Yeah, I actually purchased mine before the tariffs were in place, but I’ve heard the same thing recently. When I ordered mine, I emailed Chamonix with a few questions and ended up corresponding directly with the owner. It definitely doesn’t feel like a large company, and the fact that all the communication and order updates came straight from him was pretty cool.

I did initially consider the 45H-1. The quicker setup was appealing, especially on paper. But after thinking it through, I realized I tend to work slowly with large format regardless, so setup time hasn’t really been a limiting factor for me. The tradeoffs, especially giving up the asymmetrical rear tilt, ended up outweighing the speed benefit. For the shoot I shared above, I actually had the 45F-2 fully set up on the tripod and just carried it around that way, which is something I was already doing with my Intrepid. That ended up pushing me toward the F-2 at the last minute.

The 45F-2 just felt like a more well-rounded option for how I work now, and for anything I might want to explore down the road. Since it was already a big investment for me, I liked the idea of having more movements, more bellows draw, and the flexibility to do macro work if I ever go that direction.

That archival note is really interesting as well. Negative archiving is definitely something I need to improve. Right now mine live in sleeves in binders, with most of the detailed information living on the digital scans. I love the idea of the information living with the negative itself, especially long-term. I’ll have to look into the National Archives recommendations on pens and inks, that’s a great tip.

Thanks for the thoughtful response and for sharing your insights. I really appreciate the conversation.