Five Years of Practical use with the Wisner Expedition Technical Field Camera

By Terrance Hounsell © 2006 for largeformatphotography.info

 

MY BACKGROUND

I have been a photographer and a photographic artist for over 30 years. I use my 4x5 for commercial and fine art applications. In addition I also use a variety of 35mm film and digital SLRs and rangefinders, 120 SLRs, TLRs and rangefinders; but my preference is for 4x5. I started into large format with 8x10 but soon discovered that for me 4x5 is the best compromise in terms of film availability, lens choice, weight and ease of use etc… I found that the 4x5 negative size is a good compromise in terms of image quality and given modern film and lenses a larger format is unnecessary for me. In addition 4x5 enlargers are common and not the behemoths that 8x10 enlargers usually are. I enjoy spending long hours printing in the darkroom and intend to continue printing with silver gelatin for the foreseeable future. I have tried many of the alternate processes but for now I will stick with mastering silver gelatin. An example of my work is provided below:

 

Storm gathering over Signal Hill in St. John’s Newfoundland

 

 

I have put 1500-2000 sheets of film through my WETF Camera over the last 5 years. When I purchased the WETF (from MPEX) I was doing a fair bit of commercial architectural shooting so I wanted a camera that offered a lot of movements. The WETF CAMERA actually out performs some of the other cameras that I had previously used when it comes to movements so I thought it was a good choice in its dual roles of Commercial Architectural and Fine Art Landscape. As a basis for comparison some large format Cameras that I have owned include the following: 8x10 Bender, 8x10 Wista, 4x5 Burke and James, 4x5 Cambo, 4x5 Linhof Technika IV and the 4x5 Nagaoka. I have also used the 4x5 Zone VI and the 4x5 Linhof TK and the 8x10 Deardorf.

 

SPECIFICATIONS

 

• Interestingly my Expedition carries a Wisner Technical nameplate, I believe that is how they are all labeled, as they are considered to be the Expedition variant of the Technical Field. Thus for this review I will call it the WETF Camera.

 

• You can find the description and specs for the WETF Camera in the Wisner catalog (PDF)

 

• The specifications show that while very similar there are slight differences between the Technical and the Expedition models. Essentially the Expedition is more compact and lighter. The price of having a smaller case is that the maximum normal bellows extension is 2.5 inches (63.5mm) shorter, but still ample at 20.5 inches (521mm), and the minimum normal bellows is 2-1/4 inches (58mm) instead of 3-1/2 inches (90mm), which is a bonus.

 

• The WETF Camera is made of cherry wood that really looks good, many a cabinet maker has admired it. Black American Cherry is one of the more dimensionally stable woods and is pattern grade thus suitable for this type of joinery. It is lighter in color than mahogany but still has a beautiful grain and figuring. There may be tiny imperfections here and there but you are dealing with a natural substance and this is part of the charm. Cherry has a higher strength to weight ratio resulting in a Camera that is lightweight (4.4 pounds) and the thinner wood is still rigid. I was surprised to see that the wood in the WETF Camera was noticeably thinner than for the other TF Cameras, more so than I had expected but the rigidity is still very good.

 

HANDS ON

 

• The layout of the WETF Camera is one of its strongest points. The controls are sensibly placed; they seem to just fall to hand instinctively. Very high marks for ergonomics indeed.

 

• The WETF Camera is easy to fold; it almost does it by itself. I have read way too much on discussion on the net about the difficulties of folding field Cameras but this one is easy. (see photo below)

 

 

• The glossy varnish finish on the wood is hard and durable and very few marks can be seen even at the tripod attachment (see photo below)

 

 

 

 

 

• The tripod attachment provides a choice of ¼-20 or 3/8-16 and is at the point of balance as it should be.

 

 

• One pet peeve of mine is that there are no detents for some of the movements and the zero points are not especially well marked (see photo below). I don’t feel that this is in keeping with a camera of this quality should be an inexpensive and easy improvement.

 

 

• I have big hands so occasionally when using short lenses the rear standard overlaps the rear-focusing knob and makes reaching the knobs as bit difficult. (see photo below). Unfortunately this is unavoidable and I have encountered this with most other cameras of the folding field type that I have used.

 

 

• Occasionally when using long lenses the focusing rails reach the end of their travel and if uneven pressure is applied when re-engaged the rails a small misalignment may occur. This is evident when the rails don’t line up with the camera body when the camera is folded. It is a simple matter to back the rails off and reengage using even pressure. This is not uncommon with other field Cameras that I have used.

 

• I use a Cambo viewing hood because up here in Newfoundland the wind plays havoc with the dark cloth and warm breath condenses on the ground glass when shooting in cold weather. With the Cambo’s 2x magnification you can focus well enough and I have found my negatives to be a sharp as when I have focused used a stronger loupe. The Wisner hardware for attaching the Cambo viewer attachment is unconscionably expensive for what it is. I have used Velcro to attach to viewer and have found it to work well. (see 2 photos below) I wish that the Cambo viewer were collapsible so it would take up less room in my pack.

 

 

 

• I have found that when shooting quickly (or carelessly) film holders have a tendency not to seat properly. To allow for slight variations in film holder dimensions there is a bit of tolerance in the distance between the film holder stop and the detent. Thus if the film holder is pushed in until it bottoms out it can overshoot the detent in the back of the Camera and not be properly seated. You will get light streaks on you negatives as a result. This is not uncommon with other Cameras and really is a matter of operator error so I always “jiggle” my film holders to make sure they are properly seated.

 

• The springs fitted along the back are made of a special high carbon stainless steel. They were initially a bit tight for a Grafmatic film holder, which is thicker than a normal holder, but the spring have loosen slightly with use and seem to be fine now. Polaroid type 545 holders fit fine from day one.

 

• The standard bellows is made from red kid leather with a black silk lining; it is striking to look at and definitely adds to the overall appearance of the Camera. The bag bellows is made from a burgundy colored kid leather, and it is unlined. They are fairly easily interchanged but if you have a lot of lenses like I do changing can become a bit of a chore. However, this is unavoidable except with something like a universal bellows that some other manufacturers have on offer. There isn’t one available for the WETF Camera as far as I am aware. The bellows on the WETF Camera is 2 inches shorter than on the regular Technical Field because the WETF Camera case is smaller and there isn’t room for the longer bellows to be compressed into. Having said that 20.5 inches is ample bellows extension and more than most field cameras.

 

• Although the regular bellows should work well with the 90mm lens I find that using movements damages the bellows and thus I recommend that the bag bellows be used. The standard pleated bellows works well with the Schneider 110mm Super Symmar XL when photographing landscapes. However, when photographing architecture requiring large movements the bag bellows is required. For those shooting Infrared I have been told that there is an IR bellows from the Zone VI Camera that fits the WETF.

 

• In order to shift from Horizontal or landscape orientation to vertical or portrait orientation you simply remove the back or the Camera and turn it 90 degrees. The back is actually square and has two brass pins about an inch in from the corner on each side. The Camera has two brass bars with hole drilled in them on the lower edge of the body to accept the lower brass pins and two brass-retaining clips that retain the upper brass pins. The pins that end up on the side are unused. I have found that with use the sliding clips have become loose. I have retightened them but find that I must constantly keep squeezing them to keep them in the closed position. I believe that the arrangement is a friction fit that relies partially on compressing the plastic washers that are under the brass washers. (see photo below) I am going to try replacing the plastic washers with a slightly softer plastic as I think the original plastic washer may have hardened and do not compress properly any more. This is the traditional method of retaining field camera back but I feel that there is room for improvement. I do not trust this system and have almost lost the entire back several times. I have used other Cameras with revolving backs, a nice touch, but an unacceptable penalty in terms of weight and folded thickness for a field Camera.

 

 

 

 

• I have lubricated the wooden bearing surfaces that come in contact with the film holders using some liquid silicone on a nylon swab. This seems to be effective at reducing wear.

 

• The Brass fittings on the WETF Camera are actually aluminum that has been brass anodized. All of these fitting are showing minor amounts of pitting and discoloration. I frequently use the Camera near salt water so I keep a Pelican metal desiccant with indicator in the case at all times. The Low pro soft case fits into a Pelican 1550 and this can be made airtight so the desiccant can be effective. The camera is stored in a climate-controlled room. The worst of the corrosion can be seen in the photograph below.

 

 

• The three spirit levels are useful and they can easily be seen. However, their sensitivity does not appear to be linear. I find that they seem to resist movement and suddenly shoot past level before they will respond to small adjustment; this can be maddening but again you adjust your setup routine to compensate.

 

• I have found that occasionally the friction in the focusing knobs becomes unbalanced. The knob on one side drags more than on the other side so you must continually focus, loosen, focus, loosen, focus etc…. Keep them well lubricated.

 

• The WETF Camera has a very nice carrying handle, it is sturdy, well made and should last for many, many years. It feels nice in the hand. It is so heavy duty that it is still a bit stiff and doesn’t always lie perfectly flat; I’m sure the stiffness will reduce with use. There is no fear of it breaking.

 

• The WETF Camera has a full range of movements and exceeds many studio Cameras. All 6 degrees of freedom are covered: 3 translational rise/shift/focus and 3 rotational tilt/swing/yaw are accounted for and in each case the range is more than adequate.

 

• The WETF Camera has a geared rear base tilt and this is appreciated. I think the Pocket Expedition has a geared front so this would be appreciated too. As an aside I would like to try the Pocket Expedition with the geared front movements. They are not necessary but I’m the type of user that would appreciate them and use them.

 

 

USING LENSES WITH THE WETF CAMERA

 

• The lenses that I am currently using on my WETF Camera are:

 

• Nikkor 65mm f/4 SW
• Schneider 72mm Super Angulon XL (see photo below)
• Rodenstock 90mm f/4.5 Grandagon N
• Schneider 110mm Super Symmar XL
• Schneider 150mm f/5.6 Super Symmar HM
• Rodenstock 210mm f/5.6 APO Sinaron N
• Schneider 400mm f/5.6 APO Tele Xenar
• Fujinon T 600mm f/12 Tele

 

 

 

 

 

• I like lenses with big image circles and find the extra coverage worthwhile. All of my lenses cover 5x7 with movement except the 65mm. I do realize that it is counter productive to pay extra for a lightweight Expedition Camera and then carry heavy lenses around so I usually select only 3-4 to carry and leave the rest behind. The 72mm SAXL, 110mm SS, 210mm Sinaron and 400mm ATX combination seems to get the most use.

 

• With extra wide lenses such as the Nikkor 65mm and the Schneider 72mm XL you must use rear base tilt on the front standard and then front axis tilt on the front standard to orientate the lens to the vertical again. This is a usable arrangement; I haven’t tried recessed boards.

 

• The 65mm is a bit tricky to use because it picks up a lot of unwanted foreground detail that is not easily seen on the ground glass especially in the corners. You have to be careful with movements because it is so close to the ground glass it may strike it. Coverage is not great so you have to ensure that the centering is accurate. I recently acquired a Schneider centre filter but haven’t used it enough to comment on whether it is worth the expense or not. Since acquiring the 72mm XL I have found the 65mm to be redundant so I will transfer it to a 6x12 roll film Camera that I am building.

 

• Tele lenses also have their pros and cons. On the Pro side: they require less Camera extension so the Camera is more rigid and less likely to vibrate. A more compact configuration also has benefits in areas where wind is an issue the lower sail area also means less vibration. On the Con side: tele lenses don’t have asymmetrical nodal points so axial movements mean refocusing to compensate.

 

• The 400mm APO Tele Xenar a fantastic lens that I will never sell despite it being a bit large for this Camera. If the front standard is not carefully tightened this heavy lens is prone to slipping out of position especially when the Camera is pointed down at an awkward angle. (see photo below)

 

• The lens boards are very well constructed with rails and stiles surrounding a central panel, very strong and stable. However, the lens boards are only held in place by two brass strips that are fastened to the Camera with two tiny, and I mean tiny, brass screws. (see photo below) Despite being a traditional arrangement it does not inspire confidence. I sometimes carrying the Camera mounted on the tripod with a lens fitted slung over my shoulder. This problem is not particular to Wisner; on a friends Zone VI Camera the same screws had worked loose so I replaced the tiny screws with slightly larger ones that I epoxied in place. If I detect any loosening of the screws on the WETF Camera I will make the same modification but so far everything is fine.

 

 

ACCESSORIES

 

• The WETF Camera is very compact and being smaller folded up makes a big difference in my modestly sized pack the LowePro Omni Trekker (see photo below).  I use it in combination with Pelican 1550 hard shell and this combination is indispensable for traveling when you may be forced to check you camera system as general baggage! The Omni Trekker can be slung over your arm like a laptop case, carried like a brief case by handles or best of all carried like a backpack. The backpack is not great but it is adequate for short hikes of a few miles or a few hours. I have three and the two older ones show few signs of wear while the newest one of them suffers from a broken zipper and a failed snap.

 

 

• The Wisner ground glass has a grid and this helps me sight verticals and horizontals, and spot convergence. A definite must as far as I am concerned.

 

• I purchased a Wisner Fresnel, it was easy to install, works well and is competitively priced as compared to other Fresnels on the market. Beware of cheaper Fresnels that are very thin, as I could not get them to lie flat against the focusing screen. The Wisner Fresnel is available as either fixed or permanent. I went for the permanent and am happy with that arrangement. However, light fall off is very noticeable with wide-angle lenses and for this reason if a wide angle Fresnel were offered I would have purchased the removable Fresnel so I could use both types.

 

• It is worth reading Ron Wisner’s Fresnel articles on his website. The most important bit of information that he kindly passes on is that no Fresnel regardless of manufacturer should ever be installed in front of the ground glass. The Fresnel would displace the ground glass away from the lens and thus when the film holder is inserted the film will lie in front of the plane of focus.

 

• As a lightweight option I have a Velbon Carmagne with a Giotto medium ball head, this worked well with the super light (2.5 pound) Nagoaka 4x5 Camera but I find that it is really not sufficient for the WETF Camera.

 

• With the WETF Camera I am currently using a Gitzo 2228 tripod with a Manfrotto 0410 head. There is a carbon fibre version of this tripod but I didn’t think that the few ounces difference in weight justified the additional cost. The best feature of this tripod is the free-floating legs that do not use fixed detents but rather lock into any position you choose. This is a nice set up but I wouldn’t want to use any tripod that was less rigid. The 2228 is not rigid enough at the offset joint when using the center column at 90 degrees. However, the hook at the bottom of the center post allows you to counter balance the Camera. I often hang a weight, such as my backpack, to stabilize the tripod.

 

• It pays to carry something that allows you to add a stabilizing weight to the tripod. I carry a bit of mesh netting and simply hang a rock from the center column. The netting takes up very little space in my pack.  Stabilizing the tripod is especially with the 600mm millimeter lens because vibration is more likely as a result of higher image magnification and bellows extension. Despite the WETF Camera being quite solid I prefer tele design lens because bellows extension is reduced by one third in most cases.

 

• The Manfrotto 0410 head works allows you to roughly position the Camera using the outside release knobs and then you can make micro adjustments using the inner knobs on each axis. Despite being the lighter of two similar Manfrotto heads it is more than sufficient for the WETF Camera. I will be sticking with this head. (see photo below)

 

 

 

• If you intend to use a roll film holder you may want to purchase the WETF Camera with a Graflok back. Adding one later involves waiting and expense (if you can get one). My WETF didn’t come with a Graflok back and I wasn’t concerned because I felt that with this type of back you must remove the ground glass and sooner or later it will end up falling from a rocky perch and get broken. Having said that I am concerned with Wisner’s lack of production these days so I just bought a spare back for the WETF on eBay and it happens to be a Graflok. (see photo below)

 

 

 

SERVICE

 

• In my humble opinion Wisner service does not appear to be as good as it once was and this seems to be a bone of contention on various Internet forums. For example I received a lens board that was seriously defective and it took me nearly a year of numerous telephone calls and emails to get a replacement. Other Wisner users have had similar experiences and told me that they have received better service by going through Wisner dealers than by dealing directly. Make no mistake Ron Wisner is a nice guy and a great photographer who has done a lot for the large format community and there is no doubt that we all appreciate that. It just seems that sometimes he is too busy to give proper attention to the sales end of things. In fairness to Ron he has placed a notice on his website refusing new business in his new location until all old business has been taken care of. I hope that he has continued success as his contributions to large format photography are greatly appreciated.

 

• As I am in a somewhat remote part of the world I have purchased a spare back, normal bellows, ground glass and Fresnel. Given that Wisner is not currently in production I can’t afford the wait or worse still face the unavailability of these components. Better safe than sorry.

 

CONCLUSION

 

The WETF Camera has some minor warts but it does have a very nice blend of features and weight versus cost. The ergonomics are exceptional. It seems to hold its value on the resale market. However, the WETF Camera is a bit of a rarity on the resale market because their owners hold on to them.

 

The main things that I would change to make the WETF Camera perfect for me:

 

1)    Titanium or similar fittings for superior corrosion resistance,

2)    Better zeroing index marks or detents, and

3)    Yaw Free Movements to speed up focusing. This is not really necessary but since I making a wish list I though it would be nice.

 

There is no such thing as the perfect Camera or we would all be using it. Overall this is a marvelous Camera with many well thought out features. Let me conclude my review by saying that I enjoy using the WETF CAMERA immensely and will probably have it until they pry it from cold dead hands.

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer

 

This review is presented a frank discussion of my experience with this camera as a user of this particular model. I do not represent myself as an expert or authority in any way. I do not recommend or dissuade anyone in his or her purchase or use of any photography equipment.

 

 

Coming to Newfoundland?

 

On a personal note any large format photographer planning a visit to Newfoundland can contact me at thounsell@nl.rogers.com and I would be pleased to offer any advice or assistance that I can.