sorry, there must be a million "which camera to buy" threads, but couldn't help starting a new one. I'm looking to buy my first 8x10 camera and lens (but will post lenses in the lens forum) and looking for some advice on what to buy. I've recently seen the Intrepid 8x10 offering online, and wondering if i should go that route or look for something used.
I don't want to spend a ton on my first camera because i know after shooting with it for a bit i'll discover more about what i do and don't like and will inevitably end up with another camera that suits my needs better, once i actually know what my needs are. I do know i want a field camera, as most work will be done not in a studio setting and i'll need to lug the camera around. I do enjoy shooting head shot range portraits, which means i'll need something with a good amount of bellow extension to focus so close. I still need to figure out what lenses to look out for, but will not be using anything super wide or super long to start with. But i do have a preference for larger apertures for brighter ground glass, shallow DoF, and eeking out some shutter speed when needed since i like to shoot people, so i suspect this means i need a front standard that can take some weight. I've got two young children at the moment, so finding time just to shoot is hard enough, and as such i'm looking for a camera that will just work, with little to no maintenance/fixing up.
some history: i have shot 35mm (digital and film) for about 8 years. I got to borrow a 4x5 field camera, and a huge 8x10 monorail studio camera (which of course i lugged out into the field) about 6 years ago and fell in love with 8x10. only shot about a dozen sheets on 8x10 before having to give it back (3 or 4 of which were improperly exposed, or i left the shutter open when pulling the dark slide out). At the time i couldn't afford to shoot 8x10, but have been wanting to get back into 8x10 ever since. I can no longer remember what camera it was, but attached is a photo of it for reference. Can't remember the lens i used either, which is a bummer since a field version of that camera + the same lens and i'd be a happy camper to start right now.
Some details:
Field camera
Budget for camera by itself : approx $1k
Location: California, USA
Planning to mainly shoot BW and contact print, although unless I can save a ton of money would rather have modern lenses I can shoot color with as well.
Portrait focused, but will be used for their stuff as well. Photographers I’m influenced by to give you an idea of what I like to shoot: Sally Mann, Alec Soth, Greg Miller, Richard Avedon, Paulo Roversi
thanks for any suggestions/advice!!!
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks