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I use Phil Davis's Beyond the Zone System refinement of the Zone System with very good success. What I mean by that is that my negatives almost always give me a nice straight print on my chosen...

Apparently the world of large-format photographers can be split into two camps: the rugged, manly types who use for their dark cloths any old flotsam from their tattered wardrobes, and who, in a...

And I second Bruce Barlow's recommendation of the video Printing with Fred Picker. I found that I learned things from watching a master printer work, even on video, that I could not get from a book.

I can recommend two books by the English photographer Eddie Ephraums: "Creative Elements: Darkroom Techniques For Landscape Photography," and "Gradient Light - The Art And Craft Of Using Variable...

I'm relying on my memory here, but as I recall, the time and dilution that you have found to work for Polymax will also work for Ilford MGIV FB. I used (I think) 1:9 @ 70 degrees for 3-5 minutes. D...

I bought the original blackjacket and like it very much, but for me it had two problems: My view camera is the Canham DLC45. Because of the design of the rear standard, even with the blackjacket,...

DD-X seems to yield the best emulsion speed of any of the popular developers. If you are getting a personal film speed of 200 with HP5+ and ID-11, you can confidently expect 250 with DD-X and may...

Ed Buffaloe's cite, The Unblinking Eye, has a concise and well written article on archival processing. In that article, I came across the following:

"Doug Nishimura indicates (in a letter to...

Of course some current papers tone to a beautiful cold tone in Selenium, so I'm sure many photographers will continue to use RST even if it is not having the benefits for image permanence that we...

John,

Definitely give the folks at Kirk Enterprises a call. (I don't have the link, but if you put Kirk Enterprises into Google their website comes right up.) I believe they have exactly what you...

I have been having difficulty making fine adjustments to the tilt of my Canham DLC45, and wondered whether other users of this camera had tips or tricks they would like to share.

I use the...

Glenn,

My wife and I are regular vacationers on St. Martin (the french half of St. Maarten). I always bring a 35 mm camera and a tripod, and I have made some wonderful pictures there, in both...

From Really Right Stuff, an arca-style QR plate for my Canham DLC 45.
From Kirk Enterprises, an adaptor plate to allow my Bogen 410 geared head to take Arca-style QR plates.
A Black Jacket dark...

I won't defend Mr. Gnass's business practices, but, FWIIW, my own experience with Gnass has been very good. I have ordered from him twice within the last year, and each time my order was delivered in...

Kerey,

There are a couple of wrinkles to the process of shooting and printing B&W that you may not have considered, and that might have some bearing on your choice of film and developer.

As I...

Hi Wisawa,

I have a Canham DLC 45 and three Canham lens boards. Unfortunately I am at work and my camera is at home, so I cannot check this for you, but my recollection is that all three lens...

John,

In order usefully to apply BTZS data, you must keep in mind how the system works. Why are you trying to find the subject brightness range? Because you are trying to make an easily printable...

Janko,

your english is fine. I understand you to be saying that you want to use ND Grads to make the best possible negative in the field, so that you will have less work to do later in the...

Janko,

let me ask the obvious question: if you are only working in black and white, why bother with ND Grads at all? Photographers shooting transparency film must use them because of the limited...

Michael,

Fair enough.

David

Michael,

Your post is typical of many of those critical of View Camera magazine here: you call on Steve Simmons to improve the quality of his magazine, but you do so in a manner that would be...

Sammy: I believe you have missed my point. I have not claimed to know anything about the degree of coziness that exists between View Camera and Sekonic. I claim only that an inappropriate...

I agree with Paul Kierstead. One of the things I most prize about this forum is the civility of its participants. When we disagree with one another we generally manage to do it without rancor or...

Jean-Louis,

I use the Bogen/Manfrotto 410 geared head for my large format camera without any problems. However, my camera, a Canham DLC, weighs less than 5 pounds. The 410 might not work as well...

I use DD-X for my rotary processing (BTZS tubes) of HP5+, and like the combination very much. My dilution is 1:6.

I don't think you will have any problem with XTOL, though. Most of the failures...

P.S. Kerry, I would also love to see you write a book on working techniques for landscape photographers. My suggestion for a title: "A Field Guide to the Field Camera."

Kerry,

Thank you for your post, which touches on what are for me some of the most important questions I have about working in the field.

I have a some thoughts, suggestions, and questions to...

Hi Tom,

A set of commercially made BTZS tubes are available from The View Camera Store for $140 + shipping. The tubes come with instructions for use. the principal advantages of the tubes: they...

From what I can see of the photographs on line, it looks as though the Keoughs shot in 35 mm only. Frank Hurley, Shackleton's photogapher with the Endurance expidition, proved long ago that...

John,

You raise several interesting points, but I'm not sure that your references to positivism and phenomenology actually add anything to the discussion. You might as reasonably refer to...

Sound technique is a prerequisite to a good photograph whether your approach to making photographs is analytical or intuitive. If someone gives you a hammer, a chisel and a big block of marble,...

Hi Paul,

After years of using other processing methods, I am an enthusiastic convert to BTZS tubes. Obviously, the best info on processing times would be derived from your own Zone System -- or...

Peter,

I believe Gene is right that 150 is the standard for 4X5 printing, for the reason that it provides the most even illumination of the negative. However, in my own darkroom, where ceiling...

Hogarth, I have often asked myself the same question.

At present, I am using hp5+ in DD-X 1:6. In my darkroom I am able to print only to 16X20. At that size, my prints are grainless. Also,...

Terrific news! Thanks, Tuan & Co.

I will always be grateful to Fred Picker for kindling my interest in large format photography through his Zone VI catologues. I still have the last two, as they are full of useful information like...

Mr. Schwartz:

Davis recommends that you stay with a a four zone spread because using a larger or smaller zone spread will build into your exposure/development calculations an error in the ...

Hi Scott,

I read Ctein's book and had the same idea you did -- and the same concerns that I might be doing more harm than good. I nonetheless bought a two-stop ND filter that I screw into the ...

Hi Russell,

I would like to give Phil Davis's Beyond The Zone System (BTZS) a qualified recommendation. My recommendation is "qualified" because I cannot tell from your posting whether you...

Dan,

I recently purchased the book. Although it is expensive, I think it is worth having for a couple of reasons: First, great care has gone into the reproduction and presentation of the...