Yes; I had one of the original Noblex 150's and then sold it and got the 06/150U which has the shift and the slow speeds. I used it in my architectural photography business until about 2010 when I retired, but kept the camera.
It is a marvellous camera; optically excellent and was always reliable for me, although I understand some people did have problems with theirs. It's easy to load and use. The main thing you have to be aware of with Noblex cameras is that unlike Widelux or Horizon, exposure only starts after the drum (with the slit and the lens) has completed half a revolution. That means that the 'shutter lag' is rather more than the exposure time. You can work around it, mostly, if you're shooting at 1/125 sec or so, but it's a lot harder if you're using the slow speeds. I forget right now what the multiplier is, but the total exposure time is like 50x the nominal exposure time as of course a 2mm slit will lead to at least a 56x plus factor on a 112mm wide shot. So a 1/125 sec exposure will take over 1/2 sec to expose all parts of the film. That means that the 'shutter lag' is about 3/4 sec total. For a 1/8 sec on-film exposure, the lag before the exposure starts is more like 8-10 secs and then the exposure itself will take another 8-10 secs. For architecture and construction that didn't usually matter much, but it obviously is a problem for other types of photography. But again, I found it to be a great camera.
I've also had Widelux F7's, Horizon 202's and I still have a Seitz Roundshot 28-220 which is kind of a Noblex 06/150U carried a few steps further. I have a 28 PC Nikkor on it and am able to take shots up to and more than 360 degrees. Obviously, a tripod camera for the most part.
Do NOT consider getting a Widelux 1500 for actual photography. Widelux F6,7 and 8's have a tendency to produce banding if not taken on an excercise regime, but the 1500 is very, very prone to this as well as other reliability issues.
That lag was actually the biggest advantage of the Noblex vs all the other swinger cameras. It uses a motor to spin the drum bringing it up so speed BEFORE the exposure is taken, eliminating any possibility of exposure banding - something I experienced in all my Wideluxes and Horizon cameras.
To get used to it I would play around with it, dry firing at different speeds, to see how much time it took.
Desmolicious wrote:
That lag was actually the biggest advantage of the Noblex vs all the other swinger cameras. It uses a motor to spin the drum bringing it up so speed BEFORE the exposure is taken, eliminating any possibility of exposure banding - something I experienced in all my Wideluxes and Horizon cameras.
To get used to it I would play around with it, dry firing at different speeds, to see how much time it took.
Absolutely right, although I had three Horizons that didn't exhibit banding. After I bought them I took them to my friend who disassembled them and lubricated them. When new they came without essential lubricants.
The thing with the Noblex cameras is you tend to shoot differently when using them off the tripod, which you have to be aware of and realize that 'shutter lag' can be seconds instead of milliseconds. You can quite easily adjust and get used to it though.
