8x10 and 4x5 are pretty "different" other than sharing the same basic operations... 8x10 is more forgiving because you probably won't be enlarging it as much as the same 4x5 shot. However gremlins happen more easily with 8x10 -- bigger cameras catch the wind, or the tripod moves, or the size/mass of the camera gets in the way somehow -- a heavy lens might pull the lensboard out of position unless you carefully tighten it, focus can creep, etc. So it requires better shooting technique to avoid problems.
All of the current gallery on my website is 4x5. The last two months of blog posts have been mostly digital with a few 8x10 shots, and some of my older work from 2005 was done with 8x10. I have yet to handhold 8x10 but given enough liquor anything is possible.
I find it hard to shoot both 4x5 and 8x10, better to go one way or the other. If you don't mind the extra weight and bulk, a bigger tripod is always better. When you watch the pro set-up for more elaborate 8x10 shots (like car shots in Death Valley from 10 years ago...) they almost always used big Gitzo #5s with sandbags for good measure. So just get the biggest you can manage ;-) Like a Gitzo 504 and their #5 low profile head -- rock solid.
Gitzo made a #3 low profile 3-way head that is a very nice match with a wooden flatbed camera and #3 tripod. Ries are also good matches for Deardorffs....
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