Maternity photography using Chamonix 45N-2

[Corran]

Sure, there's lots of arguments against doing such a thing. But why not? Personally I would gravitate instead towards a Speed Graphic and standard 135mm lens, with the rangefinder working and calibrated being a necessity. Your market will need to be educated and shown WHY your results are different, and therefore you will probably have to do some work pro bono to build up a few portfolio shots on LF. You might dip your toes into it first with a decent medium format camera like a Rolleicord. This all assumes your technique is spot-on and you have some decent personal photographic skill/vision.

But, especially in a crowded market, the quickest way to make a million with photography is to start with two million. I hope your salary job allowed for a nice padded bank account for if you don't make any money for a while.

To save on costs you'll want to learn about developing your own, probably stick to b&w only for a while, etc. Learning curve overall, if you've never shot film, will be immense. If so I would stick with digital while you learn and then when you are ready, start working on switching over.

[Tin Can]

There is a photographer using Chamonix 57Fs2 camera shooting wet plate portraits, many of his subjects are children. It must be very hard. http://www.kauaiainaart.com/new-gallery/

That’s an amazing portfolio! I love the one page long scroll presentation which works very well on a phone. In a couple hours I will look at it again on a desktop OS and monitor.

Wow!

[Pere Casals]

Sure! And while she will be honing here skills in the darkroom for days to come her fellow photographers will show their clients the results of their photo sessions and negotiate their fees. There are probably no reasons while home photographers prefer the digital photography so overwhelmingly.

Today near all Pros are digital because convenience, costs, and digital performance strengths.

but... this 2018 there are amazing Pro photographers working with film with great success, and converting film footprint in a basic ingredient of their product.

José Villa it is easy to mention http://josevilla.com/ , absolutely making wonders with his Contax 645 and Fuji 160 , and also making great money.

but we have more Top Pros enjoying film with great commercial success:

José Villa http://josevilla.com/
John Dolan http://johndolan.com/portfolios/marriage/
Greg Finck http://www.gregfinck.com/
Noa Azoulay http://www.featherlove.com/
Erich Mcvey http://www.erichmcvey.com/
Braedon Flynn https://braedonphotography.com/portfolio/Weddings/
Liz Banfield https://www.lizbanfield.com/weddings
Judy Pak http://judypak.com/the-details
Sylvie Gil http://www.sylviegilphotography.com/
Ryan Ray http://www.ryanrayphoto.com/
Tec Petaja http://www.tecpetajaphoto.com/
Elizabeth Messina http://www.elizabethmessina.com/#!/i...love/gallery/1
Corbin Gurkin https://corbingurkin.com/
Aaron Delesie http://www.delesieblog.com/
Eric Kelley http://erickelley.com/portfolio
Allan Zepeda https://allanzepeda.com/
Heather Waraksa http://heatherwaraksa.com/
Charlotte Jenks Lewis http://charlottejenkslewis.com/
Leo Patrone http://www.leopatronephotography.com/
KT Merry https://www.ktmerry.com/

This is a list of top wedding photographers I follow, shooting 100% film or using film a lot.

What is true is that, amazingly, in the top crop of wedding photographers a lot are using film.

Maternity photography using Chamonix 45N-2 ?

Nothing wrong, it can be a great opportunity if one learns how to take advantage of film signature and LF aesthetics, and how to translate that differentiation to dollars.

[BrianShaw]

Interesting discussion. I’ve done it twice, with each of my children. Once each. It’s tough. If your thinking formal portrait style then it’s more likely.

Suggest re-reading two posts that have thoughts that seem a bit fleeting in the discussion:

Bob Solomon regarding a monorail and movements. For closeup you'll need it. Cropping might work but then your not getting advantage of LF.

Pfsor regarding turnaround time vs marketing time vs customer satisfaction. You need to read between the lines. But please do...
EDIT: The post I was referring to was deleted by Moderator. It implied that time spent in the darkroom may take away from time spent marketing/shooting for new clients. It also seems to have implied that customer expectation these days is more immediate than in the olden days of film-based event photography.

I suppose anything is possible in the OC but you may need to work on the marketing as much as the gear selection and development/refinement of a unique vision. An appearance on The Houseives of Orange Couny or the Kardashian’s reality shows is just what might launch your new career!

[Bob Salomon]

Interesting discussion. I’ve done it twice, with each of my children. Once each. It’s tough. If your thinking formal portrait style then it’s more likely.

Suggest re-reading two posts that have thoughts that seem a bit fleeting in the discussion:

Bob Solomon regarding a monorail and movements. For closeup you'll need it. Cropping might work but then your not getting advantage of LF.

Pfsor regarding turnaround time vs marketing time vs customer satisfaction. You need to read between the lines. But please do...

I suppose anything is possible in the OC but you may need to work on the marketing as much as the gear selection and development/refinement of a unique vision. An appearance on The Houseives of Orange Couny or the Kardashian’s reality shows is just what might launch your new career!

Brian, I mentioned monorails because most use large lensboards and have longer bellows extension which make it very easy to use old brass lenses on them.

[jp]

If you have experience dealing with roll film, metering, processing, LF itself is not a big jump. You may want to do some workshops with alt process if you're after the handmade look. I'd guess turning out some digital photos for people's facebook is the low end of the job market and high end might be handmade timeless art to hang on the wall.

My style is soft focus. I'd probably shoot some things like Gertrude Kasabier's Madonna with 4x5 speed graphic and soft focus lens, then make a coffee or tea toned cyanotype print. Kids by themselves don't sit still for strangers to photograph, but a seated family member holding a child can hold the thin field of focus inherent to LF.

You could do something close with your nikon and a Velvet56 lens and make digital negatives for alt process. I mention this from first hand experience displaying David Aimone's prints, some of which are made with Velvet56+DigitalNegative+Altprocess.
https://aimonephoto.shop/collections...ce-portraiture
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ioglass/

[Jim Jones]

It's true that film photographers have created their own distinctly recognizable styles before the digital age, such as Yousuf Karsh and Margaret Cameron. Karsh eventually had the advantage of technical skills, an ability to research and understand his subjects, and a portfolio of prominent subjects. Margaret Cameron also had connections with the right people, which in part compensated to the obstacle of wet plate photography. Such people were exceptions. Most prospective clients today may have never seen a state-of-the-art print from a large format negative. Too many are satisfied with a cell phone image. Modern digital cameras produce close to film image quality except for gallery size prints. Few people in my area would appreciate such work. In an affluent and sophisticated city, someone with the business ability, photographic expertise, money, and time might establish a niche for large format baby and maternity photography. I defer to those with experience in such markets.

[bloodhoundbob]

Sure, there's lots of arguments against doing such a thing. But why not? Personally I would gravitate instead towards a Speed Graphic and standard 135mm lens, with the rangefinder working and calibrated being a necessity. Your market will need to be educated and shown WHY your results are different, and therefore you will probably have to do some work pro bono to build up a few portfolio shots on LF. You might dip your toes into it first with a decent medium format camera like a Rolleicord. This all assumes your technique is spot-on and you have some decent personal photographic skill/vision.

But, especially in a crowded market, the quickest way to make a million with photography is to start with two million. I hope your salary job allowed for a nice padded bank account for if you don't make any money for a while.

To save on costs you'll want to learn about developing your own, probably stick to b&w only for a while, etc. Learning curve overall, if you've never shot film, will be immense. If so I would stick with digital while you learn and then when you are ready, start working on switching over.

Bryan, I could not agree more with you when it comes to a SG. With a little practice, the OP would come to rapidly learn its versatility. At the age of 15, I became the HS yearbook photographer, shooting everything from school dances to the four major sports to informal portraits. Many of us are past or present studio owners who were or are looking for a gimmick to attract more customers. Since much business is due to word of mouth, I think the SG is an entirely viable money maker. A refurbished Stroboflash IV is easy to obtain and would complement the SG beautifully.

[BrianShaw]

Brian, I mentioned monorails because most use large lensboards and have longer bellows extension which make it very easy to use old brass lenses on them.

That too, Bob.

[Pere Casals]

Karsh eventually had the advantage of technical skills, an ability to research and understand his subjects, and a portfolio of prominent subjects.

Yeah, he aggressively pulled Churchill's cigar from his mouth just before shooting, to obtain "the" shot that explained to the britons under the blitz what it has to be explained...

(this is understanding subjects, and adding to a portfolio)

Too many are satisfied with a cell phone image. Modern digital cameras produce close to film image quality except for gallery size prints. Few people in my area would appreciate such work. In an affluent and sophisticated city, someone with the business ability, photographic expertise, money, and time might establish a niche for large format baby and maternity photography. I defer to those with experience in such markets.

I agree... most customers may value more the later photoshop work than the photographers effort. Not many people is to value a true artistic work in protraiture, and digital has has devaluated Pros' work.


...but there are film based Pros specialized in maternity:

"Nancy Ray Photography is a film photography studio based in Raleigh, North Carolina."

http://nancyrayphotography.com/?s=maternity


IMHO LF + film has a differentiation advantage for maternity film, another thing is being able to deliver a solid product and converting that in commercial goodwill.