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Thread: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

  1. #21

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    Quote Originally Posted by Vick Ko View Post
    Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    It pains me to sell my Tech Master. I thought I sold it once but the buyer backed out. I'm trying again. And right after I had a first winning bidder on the Master, I bought a Tech V from a local used camera store, out of seller's regret. Fortunately they took it back and refunded my money when I told them that the sale of the Master fell through.

    A couple years ago, I sold all my 4x5 lenses, except for a couple.

    I've only shot the camera a couple times in the last 2 years. Is that the biggest sign - the low usage means I'm not an LF shooter?

    I mostly shoot 35mm, and medium format.

    For those that got out of LF, what was the sign for you, that LF wasn't for you?

    ....Vick
    The sign that it was for me: I tried it and it was fun.
    The sign that it won't be for me: When it ceases to be fun.

    I shoot some of everything, and it's all got it's place. I like the results from film, but I also enjoy the process. If the day comes when it's no longer fun, I'll just quit doing it...or take a break. I've had a few hobbies I've taken a couple of years off of because I was losing interest. Came back a couple years later and it was fun again . I don't shoot a ton of LF, but I always enjoy it when I do.

  2. #22
    Vaughn's Avatar
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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    Nope, "photographer" is just another label. It say what type of artist I am. And "artist" is just another label, saying what type of person I am (as is "old", "tall", "white", "bearded" -- dang, I must be a left coast photographer!)

    PS..."35mm photographer" use to be the default label -- now it is "digital photographer". No need to add the labels...LOL!

  3. #23

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    Quote Originally Posted by E. von Hoegh View Post
    "They are just labels..." That's my point. "I'm a large format photographer"... what does that mean? Do you take pictures of large formats? "Photographer" isn't a label, but a description the same as "watchmaker" or "surgeon". What I mean is that a photographer uses light to make images. The specific eguipment is subject to the type of images one wishes to make.

    When did you ever hear someone say they were a 35mm photographer? Or - God forbid - a small format photographer?
    But "watchmaker" and "surgeon" are labels, too. A label wouldn't be very useful if it wasn't descriptive of what it labeled. It seems to me the label "large format Photographer", like most labels, is only as useful as the distinction it makes is important. Large format photographer is a subset of photographer, just like B&W photographer, digital photographer, fine art photographer, etc. These labels can be useful when referring specifically to the subset labelled. I don't think anyone, you included, is confused by the label, large format photographer, which refers to photographers who use large format equipment. Why make more of it than there is?

  4. #24

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    There are a lot of people out there who refer to themselves as portrait photographers. They don't spend a lot of time taking photographs of portraits.

  5. #25
    Vaughn's Avatar
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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    Quote Originally Posted by AF-ULF View Post
    There are a lot of people out there who refer to themselves as portrait photographers. They don't spend a lot of time taking photographs of portraits.
    Well, there was that person who was a Weston photographer (she had a show of photos of Weston photos)...LOL!

    But the use of these labels also is dependent upon whom one is communicating with -- I do not use the label "large format" when talking to people who do not know the difference (and who are not interested in the difference). So labels are useful in communication, and not so useful in the picking of nits,

  6. #26
    Preston Birdwell
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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    I am a Large Format photographer because my waist size is bigger than when I was a Small Format photographer.

    My 4x5 is the only camera I use...and I wouldn't have it any other way, thank you.

    --P
    Preston-Columbia CA

    "If you want nice fresh oats, you have to pay a fair price. If you can be satisfied with oats that have already been through the horse; that comes a little cheaper."

  7. #27

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    I have only recently moved to large format photography as I found I really enjoyed using movements with my Fuji GX680 and wanted to take it a step further. As I have never been a prolific shooter and frequently had to waste the remaining frames on a film (either by not using them or shooting frames to use them up), I have since discovered a real pleasure in being able to shoot just what I need and process it when I want, so I can choose to process just 4 shots from whatever I have taken and process the others (if any) when I choose.

    Oh, and the quality, did I mention the Quality? I have just received some Adox ISO25 film so really looking forward to trying that.

  8. #28
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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    I'm a large-format photographer because I know how to be a large-format photographer ("learning how" would do just as well--we are all learning no matter how much we think we know). My skills are limited, but they still required no small effort to attain, and at times I'm compelled to express them. Not having any large-format equipment would not affect very much of the photography that I do, but I would certainly feel as though I had just lost a vital tool. Tools, and the skill to use them, are hard to get and easy to throw away. If I sold the camera that I enjoy but rarely use, what would I get in return? A few dollars? That would be gone in a heartbeat--probably to pay for something I wouldn't even remembering buying a year from now.

    Rick "who is not ruled by stuff--either the desire for it or the false guilt of having a lot of it" Denney

  9. #29

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    I gave up my 4 x 5 gear ages ago. Found this forum by chance when I searched for dye transfer color printing info. When I sold my 4 x 5 gear I replaced it with Hassy 500 and SWC. Sold that off as well. But that was in the 70's. But my main cam was a Nikon F.

    Now am all cmos dslr digital...Pentax! But I would like a larger format Pentax 645D if I hit the lotto!.

    Why did I give up LF?

    4 x 5 was just too cumbersome for me with the type of work I did.



    I took this in the 70's with a Toyo view and Super-Angulon 65mm or 75mm?

    Here is a thread with some of my work from the 1970's...(nsfw)

    http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/p...ood-1970s.html

    I hope to get another thread going called 'L.A...1970's' in a few months. Have lots of old 4 x 5 negs that need to be scanned. My goal this year is to scan my best work.

    Then next year go back and spot them and fine tune the images. After that, it is years more scanning of the lesser work. (I still need to figure out 'how to' spot, dodge and burn em! Just started to learn dig in Feb 2012.)

    In any case, yes, I sometimes miss the old 4 x 5.

    I remember buying some old military glass plates expired from the late 1940's at Freestyle when I lived in L.A. in the 70's. The plates were expired maybe 30 years and still good. I used to project on them and make large format BW positives with them. People were always amazed and couldn't figure out how I got the image on a sheet of glass.

    I guess we should not complain about the bulky little 4 x5 though. Look a what this guy carried on his back!

    http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/p...ooks-dvds.html

  10. #30

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    Re: Was there a sign for you that you weren't (or were) a LF photographer?

    There have been times during my years of shooting 4 x 5 large format whether I was suited for the task. The frustrations of missing a step leading to the exposure (i.e. forgetting to reset the aperture after opening it for focussing) or the weight of the whole setup or the time to set up a shot has at times had me questioning whether it was worth it to shoot large format. After getting back a properly exposed tranny and being able to use the movements of the camera and printing it to frame makes me forget the frustrations that I went through. So, to answer your question; yes, I am a large format photographer.

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