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#21
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
On 3/8/2008 11:03 AM erie patsellis spake thus:
While we all know that this is an expensive hobby, I'd add that unless you spend $$$ on your LF equipment, you'll feel out of place. Heaven forbid you advocate using a Componon lens as a taking lens, you're likely to be run out on rails. Building a camera? some will say it looks nice, but the general response will be "yeah, but my Canham (or Wista, Sinar, Chaminox, etc) is more precise, blah, blah, blah. Of course those of us who just can't afford Richard Ritter's new 20x24 camera, but want to shoot ULF are heretics, how can it possibly be precise, etc. I could go on for hours, but I'll bite my tongue and leave it at the majority of the people there are photo elitists, and camera fondlers. (I do own a few Sinars, bought for far less then market value (even today's very depressed prices) but enjoy my homebuilt cameras much more.) Just so you know, some of ur here don't necessarily indulge in the elitist crap that you've accurately described here. For instance, I love my humble Crown Graphic, my old Velbon tripod bought at the flea market, my Elwood 5x7 enlarger (with old Kodak Anastigmat lenses); heck, I even shoot pinhole from time to time (with homemade cameras, natch). |
#22
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
David Nebenzahl wrote:
On 3/8/2008 11:03 AM erie patsellis spake thus: While we all know that this is an expensive hobby, I'd add that unless you spend $$$ on your LF equipment, you'll feel out of place. Heaven forbid you advocate using a Componon lens as a taking lens, you're likely to be run out on rails. Building a camera? some will say it looks nice, but the general response will be "yeah, but my Canham (or Wista, Sinar, Chaminox, etc) is more precise, blah, blah, blah. Of course those of us who just can't afford Richard Ritter's new 20x24 camera, but want to shoot ULF are heretics, how can it possibly be precise, etc. I could go on for hours, but I'll bite my tongue and leave it at the majority of the people there are photo elitists, and camera fondlers. (I do own a few Sinars, bought for far less then market value (even today's very depressed prices) but enjoy my homebuilt cameras much more.) Just so you know, some of ur here don't necessarily indulge in the elitist crap that you've accurately described here. For instance, I love my humble Crown Graphic, my old Velbon tripod bought at the flea market, my Elwood 5x7 enlarger (with old Kodak Anastigmat lenses); heck, I even shoot pinhole from time to time (with homemade cameras, natch). Quite well aware, have been a (mostly lurking) participant since probably late 80's or so (84 if you include DECnet and the mailing list version of the LF group), back when usenet was worth a crap. While my Sinars are nice when I have the time, or strength and patience to schlep around monstrous pelican 1650's, my homemade 8x10 field with a handful of older lenses suits me just fine most of the time, and tends to stay in the van with me, along with my ancient tiltall that supports it just fine. I love my Elwood 5x7, in fact right now it's the only enlarger I have set up, my 10x10 is in storage and both Omegas are too. I grew up dirt poor, and enjoyed the things that I created with my own hands, then out of necessity, now because of either features lacking, or too many, or just because I can. erie |
#23
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
"erie patsellis" wrote in message news:%rCAj.67160$yE1.16331@attbi_s21... David Nebenzahl wrote: On 3/8/2008 11:03 AM erie patsellis spake thus: While we all know that this is an expensive hobby, I'd add that unless you spend $$$ on your LF equipment, you'll feel out of place. Heaven forbid you advocate using a Componon lens as a taking lens, you're likely to be run out on rails. Building a camera? some will say it looks nice, but the general response will be "yeah, but my Canham (or Wista, Sinar, Chaminox, etc) is more precise, blah, blah, blah. Of course those of us who just can't afford Richard Ritter's new 20x24 camera, but want to shoot ULF are heretics, how can it possibly be precise, etc. I could go on for hours, but I'll bite my tongue and leave it at the majority of the people there are photo elitists, and camera fondlers. (I do own a few Sinars, bought for far less then market value (even today's very depressed prices) but enjoy my homebuilt cameras much more.) Just so you know, some of ur here don't necessarily indulge in the elitist crap that you've accurately described here. For instance, I love my humble Crown Graphic, my old Velbon tripod bought at the flea market, my Elwood 5x7 enlarger (with old Kodak Anastigmat lenses); heck, I even shoot pinhole from time to time (with homemade cameras, natch). Quite well aware, have been a (mostly lurking) participant since probably late 80's or so (84 if you include DECnet and the mailing list version of the LF group), back when usenet was worth a crap. While my Sinars are nice when I have the time, or strength and patience to schlep around monstrous pelican 1650's, my homemade 8x10 field with a handful of older lenses suits me just fine most of the time, and tends to stay in the van with me, along with my ancient tiltall that supports it just fine. I love my Elwood 5x7, in fact right now it's the only enlarger I have set up, my 10x10 is in storage and both Omegas are too. I grew up dirt poor, and enjoyed the things that I created with my own hands, then out of necessity, now because of either features lacking, or too many, or just because I can. erie For what its worth I have old cameras mostly bought at bargain prices when they were available. I probably shoot more pictures on 35mm than any other format simply because the camera is light and portable but I also shoot quite a bit of 4x5, again because the cameras are tractible. I have two 8x10 view cameras, a Calumet C-1 and an Agfa/Ansco Universal View. For some reason I like the Agfa camera better for field use although neither is a lightweight. Modern view cameras probably have advantages for professional work especially studio work, where logging dials on swings and tilts are useful if a set up must be duplicated. The best of them (whichever those are) may be somewhat more rigid than the old timers but the ones I've looked at were really not that much better than my antiques. My enlarger is an Omega D2v. I would like to have one for larger format but don't have room. I've been working out a method of using the Agfa 8x10 for enlarging without the need to modify it. This is a long term project which is on the back burner, not forgotten, but of low priority. LF can be expensive but can also be done on a budget (except for the film). Despite the raves about modern lenses many of the older ones, even ancient ones, are very good and new ones that cost a fortune are not necessary. -- --- Richard Knoppow Los Angeles, CA, USA |
#24
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
"Richard Knoppow" wrote in message ... /snip/ LF can be expensive but can also be done on a budget (except for the film). Despite the raves about modern lenses many of the older ones, even ancient ones, are very good and new ones that cost a fortune are not necessary. I'll share my experience with 4x5 film. First of all, I don't shoot 4x5 color - just bw. I ran across some years ago a store closing out 8x10 bw film in boxes of 25 sheets. I think it was Forte, iso 200. I bought a box (all of ten dollars), cut the film down to 4x5 in the darkroom (cotton gloves, duct tape, and paper cutter), maintained emulsion orientation to snip off a bit of the upper right corner, and tried it out. Worked perfectly. So I went back and bought the eight or so remaining boxes. Granted, a bit of a bother to have to trim the 8x10 film down to 4x5, but what a bargain! I think I still have a box or two in the freezer. And a number of those older lenses are much lighter than the more modern ones - I prize my 210mm Tessar. Very, very nice images, much lighter than a more current lens, and small enough that I don't have to detach it from the camera. |
#25
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
/snip/ LF can be expensive but can also be done on a budget (except for the film). Despite the raves about modern lenses many of the older ones, even ancient ones, are very good and new ones that cost a fortune are not necessary. I'll share my experience with 4x5 film. First of all, I don't shoot 4x5 color - just bw. I ran across some years ago a store closing out 8x10 bw film in boxes of 25 sheets. I think it was Forte, iso 200. I bought a box (all of ten dollars), cut the film down to 4x5 in the darkroom (cotton gloves, duct tape, and paper cutter), maintained emulsion orientation to snip off a bit of the upper right corner, and tried it out. Worked perfectly. So I went back and bought the eight or so remaining boxes. Granted, a bit of a bother to have to trim the 8x10 film down to 4x5, but what a bargain! I think I still have a box or two in the freezer. And a number of those older lenses are much lighter than the more modern ones - I prize my 210mm Tessar. Very, very nice images, much lighter than a more current lens, and small enough that I don't have to detach it from the camera. For me, film costs are the least of it, if you don't mind ortho response, (which I don't), Ultrafineonline.com (photo warehouse) has Continuous Tone dupe flim in 8x10 and 14x17, in 25 packs 8x10 is just under a dollar a sheet, by the hundred, it's about 85 cents. in the 16x20/20x24 I shoot lith film exclusively, I got a boatload of 16x20 lith film for free from a printer I know that went direct to place, I probably have around 800 sheets left still. Dektol 1:6 tames the contrast wonderfully, and an EI of about 6 makes the Packard or lens cap approach quite doable. I can put my 8x10 field camera, a handful of holders, a mounted 210 angulon and lightmeter/filters, etc. in a small shoulder cooler and carry my tiltall over my shoulder, a rather enjoyable hiking outfit. By contrast, my entire 20x24 camera weighs nearly 50#, including the lens came in at just under $150(bellows scrounged from a process camera, drawer slides for focusing stage, scrap plywood scrounged from the local cabinet shop, the only high dollar item was a 17" lead screw for the focusing), it folds up too. It doesn't travel far from the van whatsoever. (the Weston approach to LF photography, if you will) For 99% of my personal use, I shoot either the 8x10 field, my C1 if I'm feeling adventurous, or a Toyo 45F. The big guns stay indoors, unless a client is footing the bill. erie |
#26
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
On Sat, 08 Mar 2008 19:03:12 GMT, erie patsellis
wrote: Building a camera? some will say it looks nice, but the general response will be "yeah, but my Canham (or Wista, Sinar, Chaminox, etc) is more precise, blah, blah, blah. I hope to someday build a very lightweight 5X7 which would work with my three favorite lenses. My 121 SA, my 180 Nikkor and my 240 G-Claron. The G-Claron was the only one I bought new. Note that I wouldn't mine a longer APO-Ronar ;) JD |
#27
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
"Peter" wrote in message
... There is at least one appreciative reader in the Netherlands (at least for now) - me. Thanks for all the insights. I am new to LF photography and be sure that I will be a regular reader of this newsgroup - as for contributing, I might have tons of questions but don't expect too many answers from me, at least in the foreseeable future. :-) Jacques (from France) |
#28
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
On 7/8/08 4:19 AM, in article ,
"Jacques" wrote: I am new to LF photography and be sure that I will be a regular reader of this newsgroup - as for contributing, I might have tons of questions but don't expect too many answers from me, at least in the foreseeable future. :-) Jacques (from France) Welcome and feel free to ask any questions. |
#29
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
"John Stafford" wrote in message
... .... Welcome and feel free to ask any questions. Thanks John. For now I am mostly learning the basics by reading the excellent site www.largeformatphotography.info as well as a French-speaking forum (www.galerie-photo.com/forum for those of you who would be interested to read stuff on LF in French - the forum is not exclusive to LF but has a good ratio on this format). I just bought a used Tachihara 4x5 with a couple of lenses and I will soon give this equipment a try. I will be on vacation at the end of this week and I look forward to chasing for nice spots to shoot in the country. I still have to locate a lab in the region where I will stay, and quite soon I will have to invest in a decent scanner (seriously considering the Epson V700). Cheers, Jacques |
#30
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Mr. Knoppow... or...
On 7/9/2008 9:53 AM Jacques spake thus:
"John Stafford" wrote in message ... ... Welcome and feel free to ask any questions. Thanks John. For now I am mostly learning the basics by reading the excellent site www.largeformatphotography.info as well as a French-speaking forum (www.galerie-photo.com/forum for those of you who would be interested to read stuff on LF in French - the forum is not exclusive to LF but has a good ratio on this format). I just bought a used Tachihara 4x5 with a couple of lenses and I will soon give this equipment a try. I will be on vacation at the end of this week and I look forward to chasing for nice spots to shoot in the country. I still have to locate a lab in the region where I will stay, and quite soon I will have to invest in a decent scanner (seriously considering the Epson V700). One technical suggestion that may be overlooked: Learn to clean your equipment fastidiously. Especially film holders. This advice from someone (me) who has never been able to make a single exposure that didn't have some dust specks on it. -- "Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it. It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and doodle. It is balder and dash." - With apologies to H. L. Mencken |
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