portrait of The Tank

[Gordon Coale]

This big Mamiya Universal has been my mainstay for the last 12 years. I've been taking portraits of my commie cameras but couldn't take a portrait of the camera that I took the pictures with. Actually, I used the Super 23 body with the bellows back to take the pictures but I only have one film back. Now I have a roll film back for my Burke and James. More to follow.

[FrankS]

That's a beauty-beast, Gordon. I had one for a while.

[2maneekameras]

here is another big tank. It has a volume of 110 US gallons. Since it is stainless steel, I am considering making it into a developing tank.

[jdos2]

That's a pretty one!

It looks so... Normal with the 100 on it- put the 65 on it and it looks like someone chopped the lens off somehow. More mechanical looking.


Sigh.


Enough shots fired. I'll get one of mine set up for a portrait too. Black or silver. Choices, choices...

[thmk]

Originally Posted by 2maneekameras

here is another big tank. It has a volume of 110 US gallons. Since it is stainless steel, I am considering making it into a developing tank.

What about a pinhole cam???

Cheers
Thomas-Michael

[jdos2]

Having to reduce the print from the negative would make that an amazingly sharp pinhole!

[jan normandale]

Good Morning Gordon

I really like Mamiya products and that is a pretty hip looking camera. I have seen pix of them but you're the first person I "know" who I can attribute to owning and using one. What was the history - story on that camera. How did you get it, who owned it previously, what have you done with it.

I just love this stuff.

Jan

[GeneW]

That's some rig, Gordon. How does it handle?

Gene

[Gordon Coale]

Here are a couple more that scanned this morning. I bought this camera in 1992 at a used camera store in Seattle. It came with an early 100mm lens and an early non-anatomical grip. I don't know the history before that other than the manual that came with it was property of the Santa Monica Police Department. I was getting back into photography and the Universal gave me the biggest negative in medium format, a rangefinder, and it's a system camera. I got it with a ground glass back. Oh, yes. It was cheaper than anything else in it's class.

Three years ago I picked up a Super 23 with a bad rangefinder and a good lens and grip that is now on the Universal. I removed the rangefinder from the Super 23 and then took to a machine shop to be flat topped. I took off the cable from the grip. Too much slop. I prefer to use the shutter release on the lens.

The Universal is heavy but handles well with the grip. I carried it around with me, along with an Olympus XA2, on a trip I made to Washington, DC, and New York City a year ago. I have entries from my journal as well as pictures taken with XA2 and this Universal here. Most of the pictures are with the XA2 but the Universal pictures are identified with "MF". I also use it for product photography.

If I'm going to be doing close-ups I will need to clean the camera off a little better.