- #LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW FULL#
- #LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW SERIES#
- #LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW FREE#
Mine came in at a whisker under £600 with a Linhof selected Schneider Symmar Convertible 150/265mm lens and matched rangefinder cam, but I don't need another 150mm lens so I might sell that on.īottom line? I guess you might call it the Leica M3 of 5x4's. Technika IV's seem to go for anything from maybe £300 (in really beaten up condition) up £900 (the most expensive one I've seen). The upper lens track actually fits so well into the focussing track that I think I'm going to have to get to work with the WD-40 to loosen it up a little. In the final analysis I am deeply impressed with the IV - for a camera that was built before I was born everything functions amazingly well, and the fit of every moving part is so precise that it would put most brand new kit to shame. In fairness most LF cameras tend to be more awkward with short lenses, and there aren't many field or technical 5x4's that could cope with one without the contrivance and inconvenience of a recessed lens board. My 65mm lens sadly is unlikely to be of much use, but I don't yet have a Technika board to mount it on, so I can't confirm that. But I have found that my 90mm lens (roughly equivalent to 24-28mm on a 35mm camera, depending on how you crop) can be used without too much difficulty. It is also not highly regarded as a camera for wide angle shooters - short lenses are very awkward to work with as they are tucked away inside the body of the camera. Never mind built like a brick sh*t house - swing a Technika IV on the end of a chain and you could use it to demolish one! It certainly feels like it was carved out of a solid block of WW2 tank armour. However I think the overall solidity of the camera justifies its weight. However on my first try out with it today I found it was easy enough with a little ingenuity - and I speak as someone who much prefers tilting and swinging the back standard rather than the front.
#LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW FREE#
Mine is astonishingly rigid, with no discernable free play in anything whatsoever - something I certainly couldn't say for my Tachihara 8x10!Ī Technika has some idiosyncrasies as compared with most LF cameras, and even with other technical cameras - for example, its unusal back movement design is not liked by many.
#LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW FULL#
The IV ended production in the early 60's, so they're all fairly elderly, but as I can confirm the engineering is first rate, and if anything is going to last forty odd years and still be in full working order a Technika will. There was a big change in specifications in going from the III to the IV, and it is the first model with full front movements and which also takes many of the spares made for the modern versions - something that's obviously quite important if you need to replace a ground glass or bellows, for example. For those looking for a relatively inexpensive but high quality entry into LF the Mk IV seems to be the one to go for.
#LINHOF TECHNIKA IV REVIEW SERIES#
The Linhof Technika name covers a series of technical cameras produced over many decades - Marks I - V, and the current MasterTechnika Classic and 2000 models. We've had people here asking about inexpensive entry models for LF here a few times over the years, so I thought I'd give a little run down and a few first thoughts about the Technika IV.