Hello! I'm new here and to large format, so I'm afraid you'll have to read things you've already seen before.

So, I'm the happy owner of a Crown Graphic with a Wollensack Optar 135.

I'll use it mainly with a 550 Polaroid back. I've made a test and, after a problem with the back, it works fine.

I've read a lot of articles here, but not everything, I admit, and my understanding is sometimes limited by my weaknesses in english technical vocabulary.

Here are my stupid questions (I'll spare you "how to open it", because I already found out- and it's sooo easy when you know...):

I can't see through the ground glass for accurate focusing. There must be "something" to open, but I can't find it: there's a focal plane shutter on the Speed Graphic that doesn't exist on the Crown. In the instructions, they say something about the curtain aperture O (open) that must be registered at F, but I can't locate neither one...

Second question: I want to make portrait and close-up photo so, how close can I go? It says 6ft on the camera, but it seems I can go closer.
I understand you would have to move the infinity stops to be able to extend the bellows to their full extention, but I'm not ready to move these thing as long as I'm not sure I can put them back.

I'll save my other questions for another time...

I'm going to assume that you have a Graphex or Rapax shutter. Cock the shutter and move the chrom lever that's at about 3 o'clock down. This opens the shutter blades. You also need to open the aperture to get the brightest image.

the Crown Graphic should shave fold down infinity stops. Fold them down and you'll be able to move the front standard past them to the front edge of the rails (yoke to Graflex Inc) now rotate the focus knob until the bellows are close to being stressed. and lock the yoke with the lever near focus knob.

this is the max bellows extension a Crown Graphic has. WIth the lens open look through the ground glass and move the camera close to something. You should be able to focus around 6-8" away! Now if you want to photograph that image, you'll have to add about 2 stops to the metered exposure. It's called bellows factor and we've talked about it here from time to time.

Les

YES!

I understood everything and it worked!

Thank you so much for your help!

Ooops! It seems I spoke too fast!

I'm not sure what the "yoke" is, even after looking in the dictionnary.

I pulled the lens to the edge of the rail and locked it. Then I played with the focus knob, but I couldn't get my subject in focus.

I think I don't understand this part: "lock the yoke with the lever near focus knob." If I turn this lever, it locks the focus knob?

Are you able to focus on anything?

mmmh... no.

When I first tried to extend the bellows, I moved an object in front of the lens until it was in focus, so I thought it was ok.

Then I tried with a fixed object and I thought it was in focus (by moving the bellows forward and backward), but the result was horrible :o)

Also, I think you have to get used to the ground glass, which is very dark.

Phil
If you need some help, you can contact me.
Laurent (Paris)

Make sure the F-stop diaphram is all the way open to 4.7. Set the lens on T, cock the shutter and release andit should stay open until you trip the shutter a second time. T is for Timed exposure. You can also use the lever Les suggested at any speed by cocking the shutter and flip that lever down to open the shutter. Close the lever and then trip the shutter to release spring tension or to make your exposure etc...
A 135 Optar wide open should provide a reasonably bright image for general focussing and composition.

I'll try again when I have the time (maybe tomorrow) and I'll let you know.

Et merci Laurent, I will.