8x10 For "Street" Portaiture

[Armin Seeholzer]

Toyo 810M if you can handle the weight; it sets up in seconds and is precise and smooth in operation.
It can be used in the rain, snow or heat with no adverse effects on function.

Would also vote for the Toyo, because it need a long extention for portraits!

[Robert Opheim]

Joe I can see by your images that you posted and your credentials that you already are an accomplished photographer. I use a very basic but very sturdy Calumet C-1 8x10 - its heavy - but it doesn't move. The Kodak Clam-shell masterview is nicer, there are a number of lighter/ newer bed cameras that are wonderful. The nature for me of 8x10 as quite slow in set up and shooting so speed doesn't matter. I would look at what qualities you want in an 8x10 camera and what attachments, accessories and lenses. I broke the front standard on an old wood 8x10 with a 12 inch Wollensak Velostigmat II lens -the lens was too heavy. Best wishes for you search - I would enjoy seeing your images!

[joedgaia]

Hey Robert..it's more about a deep dive into craft for me. There's something about the setting up of the view camera that acts as a prelude to the photograph that engages the subject. Also, as you know there's a look with wide aperture. It's not costing me very much right now other than time. I'll start with the 159 Wollensak and see how that feels. I should have the B&J put together by the end of the week so I'll post pix.
Here's a USMC vet I met on the beach taken with an M7 and a 90 Summichron that might be interesting with an 8x10 cam:

[Daniel Casper Lohenstein]

Hello Joe,

great project. First I thought you're crazy.

But now I think such a device would be the natural center of a developing exchange about art and photography.

You will meet interesting people.

What about DIY?

You will do macros when taking photographs in the street.

So you have to close focus. To position your subject in a defined distance from the lens you need a cord, and you don't disappear behind a focus cloth.

Now, given the exact length of a macro extension, you will have an exact amount of additional exposure that is calculated a priori, e.g. 2 addtional stops.

So you will not have to calculate around in stressing situations. You don't have to focus at all because your camera is already focused eg. at 5ft or 15ft.

When using a flash you will have predefined depth of field like Weegee and fast exposures, too. Given a 210mm lens with 8x10 film and an object distance of 5m, you will have a dof of 4-7m with f32, with an extension of 9.2mm added to the flange focal distance of the 210 lens. See http://www.erik-krause.de/schaerfe.htm#top There are several Fujinons around, e.g. http://www.subclub.org/fujinon/byfl.htm: the Fujinon NW 5.6/210mm with a flange focal distance of 204.4mm, so your camera body will have a thickness of circa 204.5 + 9.2 mm.

You could use birch plywood 18mm thickness, you don't need a ground glass, just add some rails to put the holder in. If somebody feels offended, you will not lose to much equipment. Only some wood für circa 5$ and a lens and a holder. But you can use it as a supporting device for your discussion ...

If you intend to use your Fujinon SWS 8/120, you build another body. Or better: build one part for the lens, one for the filmholder and one or two extension bodies for your different fix-focused lenses. They have to fit between the lens and the filmholder parts, giving defined focus.

This would be a great kickstarter with cameras and system extension costing around 25$.

Regards Daniel

[mdarnton]

Contrary to my above post re the use of a Hobo-type camera...an aspect of photographing folks with an LF camera is the "sense of occasion" which this can bring - that even when the subject is not known (or well known) by the photographer, the presence of something like an 8x10 drop-bed or monorail camera and the ritual that setting up and making an image entails...can communicate to the subject a sense of importance and respect, as well as giving the subject an additional roll of collaborator. Just a thought!

Yes! I totally milk this for all it's worth when shooting portraits. I learned this from the portrait photographer I worked for in high school who shot with an 8x10 camera for its impact, but was actually using split 5x7 around behind where no one would know.