5x4 polaroid is dead. What can I use as an alternative??

[fiercehairdo]

Hi,

I am completely unable to source 5x4 polaroid film any more. How can I accurately test exposures?? I have a Mamiya RZ 67, can I just set it up at the same aperture, F-Stop etc and shoot polaroids on the Mamiya and this will be correct for the 5x4?

Any other suggestions welcomed. I also have a Canon EOS D5 digital SLR. Can this be used at all to preview the exposure on the 5x4?

Many thanks,
Mr Hairdo.

[Gene McCluney]

Hi,

I am completely unable to source 5x4 polaroid film any more. How can I accurately test exposures?? I have a Mamiya RZ 67, can I just set it up at the same aperture, F-Stop etc and shoot polaroids on the Mamiya and this will be correct for the 5x4?

Any other suggestions welcomed. I also have a Canon EOS D5 digital SLR. Can this be used at all to preview the exposure on the 5x4?

Many thanks,
Mr Hairdo.

It seem like every week someone asks this question. You need not panic. Fuji makes instant film that can be used for 4x5 and for your Mamiya. It is pack film. You will need a pack film back for your 4x5, which you can find used (as a Polaroid brand back), or purchase brand new as a Fuji brand back. Fuji makes 2 sizes of pack film, one size is for 4x5 the other size is for the popular pack-film cameras and backs used for medium-format cameras. There are no "individual sheet" type peel-apart films made anymore, but the 10-sheet Pack films work just the same for testing. The Fuji films are actually better in many respects.

The pack-film back is rather thick, but will slide in under the ground glass on most modern 4x5 cameras, or if your camera has a graflok back, you can put the pack-film back on in place of the ground glass. The back has a darkslide, so you can remove it at any time.

[Bruce Watson]

Any other suggestions welcomed.

Since you opened that door...

How about a 1 degree spot meter and the Zone System? That's how I expose my 5x4 film, and it works really well for me. I hardly ever miss an exposure; I can recall two or three from the past six or seven years (over 1000 sheets of 5x4 film), and at least one of those was just my failure to stop the lens down before making the exposure. It all boils down to "expose for the shadows and develop for the highlights" just like everyone says.

[BrianShaw]

Since you opened that door...

How about a 1 degree spot meter and the Zone System? That's how I expose my 5x4 film, and it works really well for me.

or... how about just any-old averaging light meter... they come with both reflected and incident capabilities. That's how it was done in the "good old days" and still works today for people like me who don't need the precision/complexity of Zone System.

But what about that BTZS? :D

[BrianShaw]

I have a Mamiya RZ 67, can I just set it up at the same aperture, F-Stop etc and shoot polaroids on the Mamiya and this will be correct for the 5x4?

Yes, if the ASA is the same too. One exception might be if you are doing macro work... then you'd have to figure in the bellows-extension correction for your view camera. But that's a lot of gear to schlepp with you.

[benrains]

A good meter and a little bit of self-confidence is all you need if you're shooting in a situation with continuous lighting. If you're checking a strobe lighting setup you could either go with the Fujifilm instant film, taking into consideration ISO differences, or just preview it with the Canon 5D. I check my studio lighting setups with a junky Nikon D50 and it's a lot quicker, easier, cheaper, and more consistent than using instant film. The exposure histogram features of a DSLR are also useful to get a rough idea of lighting hotspots and other exposure problems.

[Gene McCluney]

There are those of us who "grew up" using Instant prints as an evaluation tool, and they are still handy if you are shooting film with a client. They like looking at a bigger image than the monitor on a digital SLR. In any case, there are Fuji films that can serve the same purpose the defunct Polaroid films did for testing.

[Kirk Gittings]

First question is....what are you shooting?


Hi,

I am completely unable to source 5x4 polaroid film any more. How can I accurately test exposures?? I have a Mamiya RZ 67, can I just set it up at the same aperture, F-Stop etc and shoot polaroids on the Mamiya and this will be correct for the 5x4?

Any other suggestions welcomed. I also have a Canon EOS D5 digital SLR. Can this be used at all to preview the exposure on the 5x4?

Many thanks,
Mr Hairdo.

[BrianShaw]

What I meant to say is, "I agree with what Gene just wrote". Unfortunately I wrote a message 'correcting' Gene yet using all of the exact same thoughts. Me culpa.

[Salvatore Formisano]

I just bought a Toyo View 45CF, 210mm lens and the PA-45 Fuji pack film holder and some 4x5 instant fuji film.

The Fuji Instant film yields wonderful results.

Sal

[VictoriaPerelet]

DSLR with matching lens works just fine, much better than any imaginable light meter. Save Polaroids for better use:)

[Gene McCluney]

DSLR with matching lens works just fine, much better than any imaginable light meter. Save Polaroids for better use:)

Maybe, but if we don't use Fuji-roids enough that their volume drops to where it is unprofitable for them to continue making them....

I say we gotta USE the stuff to keep it in production. I shot 22 Fuji instant film tests this week already.

[Frank Petronio]

I'm happy to no longer be extorted by Polaroid and I think it's just fine they went bust ;-)

In the course of running a photo business I probably spent $20K on Polaroid materials. A lot of it was defective and wasteful.

Let the market decide. Right now people are shooting plenty of sheet film, it is still a profitable business. I'm not going to spend money with Fuji to "support" a dead-end product that I don't need. If you want to promote large format photography the best you can do is to enjoy shooting and maybe teach someone else.

I can appreciate the beauty in a SX-70 print, and I love the Type 55 negs I made. But getting too attached to your materials will stifle you too. I can make muddy blurry arty prints with a Lomo instead of expensive Polariod materials.

[Gordon Moat]

Get an old Polaroid 405 holder, or Polaroid 550 holder, and use that on your 4x5. Both are made for pack films, which Fuji still make in a few varieties. It is cheaper to use the slightly smaller Polaroid 405 holder than the larger Polaroid 550 holder, since the Fujifilm Instant steps up quite a bit in price for the 45 variety. If you want colour instant, then FP100C fits the 405, and FP100C45 fits the 550. Fuji also make their own holders for these, though they are nearly the same as the older Polaroid versions. Fujifilm also offer more Instant films in Japan than the rest of the world, though hopefully they might expand distribution.

If you manipulated Polaroid peel apart films, then you might find Fujifilm Instant to be challenging. It was easier with Polaroid films because generally their binding quality was not that great. Fujifilm unfortunately does too good a job with their Instant films, making them tough to manipulate. Fuji Instant is great for proofing, and challenging to manipulate.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography (http://www.gordonmoat.com)