I don't own a large format camera...

[atlcruiser]

Mamiya 7 is what you might want. Crazy good lenses that many say make negatives that are as good as 45, light. smallish, fast etc......


I know one for sale cheap

[John NYC]

What you need is an 80 megapixel MF digital system.

Agree. The large print size he wants at gallery quality and the fact that he wants to work quickly definitely says Phase One (Mamiya) or Hasselblad MF digital to me.

Of course, you are talking a lot of money for that type of system.

[GPS]

Yet.
...
I am planning a move into shooting fine art exclusively and need a format that can blow up to 60in beautifully
....
Jesse

Whoa, all you 8x10 guru's got the wrong idea. i'm setting out to capture social settings and working entirely with people sometimes in found locations and light.
...

It seems your basic problem is that you don't know what you're talking about...

[John Kasaian]

Sounds like the option for a handheld camera maybe worthwhile---like a Crown Graphic or Linhof Technika.
I shoot 8x10 without any assistants (but I seldom try to shoot anything thats moving!)

[Rick A]

IMHO, getting "gallery quality" while shooting on the fast is a near impossibility, unless your style is fuzzy 30x40's. Shooting off a tripod nearly insures sharp crystal clear enlargements every time. When I say nearly, I mean it's still a matter of critical focus, and scene preperation. Twenty minutes per shot with an 8x10 is still fast enough to keep the momentum up and not lose models attention and enthusiasm. Most pros take longer than that to set up, then shoot a crap load of MF to get one or two good negatives. I'll stick to my 4x5 and keep up a running dialog with my subjects to get all in the mood I am after.

[Mark Barendt]

I agree with Rick in the sense that rushed work tends to be sloppy, I think that's true regardless of format. (That's one reason that when doing paying work I almost never handhold with any format, a monopod for fast work, tripods otherwise.)

That doesn't mean LF work can't be done quickly. A "Speed" or "Crown" graphic or similar camera can be used very quickly.

Even an 8x10 "C" series Calumet can be worked quickly as long as it's on the Tripod already and you aren't boxing and unboxing for every move.

In a "found" social situation though, like the OP shoots, I'm thinking the shear size of an 8x10 and the foot print of a tripod might become a real issue. A SpeedGraphic on a monopod might just work.

On the thought of sharpness I'm not sure that matters so much. With people as the subject, it's more about emotional impact, short depth of field to set the subject apart, mood and, a lack of blemishes visible. That trumps high detail/sharpness regularly.

[Rick A]

I think that if the OP studied up on Weegee he might get a better idea of what he would need for the situations he's thinking of shooting.

[Mark Barendt]

I think that if the OP studied up on Weegee he might get a better idea of what he would need for the situations he's thinking of shooting.

+1

[John NYC]

I think that if the OP studied up on Weegee he might get a better idea of what he would need for the situations he's thinking of shooting.

Didn't Weegee also use flash quite a bit to get his large DOF? That really makes it impossible to be inconspicuous in found situations as the OP indicated.

MF film or digital seems the best solution for him to me.

[Scott Davis]

Well, if he MUST shoot 8x10 in reportage-style, there's always a Hobo or a Fotoman... and figuring out how to daisy-chain/slave a cluster of Vivitar 283's would be a good idea too, to have enough flash oomph to cover f22 on a 210mm/180mm-ish 8x10 lens.