Busch Pressman Model "D" 4x5 Camera

So, suitably horrible pictures of a magnificent photographic piece of machinery.

This is the 4x5 Busch Pressman Model "D"

Busch Pressman Model "D"

I'd guess the most familiar contemporary to this camera is the Graflex 4x5 press camera. The first thing you might notice that is different with this thing is the raw density. The camera is made of aluminum, and closes into a tough clamshell that is significantly smaller and heavier than a Graflex. It is significantly lighter than any 4x5 linhof Technika, and lacks some of the insane flexibility, but it does feel good and tough.

I am under the impression that it comes with the same fabulously underrated Wollensak Optar 135mm f/4.5 lens as standard. could be wrong though. Mine came with a 150mm Dagor. No complaints there, except that at f/6.3 wide open with some vignetting, the viewing was almost unusably dim.

The camera has mostly machined aluminum parts istead of the stamped sheet steel components of the Graflex. It seems this was a bit of a luxury alternative to the standard. Also, the front standard has rise, fall, a bit of shift, and swings forward as well as backward, which is a glaring omission from the Speed Graphics. Not that they were ever intended for landscape.

This is not a perfect competitior though. The front standard is centered by threading a pointed post upward, holding it vertical. This isn't a precision operation, and I have had more than a few "uncertain of parallelism" moments with wide lenses that ended in the top and bottom of the picture out of focus. Sometimes in the real world there just isn't time to coddle the camera.

It does have a front drop bed for super wide lenses though, and the rails are connected to the chunks of focusing rain in the body, so there is no way you can have the front standard fly off the camera is some mysterious and horrible way.

The bellows can certainly reach a 210mm lens, and maybe a 240, but long lenses are not the speciality, and there is no extension available. Even on a 240, a telephoto is a worthwhile consideration. From my experience, 300mm is pretty much out of the story, as are anything wider than 90mm or so. I'll bet 75mm is okay with the bed lowered, but there are far better cameras for the wild lenses. I think this camera, being foldable into a nuke-proof lunch box, is best used with a normal lens, a meter, and a couple of holders anyway.

The star of the show has to do with the film side though. Although the Busch Pressman D doesn't have any rear movements, it does have a fabulous, machined aliuminum rotating back.

Rotating back locks in position


In all, it's a pretty awesome little presscamera, and I have used mine on a few continents with mostly satisfactory results. The balance between surprising ruggedness, and some minimal viewcamera flexibility are not optimal for me, but might be just the thing for you.

Now there's the question of finding one. The Busch pressman is not uncommon, but doesn't usually show up just when you need one.