This bellows based large format field camera is ideal for highly detailed landscapes and portraits.
Bellows allow a lens to be tilted in relation to a camera's film plane and often allows for limited horizontal or vertical shift. Tilting the lens plane in relation to the film plane is called selective focus. With selective focus, the objects on one part of a photographic frame are in sharp focus, with objects in other areas blurred. The tilt on a bellows lens can help to compensate for parallax problems in architectural photography. Parallax causes parallel lines to appear closer together as they move away from the camera's location.
Digital and 35mm Cameras
Small format cameras, such as 35mm cameras and digital cameras built on 35mm technology, have a number of options for professional bellows systems. On the low end, simple single element lenses are available on plastic bellows. Some of these are hard to control, others feature screws to adjust the angle of the lens element in relation to the film plane. Higher end bellows system for 35mm and digital cameras are rail mounted systems that are similar in design to large format studio bellows systems.
Medium format cameras use 120 or 220 type film and offer more image area than the smaller 35mm camera. Medium format cameras produce finer detail than small format cameras. Although many medium format cameras have been discontinued, many older systems are professional grade and have available bellow systems. Although most medium format cameras released in the last 30 years of the 20th century were non-bellows cameras, professional medium format cameras released earlier sometimes used bellows. However, the bellows were often added to create a high quality folding camera, and most medium format bellows cameras weren't highly adjustable. Later medium format bellows systems were designed as an after market system, however, they were highly adjustable studio rail systems.
Large Format Cameras
When most people, including photographers, think of a professional bellows camera, a large format camera often comes to mind. Large format cameras use 4-inch-by-5-inch film on smaller cameras. Large cameras used many sizes, including 11 inch by 14 inch film. In fact, almost all large format cameras are bellows cameras. Large format bellows cameras are of two general types. One is a rail mounted studio camera. In this camera type, the film plane is mounted on the back of two rails. Some systems, called monorail systems, only have one rail. These cameras are highly customizable. Lenses and bellows are interchangable and can suit anything from closeup photography to wide angle landscapes. Rail cameras are complex and heavy. As a result, a number of manufacturers make folding field cameras. These cameras are not as adjustable and easy to customize, but feature both tilt and shift adjustments. High end large format bellows cameras are still made by Linhoff, Cambo, Calumet, Wista, Arca-Swiss, and Toyo.
Tags: format cameras, medium format, bellows cameras, film plane, format bellows, format cameras, bellows systems