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

Kevin Allan said:
I've had a look on a big screen now ... this might be way off beam but it looks a little like the scanning artefacts you get when you accidentally have ICE turned on when scanning a B&W image. Have you looked at the neg on a light box with loupe to confirm if the issue is on the neg ?
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Thanks Kevin. I never have ICE switched on, so I don't think it'll be that, but I'll take a look at the negs on a light table when I can pop them in a clear sleeve.
 
zx9 said:
@FishyFish , sorry if I missed it but I did not see what aperture the forest scene was shot at.

Some large format lenses behave a bit odd at widish apertures, nice and bright for viewing but not great for using unless well stopped down.
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Thanks Keith. It was shot at f/22 (or at most f/16), so I don't think the lens aperture will have been to blame. I guess that as I take more pictures I'll better be able to compare them to see if I get a repeat of the OOF areas.
 
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Just guessing:- could it be the lens? As I have a Canon 19mm lens, and in a shot of scene, some parts are sharp and others not.
 
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SP-645 Max 4x5 Film Processing System

The SP-645 film processing system is an "inflated" version of our famous SP-445. Process up to six sheets of 4x5 film at a time. Uses only 20 oz (575ml) of solution Daylight safe Fills and drains quickly Inversion agitation, Stand development or anything in-between Built-in liquid level...
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New Stearman press is out with a better liquid economy than the patterson and mod 54 if in the market for a new tank
 
I rushed this shot. There was a large group of young people heading from stage left to get in the canoes and I wanted to get the shot before they cluttered the scene, and I ended up missing the focus on the upper part of the scene and also not changing my meter settings, so it was taken with a wide aperture to boot. To make matters worse, all the people walked right past the canoes and out of frame AFTER I'd made the shot. :facepalm:

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Ilford HP5+
Ilfotec DD-X 1+9 15mins 45secs @ 20°


Sheaf Quay by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
I winged the exposure on this somewhat with quite a lot of guesswork, but it turned out pretty well, all things considered. I scanned it twice at two different exposures so I could get the detail in the window into the final result.

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Ilford HP5+
Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°


Holy Trinity Church, Ashford in the Water by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
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A couple from Magpie Mine in the Peak District. The first has a slight fall-off in focus on the distant buildings that closing it down an extra stop (it was shot at f/22) might have resolved.

The second was a bit of an experiment where I shot it wide open to see what it would look like. The answer seems to be noticeable vignetting and a drop off in focus at the top (although I blame the howling wind I had to contend with that was blowing my darkcloth around for that! :D).

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Ilford HP5+
Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°


Magpie Mine by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Magpie Mine by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
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@StephenM kindly gave me this Kodak Specialist No 2 half-plate camera from the 1950s. After quick test in the garden, I took it out to a local churchyard with some Orwo paper negatives.

2023-8-28 Bywell Kodak Specialist 2, Orwo, EI2, 001.jpgAPC-6737.jpg

There's also a rear extension, not shown here, which gives a total of about 500mm bellows draw, and an additional 4x5 back.
 
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I have a Kodak Specialist. I think mine is a police camera as it came in kit form with quarter plate back. I'll post some pictures from it soon. The 5x7 film holders for it were a bit expensive (it didn't come with the 5x7 holders), and are easily confused with half plate sized holders, some of which are labelled 5x7.

I found that focusing is a bit stiff, even though I cleaned the track and greased it. Quite an amazing camera as it is mainly wooden (mahogany?).

Nice graveyard shot.
 
PeterSpencer said:
I have a Kodak Specialist. I think mine is a police camera as it came in kit form with quarter plate back. I'll post some pictures from it soon. The 5x7 film holders for it were a bit expensive (it didn't come with the 5x7 holders), and are easily confused with half plate sized holders, some of which are labelled 5x7.

I found that focusing is a bit stiff, even though I cleaned the track and greased it. Quite an amazing camera as it is mainly wooden (mahogany?).

Nice graveyard shot.
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The film/plate holder business is a bit of a quagmire. Stephen supplied some plate holders so I can try dry plates at some point. I already had one 5x7 holder with a Kodak sheath insert; about two hours ago I received two half-plate film holders from West Yorkshire cameras. They cost just £10 each and I had expected them to need patching; but I tested them straight away With paper negs and they look fine. The negs are drying right now.
 
A couple of months back I posted about unusual out of focus areas on some of my 4x5 photos that I was unable to explain as a result of camera movements or camera shake.
Since then I've had other photos exhibiting similar problems, including the two below, and also the picture of the ice cream truck I posted in the Show us yer film photos thread yesterday.

It has been frustrating me as to the cause, but I think I might have now figured it out. I think it's the cheapo yellow filter I was using. All the photos that have the issue were taken using the filter, and none of the photos shot without the filter show similar problems. I am now crossing my fingers that this is the actual cause (I plan on shooting a few sheets without the filter this weekend to test the hypothesis).

Anyway, here are a couple of pictures of the Humber Bridge. You can see the strange out of focus blobs around the distant towers, but also in patches of the foreground. I did wonder if this might have been due to the wind blowing the grass, but my shutter speeds were pretty high and it wasn't a windy day, so probably not.

Full resolution versions can be seen if you click through to Flickr.

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Ilford HP5+ (with yellow filter)
Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°


Humber Bridge by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Humber Bridge by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
My final shot to use the dodgy yellow filter (again, there are odd out-of-focus areas on this image, but none on any pictures where the filter wasn't used).

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Ilford HP5+ (with yellow filter)
Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°


Beached by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
A new box of 50 sheets of Fomapan 100 and it has that issue with the white spcekles (although they're only noticeable when it's zoomed in). :(

Now I'll hve to see if Speedgraphic will refund it. I think I might be done with Fomapan 100, despite the fact I like how it looks. It's not worth the disappointment when the results are marred. I think I'll switch to Delta 100 instead, even though it's twice the price.

Chamonix 045N-1
Fujinon NW 135mm f/5.6
Fomapan 100
Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 8mins @ 20°


St Peter and St Paul's Church, Sturton-le-Steeple by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
Anyone know what the thickness of the felt is, reference the rear frame of a standard Graflok assembly?
It's the stuff that rests against the face of the film holders.
You can just about make it out at the top, bottom and left hand side of the picture.


1695808567512.png
 
Todays mistake was my film back was upside down and the darkslides were a pain to get in and out. Didnt realise till i was packing away. Luckily were not important shots - testing 8 sheets in the jobo with 510 pyro
 
My "proper" darkcloth arrived today - one of those eTone ones you can get from Amazon and eBay. I've been using a black t-shirt which, while serviceable, isn't ideal as it's a bit awkward and also lets light through the weave, especially in bright conditions.

I was going to buy one from Walker Cameras, but he's stopped selling them due to the number of cheaper copies out there. So I bought one of the cheaper copies. On first inspection it looks to be decent - certainly better than my t-shirt!

I'll report back when I've used it in anger*.


* Hopefully not in actual anger! :D
 
FishyFish said:
My "proper" darkcloth arrived today - one of those eTone ones you can get from Amazon and eBay. I've been using a black t-shirt which, while serviceable, isn't ideal as it's a bit awkward and also lets light through the weave, especially in bright conditions.

I was going to buy one from Walker Cameras, but he's stopped selling them due to the number of cheaper copies out there. So I bought one of the cheaper copies. On first inspection it looks to be decent - certainly better than my t-shirt!

I'll report back when I've used it in anger*.


* Hopefully not in actual anger! :D
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If it has weighted corners to keep it hanging down, beware of high winds blowing it up and the weights hitting you about the head. Certainly makes me angry! :rolleyes:
 
FishyFish said:
My "proper" darkcloth arrived today - one of those eTone ones you can get from Amazon and eBay. I've been using a black t-shirt which, while serviceable, isn't ideal as it's a bit awkward and also lets light through the weave, especially in bright conditions.

I was going to buy one from Walker Cameras, but he's stopped selling them due to the number of cheaper copies out there. So I bought one of the cheaper copies. On first inspection it looks to be decent - certainly better than my t-shirt!

I'll report back when I've used it in anger*.


* Hopefully not in actual anger! :D
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etone seem to be great value on some of their stuff. I have the loupe which works great, interested in the dark tent cube thing but dont currently have the space for it
 
On weighted darkcloths, some warn against them on the grounds of having had their ground glass broken by the weights. I bought a Paramo darkcloth at The Photography Show/Focus on Imaging some years ago (so probably Focus) which I like as being showerproof. Interestingly, some time later at the same (or other, depending on year :)), the person on the Paramo stand didn't know that they had such a thing (it was still in the catalogue). The press studs mean I can wear it as a cape rather than draping it over my shoulder and hoping it doesn't fall off.
 
acrobatic_Citron said:
yeah with the adjustabke diopter - no complaints so far, good built quality and nice weight to it
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Adjustable (EDIT) dioptre could be important. I have a Kaiser 4.5 loupe, and the dioptre is screwed all the way out for me to focus when it's held against the screen!
 
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ChrisR said:
Adjustable dipotre could be important. I have a Kaiser 4.5 loupe, and the dioptre is screwed all the way out for me to focus when it's held against the screen!
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Short sighted? Think mines all the way out too! Saves on taping it in place ha
 
According to Nicos latest vid Kodak chemicals are currently no more - Fotoimpex have released a 110 clone. I like its a 500ml bottle, Id get Ilford HC if it was 500ml

FOTOIMPEX 110 Developer 500 ml conc. - fotoimpex.com analogue photography

Kodak chemicals are temporarily unavailable this is why we purchase the original mixture made to the exact same formulary which has been sold by Kodak in the past three ...
www.fotoimpex.com www.fotoimpex.com
 
acrobatic_Citron said:
According to Nicos latest vid Kodak chemicals are currently no more - Fotoimpex have released a 110 clone. I like its a 500ml bottle, Id get Ilford HC if it was 500ml

FOTOIMPEX 110 Developer 500 ml conc. - fotoimpex.com analogue photography

Kodak chemicals are temporarily unavailable this is why we purchase the original mixture made to the exact same formulary which has been sold by Kodak in the past three ...
www.fotoimpex.com www.fotoimpex.com
Click to expand...
I think the Bellini Euro-HC comes in 500 ml bottles...

EDIT: the marketing info from Fotoimpex seemed a bit ambiguous to me, on one reading they'd bought a pile of ready-made HC-110 and were re-selling it under their own brand. Not sure I saw anything to suggest continuing manufacture...
 
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A massive failure this afternoon. :(

I took a half day off work as I knew the weather was nice for once, and it was one of the only chances I had to try and photograph some autumn colour. So after lunch I headed out to Padley Gorge in the Peak District with the Chamonix and a bunch of film with the intent of shooting some of the Ektar that I have.

I found a nice scene with a backlit oak tree, so set everything up, carefully checked my focus and the camera settings and then took the shot. I then headed a little further down the gorge to try and find the next one. By this time, the light was low enough that a lot of the area was already in shadow, so I looked to photograph a clump of autumnal leaves on a sapling which were illuminated in a shaft of sunlight. It was a slightly tricky shot to focus, requiring some tilt to get everything sharp. After setting up the shot and feeling relatively confident about the sharpness, I went to meter the scene and then noticed with dismay that my meter was set to ISO400. This meant the first shot was two stops underexposed. This was very frustrating an, to be honest, set the ball rolling for the rest of the afternoon's disappointment.

As I'd already wasted one expensive sheet of colour film, I was now even more conscious of the need to not waste any of the remaining three sheets on sub-par images, especially given the fact I'd have to send them away for developing at notable cost, so I binned the shot of the leaves and decided to move elsewhere for something better. I was now in the wrong frame of mind though - everything I considered seemed like it wasn't worth the effort (or cost) - and so I set up and then dismissed several shots while the sun sank lower in the sky. Eventually (and now in a pretty bad mood) I just said to myself "f**k it" and packed everything away and came home.

I was seething in the car all the way back because a) the weather and light was beautiful and I had been unable to take advantage of something I rarely get the chance to, and b) I wasted an afternoon's leave for the privilege. I saw several beautifully lit scenes on the way home which, had I had a smaller format camera with me, I could have photographed, but I just had to drive past them all.

The weather looks good again tomorrow, and I'm going to have another attempt at capturing autumn colour, but I'll be taking some medium format gear this time to make sure I actually capture something on film. I expect the same locations will be much busier tomorrow, unfortunately.

Anyone else have "one of those days"?
 
Peter B said:
Just seen a reference on X/Twitter to this Platypus sheet film dryer, which may be of interest?
simonforsterphotographic.co.uk

Platypus Tilting Sheet Film Drying Rack By Forster UK

Speed up your workflow with the Platypus Tilting Sheet Film Drying Rack by Forster UK. Perfect for 4x5 film, ensuring quick, even drying.
simonforsterphotographic.co.uk simonforsterphotographic.co.uk
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I handled one at an event last month and like all Simon's stuff it is very well thought out and made.
 
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