The Annual Upgrade

[jnantz]

Every year I try to upgrade some part of my kit from "cheap but good enough to get by with" to "hey this is pretty slick"
For example, over the years I've upgraded:
My light meter from an "iffy" swap meet Adams to a Luna Pro SBC.
My focusing loupe went from a uiquitous Agfa to a tilting Silvestri
Assorted cable releases of disreputable ancestry to professional grade Gepes
A motley collection of worn out gear bags replaced with a pair of Mil-spec surplus coyote tan 5 gallon water can coolers for toting film holders
A downright bizarre grain focuser to a Bestwell
Little by little my kit has gotten better, or at least better functioning. I'm thinking this practice has served me well over the years. As I'm contemplating what, if anything to upgrade this year I was wondering if anyone here does the same sort of yearly thing? If so, what bit of your kit are you planning on upgrading?

hi john

i don't have many things that i am planning to upgrade ..
mainly just materials --- i am using dektol now instead of ansco 130
equipment wise ... i am fixing a polaroid 500 camera (not one of the new ones
but one that took 4x5 sheet film ) so it has a working flash sync.
the flash sync currently on it is dead

[Toyon]

hi john

i don't have many things that i am planning to upgrade ..
mainly just materials --- i am using dektol now instead of ansco 130
equipment wise ... i am fixing a polaroid 500 camera (not one of the new ones
but one that took 4x5 sheet film ) so it has a working flash sync.
the flash sync currently on it is dead

Why is Dektol an upgrade?

[John Kasaian]

hi john

i don't have many things that i am planning to upgrade ..
mainly just materials --- i am using dektol now instead of ansco 130
equipment wise ... i am fixing a polaroid 500 camera (not one of the new ones
but one that took 4x5 sheet film ) so it has a working flash sync.
the flash sync currently on it is dead

Cool!
I really enjoyed reading your blog, btw.
I've outgrown the "upgrade" scheme so for now my budget is limited to film, paper and chemicals, which is a good thing.
But back to the annual upgrade scheme:
I notice people getting into the hobby either
1) Want the best and want it now, or
2) Trying to get the best gear they can on a meager budget.

I think there is a certain level of satisfaction that comes with studying something (new OR used) then saving up for it, waiting for an affordable price, and then being able to get out and use it. Making this an annual thing adds a level of anticipation and excitement. I think it's good to start new years with a feeling of anticipation and excitement----even if its about a new set of trays or pro quality cable releases.

[Larry Kellogg]

I hope to upgrade my head. I haven't made an LF exposure in far too long, and now I live in a relative paradise.

So, how 'bout a series where I set up the 5x7 aimed at a nice composition of the water through my trees, and starting early on a sunny summer morning, make one negative every hour all day long, just to see how the light changes? Print them all, and have a sequence. I've wanted to do that for years. Time to get around to it.

I had to do something similar in one of my photo classes. I had to take 36 photos of a bench. I know, not large format, but still a good idea. It's amazing what you can come up with when doing an exercise like that. I shot under the bench, over, close, far, with people, without people, etc.

By the way, this book, The Photographer's Playbook has a lot of good exercises from well known photographers:

http://aperture.org/shop/the-photogr...playbook-books

[jnantz]

Why is Dektol an upgrade?

hi toyon
it might be an upgrade , because it is new and different after 15+ years that i have gone back to it
it might be a lateral move because well, it is a nice middle of the road print developer ( that i will be using for film )
or it might be a downgrade because, well, ansco 130 i have a long running relationship with and it will take some getting used to
a new developer ( even though i used it for year before i got hooked on the 130 ) and because my darkroom time is in spurts
with a lot of empty space inbetween so my gallon of dektol might go bad before i get a chance to use it up ( ansco 130 lasts for about a year when mixed as a stock ) ...
i'm hoping!! its an upgrade cause i am broke and can't afford 130 these days ... so far so good though, i've been processing film ( and paper ) with it
and it seemingly behaves like ansco130, so i am happy at least it seems like a lateral move

Cool!
I really enjoyed reading your blog, btw.
I've outgrown the "upgrade" scheme so for now my budget is limited to film, paper and chemicals, which is a good thing.
But back to the annual upgrade scheme:
I notice people getting into the hobby either
1) Want the best and want it now, or
2) Trying to get the best gear they can on a meager budget.

I think there is a certain level of satisfaction that comes with studying something (new OR used) then saving up for it, waiting for an affordable price, and then being able to get out and use it. Making this an annual thing adds a level of anticipation and excitement. I think it's good to start new years with a feeling of anticipation and excitement----even if its about a new set of trays or pro quality cable releases.

thanks john!
the blog thing is kind of fun --

i agree, the yearly upgrade is a good thing. i always look forward to the end of the year ...
but onboard-car-computers, ignition coils, strut mounts, cv joints and whatnot seem to take precedence this year
i'm already daydreaming about next year's upgrade ...
a rubber gasket for my ceramic coffee jar to store emulsion in

can't wait !

kenats’y
- john

[Peter Collins]

Well, for Christmas I treated myself to a Wisner Pocket Expedition 4x5, which is 2.25 lb lighter than my Wisner Technical Field 4x5. I hesitate to ask she who still loves me for more upgrades--for a while.

[Larry Kellogg]

Nice, Peter. How much does the Wisner Pocket 4x5 weigh? I have a Wisner Pocket 5x7 that weighs only 5.5 pounds.

[Jac@stafford.net]

I hope to upgrade my head. I haven't made an LF exposure in far too long, and now I live in a relative paradise.

Relative paradise? You Mother-in law passed away?
.

[bigdog]

I've got an X10 radio control module for the work light. The remote key fob hangs from a string on the enlarger side. With no conductive connection between them, I have nothing to worry about when turning on and off the light.

I had thought of using a wireless control, but decided against it. What happened is that I put in a row of led track lights over my sink, but just plugged them into a wall outlet with an in-line switch. Works fine, but really need to hard wire to a permanent wall switch.

[chassis]

My most recent upgrade was changing to stand development. For me it has meant consistently low contrast negatives (my goal) with minimum effort.

If all goes well, this year I will add a film scanner to my workflow and enter the world of digital images from film negatives.

I also hope to upgrade, or further develop, my artistic vision.