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Thread: Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

  1. #11

    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    Richard is it really boring LF photography or just a glut of images that are all similar? Furthermore are you sure that your 35 mm shots are any better than the regular run of the mill shots we see everyday?

    Many of us grew with the AA influence and at the beguining tried to imitate his style, but now with LF many people are going their own way and creating many wonderful images. Sure, in that period when everybody wanted to be Ansel I also think LF got a little bit boring, specially since it seemed everybody wanted to take the same pictures he did. Now with many people using pt-pd, etc I think LF has become more exiting than ever. Check out the work being done in alternative printing and you will see that not all is the same AA stuff. I have not seen any of Michael A Smith's work, but I have heard his use of the Azo papers is wonderful, maybe you should check this out too. Anyway I think is not that LF has become boring, maybe it is you who have not expanded your horizon and kept up to date with the new work being done. I think is time for a visit to your nearest gallery.....:-))))

  2. #12

    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    My take on this is that I was wondering how many shots were "missed" due to poor equipment like the Speed and Crowns. The number of great images captured now far outweighs what the old timers got. The skills are still there. If you miss the excitement of using old equipment, then get an old camera as I did and start shooting it. Then you will see what it was like not to have all the auto functions that today allow the photographer vast freedom. This just sounds like another anti modern diatribe. Stop whining. If you don't like modern shoot primitive. I love the old way. But I also know the tremendous advantages of auto. Lumberjack

  3. #13
    tim atherton's Avatar
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    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    "My take on this is that I was wondering how many shots were "missed" due to poor equipment like the Speed and Crowns. The number of great images captured now far outweighs what the old timers got. The skills are still there."

    hmmm - I'd have to disagree - there seems to be far more noise and dross out there now that everyone and his dog can shoot and transmit as many images as they want. The quality of photography in most news publications is often not that great, the images that pile up on the wires are often mediocre - let me tell you that from scanning whats out there and trying to find great images for a particualr story. I'd say the number of "great" images isn't any higer than in the "golden days", and maybe somewhat less. Hundreds of thousands of images came out of Sept 11th. How many, now, really stick in your mind, just after this short time? For me, only a handful. Just an example.

    tim a
    You'd be amazed how small the demand is for pictures of trees... - Fred Astaire to Audrey Hepburn

    www.photo-muse.blogspot.com blog

  4. #14

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    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    Interesting thread, but ...

    I'm astonished none of you mentioned that the Speed Graphic is a rangefinder camera. A giant Leica. Made to be used like one. Faster working, actually. I've seen claims that a practiced hand using one with a Grafmatic could rip off six shots in six seconds. Not intended for the highly deliberative approach forced by a view camera, where closing the lens, inserting the film holder, and removing the dark slide intervene between focusing and composing and actually taking the shot.

    Cheers,

    Dan

  5. #15

    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    Mr.Boulware, I find it hard to believe you even read my post considering your response.

    I think that your response also proved my point.

    "personal taste tells me that CCWR, Moody blues, and others are far superior to "Rap" and hip-hop"

    now I'm hardly one to defend rap or hip hop, but you put two entire styles of music up against only one or two bands instead of against another type of music, hardly fair.

    my point wasn't about technology or motor drives either.

    Your view is based on just what I mentioned before, you compare the cream of the crop of the past, with the unheard of masses of today. You say that the present generation has lost something along the way, I didn't know that the entire generation was comprised of large format photographers, much less photographers in general.

    your opinions are also heavily swayed by your preference for the type of photography that would require hand held cameras, why do I need to hand hold large format when it is not required or possible for the type of work that I do? Do you lament the fact that we have lost the ability to use a spear when we go to the grocery to buy some meat?

  6. #16

    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    I don't think we've lost anything - if the image is the most important thing.

    I'm sure many of these Speed Graphic 40's and 50's shooters would have traded their gear for a Nikon in a heartbeat because they were result driven.

    Yes, given the equipment limitations their shots by necessity had to be better timed and considered and you have to admire them for that but I wouldn't raise it to an art form.

  7. #17

    Lost Art-Hand Held LF, Addendum

    I agree with Mike, especially in this period in time technologicaly speaking, its important to separate the gear from the image. Graflex, Nikon, Canon, Sinar...these are all just tools and it is the image that speaks. the light and the moment...seeing...anticipating...reacting. just a thought.

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