Large Format photography group - From "zero to hero!"

FruitFlakes said:
I contact print lots of 35mm/6x6/6x7 but that’s more for contact sheets/proofing although they do make for nice gifts. I have a few boxes of 5x7 paper so I’m planning on making a few contact prints with 4x5 on those once I figure out how to print the full rebate on there accurately with minimum fuss.
Click to expand...

I've been looking to get one of these in 10x8, but they're a bit thin on the ground here compared with the US.
Anyway, after reading your post they immediately sprung to mind, I wasn't sure there'd be a 4x5 because that's mostly a film format, not generally a print size, but....there is one..:)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ganz-Speed-EZ-EL-4x5-bordered-darkroom-enlarger-easel
 
Hi
I started off in Large format last year with a Wisner technical 4x5. Initially I really struggled to get a decent picture mainly due to dust and screwing up the exposure. I then decided to change the camera and I bought a Chamonix 8x10 and instantly fell in love with that camera................the pictures that I got out of that camera were amazing. All my dust issues went away (I changed the way I dried my film after developing it)..........I just love that camera and the whole process of taking a picture with it. The Wisner was just grief, every movement was a PITA and no matter what I did with that camera the results were bad to so so.

Yesterday I decided to buy myself another Chamonix, this time a 4x5 45F2 and give that a go as I want something to travel with.................I will be going to japan in 2 1/2 weeks time to shoot some Autumn colours and will take the new Chamonix 4x5 with me :) :)

The Wisner is now sitting on top of a nice wooden tripod as an ornament in my home :)

Neil
 
ndwgolf said:
Hi
I started off in Large format last year with a Wisner technical 4x5. Initially I really struggled to get a decent picture mainly due to dust and screwing up the exposure. I then decided to change the camera and I bought a Chamonix 8x10 and instantly fell in love with that camera................the pictures that I got out of that camera were amazing. All my dust issues went away (I changed the way I dried my film after developing it)..........I just love that camera and the whole process of taking a picture with it. The Wisner was just grief, every movement was a PITA and no matter what I did with that camera the results were bad to so so.

Yesterday I decided to buy myself another Chamonix, this time a 4x5 45F2 and give that a go as I want something to travel with.................I will be going to japan in 2 1/2 weeks time to shoot some Autumn colours and will take the new Chamonix 4x5 with me :) :)

The Wisner is now sitting on top of a nice wooden tripod as an ornament in my home :)

Neil
Click to expand...

I've got the Chamonix 8x10 a lovely camera, what lenses and tripod head are you using for it? I've got the Shen-Hao 4x5 as well which is really nice to use and very compact for travel.
 
Are there any suppliers of really long shutter cables. Either that or are there any lenses out there with a timer option. I want to do some self portraits on my wista but there are obvious obsticals in the way of doing that at the moment.
 
Is 20 feet long enough? You'll generally need a pneumatic release for long distance work; I simply googled "bulb cable release" and ignored all the cableless ones Google gave me :eek:
 
In his day and age it would be nice to get a wireless trigger you could screw in. It would be a lot shorter than 20 feet in think. I'll have a Google and see what pops up.
 
Interesting, if only I knew how to take a decent image on LF I might be tempted to enter. :)
 
Andysnap said:
Interesting, if only I knew how to take a decent image on LF I might be tempted to enter. :)
Click to expand...
I think I might have seen a couple of "decent images" on LF from you, Andy!

Generally I regard these competitions as like a lottery where the odds are not evenly distributed. (*) The brilliant photographers are the most likely winners, but there's always a chance (however small) that my submitted image will resonate with a judge.

EDIT: * a bit like FPOTY, then!
 
8x10 and up only from the looks of the t&cs :(

Also analogue prints as well which is quite interesting

This might be a good excuse to buy that intrepid 8x10 though :thinking:
 
raathistle said:
8x10 and up only from the looks of the t&cs :(

Also analogue prints as well which is quite interesting

This might be a good excuse to buy that intrepid 8x10 though :thinking:
Click to expand...

From the first line of the rules section: "Each candidate can send 1 photo or a small series of up to 3 analog prints from negatives shot with a large format camera (any format from 4x5” to 20x24”)."

The prints that are sent in must be 10x8 and upwards though.
 
Last edited:
That'll teach me not to read things properly :whistle:

It might also give me the kick up the bum I need to get out there with the LF gear again and make some pictures
 
Blimey, what have I done....

I'm starting a new job on Monday but once I'm bedded in I'll start a meet thread and make some enquiries into the nitty gritty of it.
 
Andysnap said:
Blimey, what have I done....

I'm starting a new job on Monday but once I'm bedded in I'll start a meet thread and make some enquiries into the nitty gritty of it.
Click to expand...
I’d be interested in a darkroom visit, it’s been years since I’ve printed anything. And congrats on the new job Andy :clap:
 
Woodsy said:
Congrats indeed!

<Offtopic>
What's the new role then chap? Ooo, is it, keeper of the book of tide times? :D:D :exit:
</Offtopic>
Click to expand...
Coffee/Keyboard interface :LOL:
 
I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of Lindisfarne Abbey so I can be reminded every day of the lovely time I spent there..... :banghead::D
 
I thought I should noodle about LF lenses and stuff here rather than on Steve's Chroma build thread. I've been trying to read up about LF lenses in case I'm mad enough to back this (which I'd love to, though I have strong doubts I have the chops to actually make a decent image). Anyway, there appear to be several extra parameters, like the various different Copal shutter sizes. Steve refers to Copal 0 to Copal 3; elsewhere I saw references to Copal A and B. Confused!

There's also the image circle. Steve's pics show some fairly extreme movements, but one review site was suggesting many lenses only have a big enough image circle for very minor movements. How big an image circle should one look for, and how do you find out how big it is for any given lens?

Clearly there are some lenses available in the £100-£500 range. Then I followed some recommendations and found I was looking at lenses for £3,500! Gulp...
 
The sizes are literally that - the bigger the number, the physically larger the lens (there are exceptions, but we can discount them for simplicity). Bigger lenses are heavier. The size means that the larger shutters have slower top speeds. Copal 0 is usually 1/400 - 1/500; the big boys may be only 1/100. The sizes used to go up to Copal 5...

The image circle is specified by the maker, and you should be able to look it up on their sites fairly easily. As to how much you need - well, calculate the diameter of a 5x4 sheet of film and that gives you the minimum image circle that will cover it say 161mm. If you want to shift the lens up and down or side to side, you need as twice the amount you're going to move it. The two jokers in this simple pack are that lens coverage increases as you stop down (and are I think usually specified for f/16) and older lenses fade gradually and modern ones tend to cut out suddenly.

Lenses for larger formats are typically much bigger and heavier, because of their coverage. I have a 300mm lens for 5x4 that is smaller and lighter than an Olympus OM 50mm f/1.8; and I have one for 10x8 that is the size of a 500mm mirror lens. It's just the image circle that makes the difference.

As lenses go up in price, the coverage increases, even for lenses designed for the same format. I prefer older lenses simply because they are smaller and lighter, and if you're going out with a camera you don't want the extra weight. The other thing that goes up is the aperture - if you compare an Angulon 90mm f/8 with the faster version, the size and weight has gone up enormously, to the extent that I can easily slide one into the hole on the front standard of my Walker, but have to position the larger aperture one far more carefully as the plate is positioned. Some older cameras can't physically mount modern, BIG wide angle lenses.

One point I've made ad nauseam - to get a 20x16 from 5x4 takes the same amount of enlargement as to get a 6x4 Enprint from 35mm. How many lenses couldn't do that? The moral being that within limits, you can use any lens made since the second world war if it has the coverage.

There's a book about using old lenses, and the author has a sample image taken on 10x8 using an older (1950s) Symmar 150mm lens which is designed for 5x4. The corners were darkened, but no more than I've seen with extreme wide angles on 35mm. Obviously no movements possible.

The only other dodge is that if you keep the front standard fixed, although you can't move the rear side to side or up and down, you can tilt to your heart's content and still keep using the centre of the image, so in this case, coverage doesn't matter. Although doing this will alter the image shape. Anyone for a foreground stone assuming boulder proportions?
 
Last edited:
ChrisR said:
I thought I should noodle about LF lenses and stuff here rather than on Steve's Chroma build thread. I've been trying to read up about LF lenses in case I'm mad enough to back this (which I'd love to, though I have strong doubts I have the chops to actually make a decent image). Anyway, there appear to be several extra parameters, like the various different Copal shutter sizes. Steve refers to Copal 0 to Copal 3; elsewhere I saw references to Copal A and B. Confused!

There's also the image circle. Steve's pics show some fairly extreme movements, but one review site was suggesting many lenses only have a big enough image circle for very minor movements. How big an image circle should one look for, and how do you find out how big it is for any given lens?

Clearly there are some lenses available in the £100-£500 range. Then I followed some recommendations and found I was looking at lenses for £3,500! Gulp...
Click to expand...

Broadly image circle is a bigger problem with smaller focal lengths, copal size is the size of the shutter which the lens is designed to fit, buy a lens in a shutter save a fight. A 150mm ish lens for a 4x5 will have enough of an image circle for pretty determined movements, the things you need circle for mostly are rear rise for architecture. For landscape you don't need that much movement at all and you can get away with a smaller lens.

Generally a larger lens has a larger image circle and sits in a larger shutter and is heavier.
 
On older lenses - I posted a couple of scans in another thread showing the difference the scanning can make. If you follow this link, you can download a more or less full size version. The lens was a 1950s Symmar and you can check the detail from an old lens.

But not just yet - it's still being uploaded :D

Edit to add - it is of course there now.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top