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k-zed posted:Something a little different (now that the alt process thread is archived). Whoa, awesome!
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Dec 26, 2018 23:35
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Anyone have any tips for a Polaroid 80 back that doesn't want to lock on to a 500C/M? Just got it from eBay and a push on the little tab doesn't seem to move the little blocker things out of the way enough to accept the prongs from the back of the Hasselblad body.
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May 9, 2019 09:04
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ImplicitAssembler posted:So, I fell in love with the idea of a LF camera over the winter. I also like to build stuff, so the original plan was to build my own, but other more important projects kept getting in the way, so I finally caved in and ordered an Intrepid Mk4. I now that there's cheaper options on ebay, but I was keen on a field camera, as I plan to take it with me hiking in the mountains. If you don't hate the idea of developing yourself, the Mod45 holders are a relatively new invention (last ten years) that allow you to develop 6 sheets in a regular Paterson 3-reel tank. I quite liked using a Grafmatic with it - the six-shot magazine made my developing workflow easy. I typically just used a jacket for a focusing hood, and a reversed 50mm prime for a loupe. The real articles will be nicer, of course. You might consider a spot meter.
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May 21, 2019 22:02
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Reversed 50mm prime
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Aug 2, 2019 09:27
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CodfishCartographer posted:So I just stumbled onto a Mamiya C200 for free, with a honkin 180mm lens. Looks like I'll need to replace the light seals, and I still need to check the bellows. Anything in particular I should know about it? Parallax 
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Nov 15, 2019 08:16
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I bought my big honkin' CF tripod on Craigslist 10+ years ago. Nowadays I don't use it much - mostly my Hasselblad or my mirrorless if I'm trying some nighttime photography, but it was happy to support the 8x10 monorail I briefly owned, and my various 4x5 cameras back when I shot them. Buying it was something I'll always remember; I was meeting the guy in a Best Buy parking lot and this huge lifted F250 pulls up. Down hops this 5'nothing dentist who probably never raised the centre column in anger. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 08:26 on Dec 30, 2019 |
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Dec 30, 2019 08:24
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Pondex posted:e: What's the most economical development setup? I used a Jobo-tank with 4x5-reels this time, and it uses 1500ml for 6 sheets, which is pretty steep IMO. HC-110, Dilution H. Who cares how much water you pour down the drain
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Feb 5, 2020 08:29
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theHUNGERian posted:
Curious which lens - the 80mm 2.8? Re: Megabound's post - most Hasselblad's use a leaf shutter in the lens but there is at least one pretty uncommon, fancy pants model with a titanium focal plane shutter. I went and looked at a secondhand one back in the day... and watched the seller put his finger straight through it  Needless to say, I didn't buy it.Haven't got much to add to Megabound's excellent post about body type, aspect ratio, etc. Square format is definitely a challenge but on the flipside it does provide a unique experience you don't usually get with digital cameras (plus plays well for the 'Gram). You're correct on the equipment list, although you may or may not want an additional film back to switch in and out (such as between b&w and colour). It's not necessary, but a nice QoL thing to have for sure, and one of the chief advantages of a fully modular system like the Hasselblad. I've also got a spot meter but you can get away with using your phone or digital camera. You'll also presumably need some way to get your images on to your computer (paying for scans really adds up), so add a negative scanner capable of 120 to the list. Doing your own B&W at home is not hard and doesn't require a full on darkroom, so you may also consider getting a changing bag, developing tank, and chemistry too. IIRC there's really not much you're missing out on getting a C/M rather than the later models. Hasselblads can be had for pennies on the dollar compared to what they used to go for, but the system is definitely more expensive than say, Bronica, Pentax 6x7, etc. I don't know that there are really any "bad" choices among MF systems aside from getting a Russian one with issues (I went 0 for 1 with Kiev's, so it's definitely not a myth), but on the flip side Arax sells refurbished bodies that should be reliable, and the glass is an incredible bargain, even with today's prices. Even if you're not buying Russian, getting one with some kind of return policy or warranty isn't a bad idea as many of these things are pushing 50 years old. I had a Pentax 6x7 body I bought in Japan turn up DOA and the seller told me to pound sand.
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Apr 26, 2020 00:01
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So today I finally got around to mixing up a batch of fixer and developing some rolls of 120 I loaded in the tank ~4 months ago. They're from 6-7 years ago when I lived in Japan... naturally it turns out the Patterson tank I picked up secondhand has a crack in the side that leaked fixer all over the kitchen bench before I realised it wasn't a leaky seal around the top. Once I realised what was happening and agitated with exaggerated care it was OK, but definitely retiring that one.  Film seems to have come out largely fine, but unfortunately my negative scanner is on the other side of the world. I've got an A7 and a macro lens - what's a good DIY setup for digitising in the meantime? Actually do have a 6x6 enlarger I am planning to try out, but need a new bulb and darkroom needs a bit of work (ventillation and lightproofing). Blackhawk posted:Two x velvia 50 4x5, when great location and perfect conditions collide it's kinda hard to gently caress up. Am I the only one getting big magenta energy in the first couple frames? Regardless they are nice shots. My partner and I were driving through a rainy mountain pass yesterday and were passing a hatchback parked on the side of the road. Guy was going through his boot with an umbrella and as I passed I saw he was setting up a 4x5 field camera. Was really tempted to go back and talk shop and then realised that I am becoming the greybeard PolishPandaBear posted:Of course I took a photo of my cat to test out my new Mamiya C220. This was HP5+ 400 in Rodinal. Taking cat pictures with MF/LF is a definite power move. I've found TLRs are great for shooting street if you are interested in that. It's recognisably a camera but people seem to be completely disarmed by it. I also got good results with my Speed Graphic - it's easy to forget those things were working press cameras, and with the Kalart dialed in you can shoot handheld with good results. Sadly I sold both ages ago, but keeping an eye out for another Speed (or just a monorail - looking to get into wet plate with something simple).
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Oct 5, 2020 05:49
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Paul MaudDib posted:are there any hotspots for picking up high-quality MF/LF capable scanner gear beyond APUG and LFF? If you're not in a hurry, Craigslist (or local equivalent) or FB marketplace, which is increasingly taking over local buy/sell sites. I am pretty sure my GT-X970 is toast from getting shipped without the scanning head locked (need to open it up and have one more crack at it, doesn't help that getting drivers is a nightmare) but I scored a 2450 on Marketplace for $30 last week. I suppose "high quality" is debateable there, but I've seen decent stuff come up before. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 08:46 on May 8, 2021 |
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May 8, 2021 08:40
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Have re-entered the world of LF this morning with the purchase of a Toyo 45G kit from Japan  Was hoping to find something in Australia but was finding the selection/price pretty wanting, and even after postage and GST this thing came in well under budget and with some handy accessories (macro rail, bag bellows, ground glass protector, Linhoff lensboard adapter). Should get here in a couple weeks. Curious what people's experiences are fixing pinholes in bellows - that's the one issue with it. I know I could drape a darkcloth over it in the meantime (or buy a replacement for another ~$130 or so), but if it looks salvageable I'd like to try and fix it. Have seen a few different greybeard home remedies in searching, ranging from gaffer's tape to a mixture of glue, black paint, and a dab of dishwashing liquid. I also still need to decide on a lens; looking for something I could use for some semi close-ups with a reasonable bit of movements. Trying to keep it under AUD$200 if anyone has any recommendations. I'm looking to use this mainly for experimenting with wet plate - a beater 4x5 seemed like the ideal entry point in terms of keeping costs down and not worrying about staining a pretty wooden camera. Would ideally like my main lens to have a shutter but if there are any places/types of cheap barrel lenses to look for I'm all ears. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 08:33 on May 26, 2021 |
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May 26, 2021 08:30
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Toyo arrived today; the seller kinda undersold how bad the bellows were (when I cranked it out and shone a light from inside, could see tiny pinholes along every crease, not to mention the corners). It did come with a nice darkcloth that I can throw over it in the meantime, but will probably just order a replacement from HK for AU$130. The old one might be useful down the track for a DIY project or as a macro extension at least. One of the plastic knobs for front tilt is mostly broken off - I do have its intact mate on the other side, but can't see it being worth the time to get scanned and 3D printed (I have no experience with either, and trying to keep this thing low budget). Might just bodge something together out of Sugru or something. Other than that though, pretty darn nice and totally serviceable. I forgot how darn cool LF cameras are. On the lens front, I picked up a Schneider Componon 180mm f/5.6 (5x7 enlarging lens) since it was available locally and not too expensive. I think mounting it is gonna be a challenge though - threads seem to be 58-59mm and weight of it may make an epoxy-based solution (was originally gonna epoxy a same-sized filter to a lens board to mount it) precarious. I later decided to YOLO it on a cheap Yamasaki Congo lens (also from Japan, but still less than $70 after shipping) - seller reports it has some fungus but probably not an awful job to sort. Embarassingly it's another 180mm lens (f/4.5, to be fair) but it may take me some time to figure out something satisfactory with the Schneider.  Pondex posted:Are the Hasselblad "C"-lenses annoying to use? The ones with the coupled speed/aperature? Some people don't like it, while it was kind of a "huh." moment when I first started using my Hasselblad, I actually grew to like it. It's handy for being able to adjust settings in the same light, which is probably 90% of the time I'm adjusting my aperture anyways.
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Jun 2, 2021 11:13
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MrBlandAverage posted:Are you using a Packard shutter or just doing long exposures? Wet plate, baby  At some point I do want to pick up another Speed Graphic or RB SLR with working focal plane shutter so I can use my growing collection of barrel lenses on film, but I'm happy to wait until a deal comes along.
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Jun 2, 2021 21:26
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its_happening.gif Well, probably not for a week or two until work quiets down, but exciting to have the chemistry turn up nonetheless. I actually have a second Toyo kit that will be on its way to me tomorrow (fingers crossed) after a very tiresome weeklong runaround between seller, courier company, and booking agent. It'll be worth the hassle though; I stumbled across it looking for spares for mine on eBay and won with a ludicrously low bid since it was poorly described/advertised. Even if the bellows are no good and I wind up having to buy new, it'll be coming with a 90mm Super Angulon, 210mm Symmar-S (both f/5.6 versions), and a third mystery lens that might be a telephoto (couldn't read the lettering, but making an assumption based on the extended lens board in the kit), for less than the cost of my original kit.
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Jun 23, 2021 09:52
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Welp, it's Christmas:  Home sick today and waiting on covid test results, so this definitely brightened my afternoon! This thing is a museum piece - bellows are immaculate (originally all I was searching for), can hardly find a scratch on the finish of camera or lenses. I tend to beat on my gear so I feel a little guilty owning it now. Gonna try and get some foam inserts cut to keep things orderly on the road. It turned out the little lens I suspected was a slow telephoto is actually a 75mm enlarging lens - a decent Rodenstock one that's probably a nice upgrade from the Meopta and Seagull ones I got at the junk shop, so not mad about that. What I had thought was a lens cone for it is actually a loupe for the rear ground glass. On the bright side, I had thought two other lenses were actually one from the pictures, so I've now got a 150mm f/5.6 Symmar-S I wasn't planning on. It also came with what feels like a mostly full box of 50 year old Tri-X. The shutter speeds seem a little suss (only the Super Angulon's speeds seemed plausible), but they started to improve with more exercise so I'm hopeful servicing them won't require sending them out. Another downside is it lacks the clamp for the rail to mount to a tripod, but I can probably get one for under $100 shipped from Japan if I want two complete cameras. All in all pretty thrilled to get these before my trip - don't know if I'll get the rest of the chemistry set up and be confident enough to warrant bringing the LF kit on the road next week, but nice to at least have the option! Also, because I'm a huge idiot with no self control, I might be buying an 8x10 Tachihara with my tax refund... Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 06:53 on Jun 29, 2021 |
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Jun 29, 2021 06:44
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Sludge Tank posted:Nice. I was visualising a converted horse float or something like that as my ideal setup, but that'd necessitate buying something big enough to pull it. I've decided to just do the mobile darkbox thing for now - I made a fairly crude one out of mostly cardboard and other bits of trash or cheap stuff:  The red LED strip lights run off a USB battery bank on the outside, I spliced in a toggle switch so I could turn it on/off from inside the box, and used some cut up old milk jugs for the diffusers. The dip tanks are acrylic water bottles from AliExpress I sawed the tops off of, the stands are just more cardboard with bluetack to seal up light leaks on the corners (got the water bottle idea idea from this guy's blog). It's all held together with hot glue and packing tape. I don't think I'd be happy doing anything bigger than 4x5 in this particular setup, but should work OK for some initial experimentation. I wanted to make something low effort/cost first to get an idea of what kind of size/features I'd want before I invested in building a more permanent setup. As luck would have it I scored this big plastic case for $14 at the tip last week that fits perfectly in the boot of my Yaris:  Planning to use some hooks on the inside of the hatch to hold up the blackout cloth, although I'd like to also be able to use it as a freestanding thing so I'm not completely tethered to my car. Not sure how long it'll take me to get operational but happy to let you borrow it once it's up and running. quote:Did you do Ellie's course? Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 09:32 on Jul 9, 2021 |
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Jul 9, 2021 09:18
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Sludge Tank posted:Oh are you down in Tasmania? I live in Hobart. I was thinking the horse float wouldn't necessarily be my daily driver, but would be particularly nice to use at home as part of a studio setup; since I rent (and will for the forseeable future, seeing as the median house here outearned me last year...) I can't do anything too permanent to where I live, and be nice to be able to drag it to my next place. But definitely want some more portable options - if I'm not happy with the bigger darkbox the next move is to import one of those 3 man ice fishing tents and lightproof it. It is kinda funny the two (AFAIK) wet plate goons both live in the same regional Australian city. I am off all next week so if you're free and the sun's out, let's make it happen! The cardboard darkbox is just enough space for 4x5, not sure how long it'll take me to get the bigger one together but happy to let you shoot on my Toyo if your don't have a 4x5 of your own. I also get back issues if I'm carrying too much heavy stuff or contorting the wrong way, but have got a little three-legged camping chair to sit in which makes working out of the car boot not bad. Don't have PMs here but you should be able to find me pretty easily on LFF (same username, have a recent thread in the wetplate thread). I could definitely use some pointers on pouring technique for sure:  Best of three this arvo, which isn't saying a lot. I am pretty happy to have gotten at least something visible though! Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 06:25 on Jul 10, 2021 |
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Jul 10, 2021 06:04
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 A huge thank you to Sludge Tank for coming by troubleshooting/giving me pointers - it is a huge understatement to say he really knows his stuff when it comes to shooting collodion! He also put up with my little trashpunk darkbox:  We are making plans to head up north and do some shooting in the near future, definitely want to get the bigger darkbox sorted sooner rather than later. I am currently going deeper into the rabbit hole looking for a good/reasonable source of black glass...
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Jul 14, 2021 12:07
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Thanks guys! I also need to burn through 4 more frames of Acros on my 'blad - would really like to develop what I've got and see if any of it's any good. theHUNGERian posted:Are the focal plane shutters on 2000FCW cameras a maintenance liability? I would love the ability to shoot at 1/2000 s speeds, but I also worry about the focal plane shutter just dying or malfunctioning at certain speeds. I was looking at one of those FP shutter Hasselblad's for sale back in uni and watched the seller put his finger straight through the titanium shutter. The memory still haunts me to this day.
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Jul 15, 2021 22:39
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I got my V750 shipped to me and forgot to told my old man to lock the scanner heads, so it was DOA and has been sitting inert for a year. I came across a reasonably priced V700 locally this afternoon to replace it so figured I'd take mine apart again and give it one more try this arvo and what do you know, managed to fix the transparency head! The downside is it's the ~*~JDM~*~ model (GT-X970) and getting the drivers to play nice with EpsonScan is tricky. Neither of the official Epson V750 nor the GT-X drivers seem to work, but the ones that come with VueScan work fine, as long as I'm using VueScan. Currently trying to see if there are any workarounds that'll save me the AU$130 for a VueScan license, but either way I'm thrilled to have it back and not be spending $450 on a new scanner. For some image content, have my first ever 8x10 shots (collodion or otherwise). I was looking for something to practice on and my landlord suggested I shoot this Victorian weather station that's been lingering in the shop for a couple weeks. They are obviously not great from a technical standpoint - the first one I shot on tin and hadn't realised the sun had come into view, and it turns out my uncoated 18cm Yamasaki Congo flares like crazy. It didn't bother me too much - it was a $35 punt I took on a junk eBay lens that needed the fungus cleaned and a lensboard made, had only planned to use it on 4x5 so pretty happy I also have an 8x10 wide angle.  The second one is a clear glass ambrotype I backed with cheap black spraypaint - I actually ran out of collodion doing the pour so coverage is extra bad instead of my usual bad, but the tonality of the silver + black is just  and I'm hooked.  At any rate my landlord posted a photo of one of the tintypes on his Insta with a write-up and it sold in a few hours, so looks like obsolete photo processes can be useful for selling antiques!  Here's a side view of the darkbox set up for shooting. I just use some big spring clips to secure the darkcloth to the bootlid, and that silver tripod leg you can see to wedge it open (the gas struts on my 16 year old Yaris are a little tired). The pull out thing I am probably going to upgrade a bit but it does work, those are tripod legs scavenged off another junk tripod. I was home most of the week sick from work and good for very little, so I spent hours and hours trawling through AliBaba and shooting off enquiries until I found a supplier of 2mm black glass that was willing to do something less than a full 20' container load. The rep says he sells to someone in the US using it for "photography" so pretty sure I've got the right stuff, but have ordered a sample first anyways to be safe. Pretty excited - the stuff is basically unobtainable through regular channels here in Australia. Google Butt posted:my lomograflock ships next month and I'm excited about it I came across that a couple weeks ago, pretty cool product. I would definitely be interested in a similar product for the Hassie back that shot the Square instax. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 08:51 on Sep 12, 2021 |
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Sep 12, 2021 08:43
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Google Butt posted:Is anyone rocking a 75mm on 4x5? Curious how often you use it I've got a 90mm Super Angulon that I'm pretty happy with; haven't really had much call to go wider but I'd probably scoop one up if I saw a good deal. Personally I'd like something longer than my 210 Symmar for portraits and isolating bits of landscapes.
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Sep 27, 2021 03:55
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Today is probably the best day I'm gonna get all week for wet plate shooting so I am planning a trip to the botanic gardens. Fingers crossed I don't forget anything important! In other exciting news, I think I've pretty much fixed my GT-X970 (Japanese V750) after it got knocked around in the post. Had to take apart both the base and lid to get the scanner heads back onto their belts, and seems like the Betterscanning holder now needs a lot of calibration work. I've been doing 1/4 turns on the adjustment screws and am at 4 full turns and still not too happy with the sharpness, although it is getting better. edit: lol almost to 5 and still not where it should be. I am loathe to open up the transparency lid again though, so gonna keep turnin'. They actually are getting (slightly) better at 100% zoom, I promise.  Getting the stock Epson drivers working is a complete lost cause though (this was always at least somewhat of an issue with the GT-X970), looks like I'm gonna have to pony up for VueScan. Paul MaudDib posted:If you know you want to shoot long, you're shooting 4x5, and you have the cash, it seems like the Nikkor-T telephoto set is really the way to go. I think it's a 360/500/720mm that share a front cell and you swap back cells. A complete set is expensive but if you just want the 360mm cell (and a front cell) they're about $550-600 on ebay. You're not gonna get a big tessar or plasmat whatever too cheap either - a 360mm plasmat looks to end up in about the same range, there's a Symmar-S on ebay for $650. Thank you, I will add that one to my watch list; I've got an eBay saved search for convertible lenses but I imagine the real bargains will be the ones not advertised as such. Since I'm doing wet plate I don't *need* a shutter, but it's definitely nice to have. I am in the fortunate position of having plenty of bellows draw; I bought a Toyo 45G from Japan that came with a holey bellows, then scored a really nice deal on a second 45G here when I was looking for replacement parts. Thanks to the modularity of the system I can combine the rails, front standard, and bellows to give me a double-length 45G (as long as I remember to cover the bad one with the dark cloth). The extra bellows extension + collodion will make for some long exposures though. In the short to medium term I think I am going to cave and buy a Zeiss Jenna 300mm f/4.5 barrel lens for AU$300 or thereabouts (mainly for 8x10). I think they should be cheaper but it's been a couple months and I'm getting impatient. It's definitely not an ideal lens for 4x5, but at least I can swap it easily between the cameras - the Tachihara seems happy to take Linhoff boards, and one of the Toyos came with a Linhoff adapter. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 21:59 on Sep 27, 2021 |
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Sep 27, 2021 21:50
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Google Butt posted:Another gear question, anyone using a real hiking/backpacking pack with an ICU for your 4x5 gear? Please post pics if so, looking for ideas  Sure, here's my portable 4x5 setup from today The camping tables go across the front under the bungee cords, had to take them off to fit through the door. Underneath the darkbox (in the part where a normal person would fit two childen) I have my chemicals, 4x5 Toyo, lenses, etc, with a few bits on the shelf below. The little plastic box to the right is what I use for rinsing plates at home and figured it'd be fine for transporting them on site - it leaks like a sieve out the top and I am a 100% idiot for not bringing my glycerol/water coating mix so I didn't have to actually fill it up with water. It was sloshing water everywhere when I had it on the lower shelf of the pram so I had to set it down, move to my destination, then come back for it. I have a local acrylic shop making me a custom unit that should actually be watertight.  (in its natural habitat - I took an angle grinder to an old refridgerator shelf to make the spines and used some Liquid Nails to hold it together. If you like DIY, you'll love wet plate) Even loaded up the pram is actually very smooth and maneuverable, and holds a tonne, but you can definitely feel the hills in your calves. I want to build a "Bastard Box" as most of the weight is from the darkbox, but the folding crate thingo it's based on is discontinued and out of stock everywhere so I might have to explore even more DIY ideas. Ilford just announced a portable darkroom but I have a feeling it'll be north of AU$400 and it doesn't look particularly quick to set up, or meant for outdoor use. Didn't remember to get a pic of "base camp" with the darkbox set up, but found a boring out of the way sitting area to work from that had me in easy walking distance of two things I wanted to shoot. I moved over to another area and started setting up for another shoot, but realised I only had an hour left before the gardens closed and it wasn't gonna be enough time to do much, so decided to call it. Apologies for the phone pics below, may have another crack tomorrow so gonna wait to varnish these ones:  This one of the French Memorial Fountain I shot on black acrylic. When I was getting the diffuser cut for my safelight I asked them to throw a few 4x5 samples in since it was really cheap once they already had the laser cutter fired up. I kinda like the acrylic even though on paper they're not much better than the black aluminium trophy plate most people use for tintypes: the adhesive on the backing paper is a bit stronger so I use alcohol to clean off the residue to be safe, and like the trophy plates they're not super reusable as they can scratch, but OTOH it's pretty similar to black glass at a fraction of the cost. Plus if you drop it, it bounces (as opposed to shattering like glass).  This is an alternative image of the same fountain, I wound up scrubbing it as it is my one piece of 4x5 black glass (sample from an AliBaba supplier) and I wasn't happy about the hole in the collodion near the main part of the composition. It was also heinously underexposed - I did a step test on a piece of glass that came out... almost as a normal picture? The only real gradient I could see was the initial one, so I did a 3s exposure, but wound up having to develop for like 30s to get an image, and there was some weird graininess in the shadows. IDK, maybe the sun trolled me and came out in 1 stop increments between each exposure or something. I just decided to wing it for all my other exposures and develop by sight, which I know Sludge_Tank is going to rightfully castigate me for.  The second attempt with the black glass after I cleaned it - I leaned back while I was getting the plate into the holder and accidentally let some light into the darkbox, which I think is all the crap around the bottom of the frame. 32s @ f/11 (was a fair bit more shady)  Deer scare/fountain thingo, 12s @ f/11 - not sure what that collodion artefact is on the rock to the left, rather interesting coincidence with the composition.  edit: I did this shoot full analog: found an old Soviet stopwatch on eBay for timing the exposures, and a 3m sand timer (marketed for helping kids learn how long to brush their teeth) for the silver bath sensitisation step. With my phone cut out of the process I found it a lot easier to focus on what I was doing, will definitely keep it up. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 10:19 on Sep 28, 2021 |
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Sep 28, 2021 10:02
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Google Butt posted:might i suggest aquiring two or more goats for travel instead My dream is actually Mule Team 6 
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Sep 28, 2021 11:19
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Most of the images I took today were crap (not being careful enough with light leaks in the darkbox). Uh, here's a picture of the car-based setup instead: I also tried to get a pic of the radar telescope near me but as soon as I pulled up it started rotating so... maybe next time. Twenties Superstar posted:the biggest problem i have getting my 4x5 in a bag is the giant metal rail which usually needs to stick out of a gap in tthe zippers Yeah, I bought my Toyo monorail because I thought "it's wet plate, it's not like I'm gonna be walking far with it anyways" but it's still ungainly as hell and annoying to pack. I've got my eye out for a cheap field camera or a Speed Graphic or something as the Toyo's movements and build quality are overkill for most of my uses.
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Sep 29, 2021 11:38
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SMERSH Mouth posted:I had my p67 in my car in a big beefy padded backpack camera case and had to come to a pretty fast stop on the interstate and it slid forward and down into my floorboard in the back seat of my car. That exact scenario was what broke my Speed Graphic (except it wasn't in a case, and was open due to not wanting to put the Aero Ektar away between stops). Lesson learned  SMERSH Mouth posted:Anyone here with baby crown or century graphic experience? The original lenses from its era of manufacture are probably not super well suited for color photography, but there is a whole world of small press camera lenses and even some pretty cool rehoused optics that appear on eBay from time to time that will fit into it. I think the Kalart RF is the same across the different sizes (the proportion of RF size to body size is a good way to ID a Speed or Crown Graphic in a listing). It works quite well when dialed in; I could shoot wide open with the aforementioned Aero Ektar no dramas. The annoying thing of course is that swapping out lenses means having to recalibrate the RF again, so you'll want to find one and stick with it. Can't offer much insight but there'd be plenty of lenses with shutters you could use. A shame it's not a baby Speed graphic; the vintage Petzvals used for 1/6 plate portraits and such are far cheaper than anything that will cover 4x5+.
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Dec 16, 2021 20:53
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I bought a box of Shanghai GP3 in 4x5 on a whim last year; wanted to have a fallback for when I was out doing wet plate and saw something that was interesting, but maybe not worth setting everything up for. I *may* have exposed the rest of the box when I was loading my film holders (haven't tried any of the remaining sheets yet, so I guess that's a story for another day), but yesterday I was mucking around in the darkroom and decided I'd develop the test sheets using the Stearman Press 445 tank I bought secondhand a few months ago. My previous experience was 10+ years ago with some Mod 45 reels, which I don't remember being too bad. I'd tried tray developing once or twice and absolutely hated it, so the Mod reels felt like a godsend at the time. The 445 tank is even nicer though; incredibly easy to load, no leaks at all, only requires 500mL of developer to do 4 sheets. So yeah, definitely recommend. I'd wanted to do some contact prints to share as my neg scanner still needs calibration (pro-tip: do NOT forget to lock the scanner head before shipping) but wound up not having enough time.
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Apr 29, 2022 23:46
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The Intrepid is probably the most polarising camera on the internet; some people really like it for its low cost and light weight despite the issues, other people hate it with the fire of a thousand suns. You definitely won't be disappointed in that Charmonix. If you don't already have one, a Stearman tank makes developing 4x5 a lot nicer. luchadornado posted:Any advice on a first lens? I've shot a lot at ~45deg field of view and I want something a little tighter to start. I'm guessing my options are 150 (42deg) or 210 (30deg). $500 seems quite expensive for a 150mm, that 210 sounds more reasonable. You could try sticking up a wanted ad on LFF or one of the FB groups and see what you get, or try your luck on eBay. I've got a Schneider 90/150/210 combo that came with my Toyo that covers a lot of the bases. 180mm lenses are also not too hard to come by.
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Jun 19, 2022 12:24
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TomR posted:Does this count? I got a big lens and made a big camera. It's a 600mm f/9 Whoa, very cool! Love to see some pictures of the back!
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Jun 20, 2022 09:22
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Well, I let myself talk myself into a stunt bid on a Rittreck Field with the somwhat rare 5x7 back, which I now own. Aside from a missing screw and broken ground glass (both easy fixes) it looks to be in decent shape, so for less than $200 after postage to my sister's place in Tokyo I'm pretty happy. It won't be a lot lighter than my Toyo 45G, but should at least be able to pack down into a bagkpack (I currently lug it in one of those insulated re-usable grocery bags) and having the ability to shoot 5x7 is really handy. I love 4x5 for the economy and convenience, but I have yet to get that  feeling looking at a 4x5 plate. Or at least, one of my 4x5 plates. I may actually try and bring some of my LF stuff with me now and shoot some film on the trip, depending on how packing goes. I figured I'd also want a 4x5 back so I could use it with more/cheaper sheet film, and it wound up being cheaper to buy a parts camera to cannibalise than the standalone part, so I guess I have like 1.8 Rittreck Fields Might see if I can repurpose some of the other parts for DIY projects, I came across this guy's DIY 3D printed 6x17 monorail and was thinking of using his back and maybe bellows to build something a little more robust based on the parts camera's focusing mechanism. I've got another project that could almost definitely use the bellows if they're not too ratty, but I'm assuming the worst given how coy the seller was about showing them. I did try a few half-hearted bids on CF 150mm Sonnars for my Hasselblad, but kept getting edged out by people that wanted them more. I was pretty close to just doing a Buy It Now for a higher price so it'd be there when I arrived, but put in a ridiculously low bid on a very nice looking non-CF that I wound up winning for $120. The part of my brain that rationalises dumb purchases reasoned that basically I'd just gotten the Rittreck + back for free. TomR posted:The rear is 44" x 44" with the image area being 42" x 42". Right now I have a frame with a sheet of hardboard I painted flat white that I'm projecting an image onto and I'm just taking a photo of the image with my DSLR. The lens covers the full 42" square at that focal distance, but less at infinity. The plan is to refine everything and do alternative processes and experiments once I get the camera in a state I can take it places and set it up without it looking like a pile of garbage. I can hang up photo paper, do multiple parts at once and make a one shot photo collage or eventually I'd like to do some wet plate stuff. I'm still working out the kinks though. This is just all so darn cool - those bellows looks particularly well-made. Every couple of years I think about building or fixing something that requires a bellows, I look up a tutorial, and then just nope right back out. A junk enlarger might make a good focusing rail; my two Dursts are both straight columns as opposed to the angled ones a lot of other ones seem to have. I think I might have posted this, but just in case I haven't, the Cameradactyl guy made a hybrid holder/developing tank thing for doing "instant" colour ULF, trying to re-create the massive Polaroids of yore by developing colour positive paper. Might be a jumping off point. Sludge Tank posted:Just make sure you varnish the wood because silver nitrate will turn it to dust pretty quickly. That's amazing I take my hat off to guys who build their own cameras. I love everything Luther Gerlach does. I was doing a demo/lighting test at work on Friday and forgot to take my gloves off when I went to put my mask back on, have had a patchy silver nitrate sideburn all week. I am going to be doing wet plate portraits at the school arts festival Thursday night, have got a couple kids who have put their hands up to be assistants (wrangling sitters, cleaning stuff between plates) while I pour and shoot. Should be fun! Speaking of Gerlach, that ruby darkbox of his is pretty cool. If I can dig up my mini-HDMI adapter, am gonna try and stick a GoPro in my darkbox outputting to a TV so people outside can watch what's going on inside.
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Jun 22, 2022 11:31
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Sludge Tank posted:I was the same in the quest for largest is besterest but that day I went shooting with you up near Antill Ponds that one little 4x5 plate I made rekindled a keen appreciation and fondness in the smaller format. Viewed floating in a nice dark oversized 11x14 or even larger frame they can be surprisingly impactful. I often forget the presentation of the plate as an object is almost as important as the image itself so due consideration should be taken. I worked in a high end framing business for museums and galleries and learned framing is a distinguishable extension of the artwork presented. We definitely gotta get out again - late July/early August I'll be back and with the missus away visiting family weekends should be wide open. If your ute can handle snow we could try the Central Plateau or up Mt Wellington when it's gotten a good dusting; when I get the lightweight darkbox set up* my first trip is gonna be up the Sawmill Track to get some shots of the Organ Pipes. You'll be pleased to learn I've switched from random unlabelled PET bottles for my chemistry (got a bunch of HDPE labware, use specific sizes/shapes for different stuff), which should make things a little more user friendly. *My 3D printer has been finding new and exciting ways to fail, so this may be a little while. TomR posted:Lots of interesting things are opening up with the availability of laser cut wood and 3D printers. I didn't use anything like that but it would have made some parts a lot easier. My focus mechanism is parts meant for a 3D printer though so I did benefit in some way. Definitely! I am looking at taking some woodworking classes when I am in the States, and they also offer units on CNC mills which I'm pretty keen on.
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Jun 23, 2022 12:12
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Something I only found out existed this week: In the end I decided to cancel my bid, which didn't matter since it went for nearly twice what I was initially willing to throw at it: this Cambo 4x5 TLR. I had known about the Gowlandflex, didn't realise a bigger manufacturer had actually taken a stab at making a large format TLR. According to reviews it's a fair bit nicer than the Gowland in terms of build quality, portability, etc. It's definitely cool, but at the end of the day I realised I could get a decent 4x5 Graflex SLR with a rotating back for a lot less, that does the same thing and only requires half the lenses What I did buy was something I've been putting off since I got back into LF this year; an actual not-a-piece-of-junk tripod head. I have a Manfrotto ballhead that was OK for my Speed Graphic back in the day, and supposedly had a much higher weight rating, but I found it would sag badly with my 45G or Tachihara on it. I found a three way pan head tripod at the tip for pretty cheap that mostly works, but it's starting to get to the point where I really have to monster the knobs down to get it locked in place, and there's still a little bit of slop even after tightening things up where I can. Even though they were cheaper, I decided not to get another ballhead since I mostly do slow, locked-down type shooting, and have found it really handy to be able to make adjustments on a single axis with the head I'm using now. An Arca Swiss Cube is well outside my price range, but I came across the Manfrotto 400 geared head and after a few days of hemming and hawing, decided to get it:  I did have a bit of a chuckle at Manfrotto's product description saying the head was "perfect for the travelling photographer". I've already got a big pair of CF legs that have been overkill for every camera I've ever owned, so this should pair nicely with them.
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Jun 24, 2022 22:52
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What have other people's experiences been when confronted with baggage screeners who want to either open a box of film/film back, or put it through the xray scanner? I have flown with 4x5 a few times in the past (and earlier in this trip) and had no issues with a hand check before. Sometimes they swab it, other times just shake the box and call it good. Since I blew a frame (forgot to close the lens down before removing darkslide to take my shot) I took the junk sheet and threw it in my bag to help get across what was in the box since it's rather unusual. This worked fine for the Japan leg of my trip (the Singapore one was supposedly film safe). I always do my best to finish off whatever film is in my camera/film backs but this time didn't really come close, so left it in. Again, was fine in Japan (the security person asked me to put the A12 back on my Hasselblad and shoot a frame to demonstate it worked, which was mildly annnoying but a compromise I could live with), the hero working in Melbourne said it had to go through the scanner if he couldn't open it. At the end of the day I caved, because after 20 hours of travel I was not up for a fight, and most of it had gone through the scanners inadvetantly during the outbound leg of the trip anyways (all generally 100 ISO, with a roll of Tri-X I am planning to pull to 100 in the Hasselblad back). I also wasn't particularly confident anything I shot was going to be any good anyways*. Curious to know what others have done in the past when confronted with that situation. I'd almost packed my changing bag in my carryon for that situation to give them the option to inspect by touch, but I felt like either they wouldn't do it, or they'd screw something up not knowing what they were doing. *Trip was largely a bust from a photography standpoint, despite going full Howard Hughes I got covid most likely on the way over, so spent most of it in iso on the US Navy base my sister lives on. OTOH it was great from an acquiring cameras standpoint; went hog wild on Yahoo Auctions in the lead up to the trip and during iso, so scored some killer bargains. Also bit of a longshot except for the Rittreck (which I know a poster in this thread has) on DIY repair questions:
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Jul 24, 2022 05:28
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Ziggy Smalls posted:I dont have experience with sheet film but i went on a trip to New Zealand and Australia a few years back with zero problems. For 120 rolls I left the plastic packaging on the fresh ones and made a point to finish any rolls left in my camera so it could be scanned worry free. I also kept all the rolls shot or not inside the original paper 5 roll package. Those packages were inside a ziplock bag to easily take out of my carry on while going through security. Half the time theyd swab one of the boxes and that was it. Yeah, that's my ideal situation case (rolls either in the foil or shot), but I was only a few frames into a roll on one of the Hasselblad backs, ditto the Rittreck. I wrote "FILM" on my hand in marker and carried it in a plastic bag outside my carryon so I didn't forget to ask to have it hand checked, mostly because I'm a forgetful idiot. I don't think durability should matter too much - once it's in it shouldn't be rattling around or anything. I banged up the original coating because I didn't have suction cup on hand to precisely place the element when I was putting it back in, had to keep trying to get the perfect drop, which chipped it away in a few places.   Tell me about your 6x12 camera! I am in the process of printing the Berg 6x17 right now; farmed out the bellows to eTone in China to the tune of US$90 because I know mine would turn out horrible and I know they do good work. I spent this afternoon trying to cut the ground glass from a broken 8x10 plate and then wasted a perfectly good one before giving up and calling a framer, for  my problem is solved. Is something I want to learn though, need to keep an eye out for a stained glass windowmaking workshop or something. Cacator posted:I've had 800 ISO film go through the carry on baggage scanners and they were fine. I think you only have to be concerned about the more powerful X-rays for check in luggage. Everything went through the checked bag once (Flight Centre didn't put the fact my "Qantas" flight was actually a codeshare with Jetstar on my itinerary, so had to check my carryon and forgot about the film because I'd woken up at 4:15am), so we'll see how it goes. Megabound posted:My Rittreck is a bit different to yours but here's an album with photos from my ongoing service. It's been quite easy to work on except for my current fight which is getting the curtain tension rollers out. I can't figure that one out and I need to to replace the curtain ribbons. Holy smokes, Goon of the Year! Thank you, and that is a really impressive effort so far! Hoping to dive into this thing in the next couple of weeks. It's a really neat camera; people said it was big but I'm honestly surprised at how compact it is given it's a 6x9 SLR. I'm hoping it's an easy fix, it seems like the top part of the mirror is fouling on the shutter curtain or something. I got what looked like a very half-hearted exposure the first time I used it, the camera makes encouraging ratchety noises when I turn the knob, and the mirror makes a weak little motion when it gets to the "click" part of the rotation. I can't seem to depress the shutter button now.
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Aug 6, 2022 08:43
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Ziggy Smalls posted:I found an article about a camera design called the Kraken 6x12 and the creator was selling all the files for $30. The design uses a focusing helical you can easily buy on ebay and that alone sold me on it cause every other design I saw was fixed focus or used bellows. It also came with lens cones for focal lengths ranging all the way from 58-180mm. That is so cool! What lens are you using on it? Bellows definitely add another potential point of failure/jank; I got pretty ordinary results with the 35mm panoramic camera I tried to make out of a Nimslo, macro rail, and 6x9 folder bellows back in uni. I'd like another crack at it using a helicoid and 3D printer to make a lens cone like your camera, but with what Nimslo's cost these days, don't think I can justify butchering another one. That viewfinder sounds really handy! Does it get really croppy with smaller sizes/longer focal lengths, or is it still pretty usable? I definitely remember the Fotoman brand, didn't know they'd gotten out of the business. With the rise of 3D printers there are a few other people making highly modular systems (Dora Goodman's comes to mind, but I've seen a few others). If you've got time, I'd love to see the film travel mechanism, pressure plate, anything like that. The guy who designed the 6x17 I'm working on seems to get really good results (he posted high res scans) but it almost seems too good to be true with how simple it is. He mentioned adding some foam to push against the spools to help keep tension on the film, which I'm gonna try. Assuming it more or less works I'm hoping to iterate a bit on the design in the next few months and ape some of the creature comforts on the Shenhao 617, like a ground glass on hinges that drops out of the way, and maybe geared focusing. Definitely take that camera with you and share the pics! theHUNGERian posted:If you hate money, there is a guy who will convert old 6x6 folders into 6x12 cameras: https://www.flickr.com/photos/dirkfletcher/albums Those are pretty cool! There are a lot of Horseman 6x12 backs about on Yahoo Auctions, I might have a crack at 3D printing something similar someday. edit: nm, those things are over 1000AUD! Can probably get lucky and find one attached to a camera/not advertised for a fair bit less though. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 23:17 on Aug 6, 2022 |
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Aug 6, 2022 23:12
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theHUNGERian posted:^ People make lots of dumb decisions in photography, see also: Holgas. Breadnought posted:Is the BetterScanning.com variable height mounting station still the recommended holder for 4x5 on a V850? If you can get one! There's been a lot of chatter online about the guy being very sporadic at responding to emails and orders (I think related to his health/the pandemic or something). I got some 4x5 film not long ago and haven't tried scanning it yet, you made me realise I should be able to make a reasonable facsimile of a Betterscanning holder with my 3D printer and some threaded brass inserts + hardware I have laying around.
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Sep 27, 2022 21:30
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  Good news: the Russian 140mm f/1.8 petzval projection lens I ordered on eBay a while ago showed up from   Bad news: definitely doesn't cover 4x5. I could find no information at all on LF coverage before I ordered it so took a gamble, a week later some guy on Reddit posted claiming he'd used it for 4x5 but didn't like the sharpness, maybe he had it mistaken for the planar version or something. Even 6x9 looks like it vignettes in the corners a bit, it also has to be so close it'll be only pretty tight headshots with no DoF. I still haven't had a chance to crack open my Rittreck and try to unjam the shutter, so it's kind of academic at this point anyways. It juuuust barely fits in the throat of the lensboard hole so I do wanna try it if I can get the thing working again. edit: my partner got home so I tried framing it with her; it's not a bad crop for a face portrait, but the Rittreck doesn't have a rotating back so it'll be annoying to use. Maybe I should see if I can get a baby Graflex SLR... I can definitely make an adapter to shoot a smaller plate in a 4x5 holder pretty easily in the meantime, not sure how worth it it'll be given the limitations, but I've already started the print for the lensboard so might as well see how it goes. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 11:44 on Oct 1, 2022 |
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Oct 1, 2022 04:17
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Megabound posted:My Rittreck is a bit different to yours but here's an album with photos from my ongoing service. It's been quite easy to work on except for my current fight which is getting the curtain tension rollers out. I can't figure that one out and I need to to replace the curtain ribbons. Probably seen this, but just in case you haven't, Japanese guide on taking the shutter curtain out and replacing it. There's part of the mechanism he can't figure out how to get out either, but can get it apart enough to remove the curtain and install a new one. I was coming in to ask where you'd start if I can't get the shutter to fire. The curtain is closed (looks to be in good shape), mirror is down, and when I wind it I can see the mirror do a little jump/hop at one point in the rotation. I was able to fire the camera once when I first got it, but the shutter button doesn't seem to have gone back out, and I've had no luck using a cable release either.
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Oct 8, 2022 01:50
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The camera repair gods were smiling upon me today; managed to free the 150mm Sonnar I bought on holiday in Japan earlier this year that got stuck on my 500C/M in the middle of the trip. I tried everything I could think of to get it off; setting it next to the heater or in the freezer, using the little silver screw behind the barn doors (normal fix, if it's just the lens/body getting desynced), etc, nothing. I found a repair tech in Australia a few weeks ago but got busy with work and only got around to packing it up to send to him this morning, thought I'd give it one more try and... it came loose! Found the likely culprit, not really sure how it happened or if it came like this:  Tried to bend it back with some small locking pliers but not small enough to do the job. Hopefully I can find a replacement part, gonna ask the tech if he has one he can sell me. Doesn't seem hard to get to but about half the screws holding the back plate on did not want to budge, going to hit them with some penetrating oil and then freeze it to see if they can be persuaded. Hassie is working like a champ with my other lenses, quite a relief and pretty stoked to not be out $220+postage (and not have the camera for another month)  Gonna dig into that Rittreck 6x9 SLR next week, thanks again for all the resources Megabound!
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Dec 19, 2022 03:24
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Pondex posted:Is it worth picking up a cheap Pentax Spotmeter (model IV) for medium format? I got one on my local craigslist. Yeah, definitely. I have an old Pentax spot meter, I think it's the V, and have absolutely beat on it for like 15 years over 3 continents, still works great. I think I bought a new battery for it when I got it, but I'm pretty sure I haven't changed it since.
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Mar 12, 2023 08:13
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