Have you considered one of the collapsible monorails such as the Technikardan? I've never used one (I'm a woody-phile myself), but they seem to be quite well m ade and well-designed and may well...
Type: Posts; User: Rob "John Henry" Rothman; Keyword(s):
Have you considered one of the collapsible monorails such as the Technikardan? I've never used one (I'm a woody-phile myself), but they seem to be quite well m ade and well-designed and may well...
To load sheet film, you don't really need a "darkroom"--all you need is a "dark room." As long as there is a room in your house that can be made completely dar k and reasonably dust-free, you'll be...
Ron, I hope that your prediction is wrong, but I fear that it is right. At the risk of being branded a Luddite, let me make the case for the continued existenc e of conventional photography.
...
Seeing all the hype in the press and advertising literature about this subject, I've been concerned about it's possible effect on the availability of convention al materials, particularly color. My...
208mm of coverage doesn't sound like much for "extreme" movements. The diagonal of a 4x5 sheet of film is approximately 150mm. That means the circle of covera ge has only a little over an inch on...
I don't have any experience with either of the two specific lenses you mention, but a factor to keep in mind is how easily your camera bellows will compress to handle the shorter lens. A few years...
This isn't a large format question, but I'll take a chance and post it anyway:
I prefer to use a 3-way pan/tilt head for all of my work. Currently, I'm using a Bogen (Manfrotto)--I believe it's a...
I think if you ask that question of 10 different photographers, you'll get 11 di fferent answers. Because so much depends on personal preferences, I won't try t o answer it. Instead, I'll point out...
Of those field camera which do offer axis tilts, many suffer from a basic design problem. Namely, the lock for the axis tilt also locks the rise/fall. The res ult is that when you want to raise or...
If all your work is "grand vistas", its at optical infinity, so you need to be a ble to extend your bellows to the focal length of the lens (210mm) to achieve fo cus. However, you probably want a...
Using different degrees of compensation for different polarizer settings may be an unnecessary level of precision. I tend to add two stops whenever the polariz er is on the camera, regardless of...
The question of what type of head to use is largely a matter of personal prefere nce. I've seen many fine photographers who use a ball head. However, my own fe eling is that I have greater...
I'm inclined to agree that its unlikely that either lens would be noticeably bet ter than the other. As far as the price differential is concerned, the lower pr ice on Nikkor mentioned above is...
I don't have any experience with this sort of thing, but I would think that any LED device or similar light source would have to be actually in contact with the film. Since the source would not be...
I don't know the answer to your question, but two thoughts occur to me. First, since these are "test" shots anyway, why not just include a piece of paper, chal kboard, etc., somewhere in the scene...
Not having worked with this particular camera, I can't help with the camera-spec ific questions, but you should be aware of one general point. Stops in the vici nity of f8-f11 1/2 are almost unheard...
I would add only two things to the above description. First, be VERY careful wh en unscrewing and replacing the rear lens element--the threads are extremely fin e and can easily be damaged. Second,...
I haven't used the carbon fibre models, but my experience with Gitzos in general has not been good. The leg locks tend to freeze up and tear up your hands when you try to loosen or tighten them. In...
I'm not sure that gaffer tape would be a good choice. The roll that I have (fro m Calumet) is black on the outside, but the inner (adhesive) side is light gray.
The last Calumet catalog I saw (which was probably within the last few months) s till listed the modified meters.
One further thought on the issue of traveling with sheet film. You might want t o consider using Readyload or Quickload film if the emulsion you want is availab le in that form. Its expensive, but...
1:1 magnification is eminently doable in large format. However, once you start getting meaningfully closer than that, two factors start becoming a real problem . The first is the length of your...
Just a guess on the meaning of "FluoroEktar": It sounds like the kind of name t hat might have been used for a lens with one or more fluorite elements. I'm not an optical engineer, but from what...
Wouldn't sticking shutter blades be more likely to slow down the speeds, resulti ng in overexposure? Before investing in either new shutters or repairs, I might run some tests to eliminate other...
The position of the groundglass versus that of the actual film plane does indeed vary quite a bit. A couple of years ago, I took a large format workshop taught by Joe Englander. In connection with...
Thanks. I'd like to learn a little more about the process of remounting a lens in a shutter. From what I've read, there's more to it than just threading the f ront and back elements in place; I...
If you can't look at an actual camera back, see if you can find an illustration of one in a book. The way the leaf springs provide the necessary pressure is di fficult to explain, but will be quite...
According to the Kodak publication on optical formulas, the formula for hyperfoc al distance is H=F^2/(f x d), where F is the focal length of the lens, f is the f-stop, and d is the diameter of the...
At the risk of incurring the wrath of those who disagree, let me try to help out a little on terminology.
The term "view camera" is most often used generically to describe any large form at camera...
A good place to start might be by reading the introductory material on this site . It's a good intro to some of the "nut and bolts" issues of large format work.
As far as books are concerned, the...
Some time ago, while looking at a lens in the 120mm range, I was advised by one of Calumet's large format specialists that a true wide angle design (Super Angul on or Nikkor SW) would probably...
Although I haven't done any pinhole work, I suspect that, unless you're a whiz w hen it comes to micro-machining, the diameter (and hence the f-number) of your p inholes is likely to be somewhat...
In the new (Jan-Feb./98) issue of View Camera magazine, Lens & Repro in NY has a n ad for what they describe as a one-of-a-kind lens--a 150mm which they claim co vers 20x24! There may be some very...
If I understand correctly,the tripod screw is the larger (3/8") size, and the so cket in the camera is the smaller (1/4") size. Most adaptors that I've seen wor k in the reverse direction. Rather...
Some time ago, I was given a fresnel screen for my Zone VI 4x5 camera. The scre en (original Zone VI equipment) is the type which permanently replaces the exist ing groundglass. It consists of two...
Not long ago, View Camera magazine had an illustrated article on the subject. S orry, I don't remember the month offhand.
As far as large format technique is concerned, Stroebel is the bible. Other, le ss comprehensive, books are by Steve Simmons and Harvey Shaman. I believe that there is another book out there (I...
It sounds like you are doing it correctly. With the short (4") sides of the fil m vertical, the notch should be on the lower side of the right-hand short side ( i.e., the lower end of the side near...
Does anybody know anything about the Berlebach wooden tripods which Calumet is a dvertising? The prices are a lot less than Reis, and are also less than the Zon e VI tripods (which I assume are no...
I seem to recall that, within the last year or two, View Camera magazine ran an article, including detailed plans, on building a 4x5.