didn't dawn on him that the river he had come to enjoy, which we could see from where were standing, was flowing in part because of this pond. That's how it goes with hydrology: it's a mystery to most folks.


This little pond only exists after a heavy rain. It feeds a small ephemeral stream that drains into the nearby river. By holding water back for a few days after a rainstorm, ponds like this slow down the flow of water into the river, and reduce flooding.

Rob de Loe said:

JimKasson said:

I haven't done much with it, since there's no way to get focus bracketing to work, but I thought you'd like to know that you're not the only one.

Click to expand...

I appreciate that. Thanks.

Rob de Loe said:

By the way, I think I bought that lens in the 80s or early 90s, for use with my Omega D5 and MF negs. I gave away all my other enlarging lenses, but kept that one, because it was special.

Click to expand...

I had the XL version of that enlarger for 4x5 negs, with a really nice Ilford Cold Light head. In the mid-2000s, when I took out my darkroom, I had a hard time keeping it out of the landfill. Nobody would give me a penny for it, but I finally found someone to take it all away.

Click to expand...

I used the Seagull VC head for B&W. I gave most of my darkroom stuff to Kim Weston, who used it for his young students.

JimKasson said:

I gave most of my darkroom stuff to Kim Weston, who used it for his young students.

https://blog.kasson.com/the-last-word/goodbye-to-the-darkroom-sink/

Click to expand...

Nice. It really bothers me when otherwise usable equipment ends up in the landfill. The kid I gave it to said it was for a university camera club. It would make me happy to know that's what it's doing now.

The only thing I was able to sell was my huge Seal drymount press. Packed it weighed 74.75 lbs, just 0.25 lbs under the maximum weight I can ship with Canada Post. The guy at the post office was not happy with that parcel!

Rob de Loe said:

JimKasson said:

I gave most of my darkroom stuff to Kim Weston, who used it for his young students.

https://blog.kasson.com/the-last-word/goodbye-to-the-darkroom-sink/

Click to expand...

Nice. It really bothers me when otherwise usable equipment ends up in the landfill. The kid I gave it to said it was for a university camera club. It would make me happy to know that's what it's doing now.

The only thing I was able to sell was my huge Seal drymount press. Packed it weighed 74.75 lbs, just 0.25 lbs under the maximum weight I can ship with Canada Post. The guy at the post office was not happy with that parcel!

Click to expand...

I gave away my Seal press and my big Dahle cutter. I use a roller cutter ow.

Hi,

Oh, yes. They are the lifeblood. Back up in NY State, there is this tiny creek in the Adirondacks that flows pretty much due South. Near the source, I can step across it. At the far end, a large jet landed on it. It's called the Hudson River.

Here on the farm in NC, I am 1/4 mile from the Cape Fear. My farm road passes the drive to my house but then ends at a gate we keep locked up. That is the final drop down to the flood plain. There is a runoff stream my road crosses right at a mud bog. Normally, no big deal. But, as the river rises, the little stream backs up. Usually within 100 feet from the gate. Get a hurricane and it's at the the gate.

I have a second road to the river on the other side of the farm. Roads are something one makes when one has a bulldozer. And I have two! That one drops right on down the same slope as the other one. And there is another bog. Which, floods just like the first one.

That shot you posted in this sub thread looks like it might just be one of these bogs I have. And, they have their own beauty if one just cocks their head differently.

I have some pics of the river floods. But, they are not MF. I use my poor old Nikon D1H and worn out 28-105 for those. When the floods recede, the footing is slippery as all get-out. I am not into risking a good camera down in that stuff....

Hey. I have a cell phone shot!





Stan

--
Amateur Photographer
Professional Electronics Development Engineer
Once you start down the DSLR path, forever will it dominate your destiny! Consume
your bank account, it will! Like mine, it did!

Thanks Rob!

I'm a former 4x5 shooter and just getting back into large/r format digital with a Cambo Actus set up for Sony, Nikon, and Phase One. Your info on the Apo Componon's came in handy for a good score on ebay! I look forward to producing some images to share once fully kitted out.

EsteticoGroup said:

Thanks Rob!

I'm a former 4x5 shooter and just getting back into large/r format digital with a Cambo Actus set up for Sony, Nikon, and Phase One. Your info on the Apo Componon's came in handy for a good score on ebay! I look forward to producing some images to share once fully kitted out.

Click to expand...

You'll have a blast. The little 60 is a super lens (albeit with a smallish image circle). It's bigger sibling the APO-Componon 90/4.5 is even better.