RE: Nagaoka Seisakusho Woodfield 4x5

[Mark Erickson]

Just one additional note--from the pictures that I've seen, the Nagaoka is 
virtually identical to the Ikeda Anba wood field camera, with the only 
difference being the brass-finished hardware on the Ikeda Anba.  I think 
that these cameras were made at least into the 1980's and possibly into the 
1990's.  Really clean examples have gone for $500-600 on eBay.  This is 
about the same as a new Shen-Hao, but the Ikeda/Nagaoka design is 
significantly smaller/lighter than any other wood field camera in the 
market.  I use my Ikeda Anba with vintage Kodak lenses (100mm F6.3 Wide 
Field Ektar and 203mm F7.7 Ektar) that are themselves very small and very 
sharp. 

Probably the nearest competitor in terms of size and weight in the 4x5 arena 
is the Toho (not Toyo), a very light, small monorail camera.  Not cheap, 
though. 

--Mark