Lens-back parallelism-Angle-finder OK?

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Does anyone use the Horseman Angle-Finder II? I wish I could use it to help make the settings with super wide-angles such as the 65 and 47mm. With these lenses the slightest slope traduces in converging verticals. It is also difficult to work on film - lens parallelism, especially in low light conditions. Do you think this oil damped device can help? Is it more precise than a spirit level?

-- Paul Schilliger (pschilliger@vtx.ch), December 01, 1999

Answers

My opinion - the original Horseman Angle finder was an expensive, but very fine tool (I wish I could find one used). The Horseman angle finder II I've seen is an expensive, not particularly precise and fairly worthless tool. I think I'd prefer a $10 angle finder from a hardware store.

I also work with ultra wide angle lenses, and can appreciate the challenges they present. My favorite alignment tool is a $20 6" level I picked up at Woodworkers Warehouse made by Stabila. Horseman also makes a small spirit level. The sample I had wasn't all that accurate. Maybe I just had a bad one. I've checked the levels built into my camera against this external level, and have found the camera levels to be highly accurate.

I believe companies such as Zig Align make very precise tools to insure lens to film plane parallelism. Don't know much about them - I believe they do it with mirrors.

-- Larry Huppert (Larry.Huppert@mail.com), December 01, 1999.


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