[LargeFormat] Re: Horseman or Gandolfi?

[Peter De Smidt]

>
>
> among the field cameras, he
> > considers only the Wisner acceptable.
> >
>
> I'm sure Ron Wisner would like everyone to believe that,
> but it seems to me
> an overwhelmingly rash statement. Heaven knows, some people
> don't even like
> Wisners. Can you believe that?
>

Yes, I'm not a huge fan of Wisner. I bought one of their 8x10
technical field cameras once, and it had a number of careless flaws.
Sure, eventually, Mr. Wisner took care of these, over a matter of a
number of months, but the camera should have never made it out of the
factory.  Ebony, Gondolfi, Canham, Phillips, Lotus ... all offer very
nice cameras.  A choice comes down to questions of what exactly you're
going to do with it, which mechanics work best for you, and which
aesthetics please you the most.  Oh, yes, and what you can afford.
Right now I've got a Toho FX45x monorail camera, but that's because I
use it for multi-day backpacking trips.  For other uses, other cameras
would be nicer.  I'd love an Arca F line for within a mile of the car,
but it's not in the financial cards.

-Peter De Smidt