Learning to shot Chrome film??

[Daniel Stone]

Problem when shooting chromes is this, btw, its usually something NOT mentioned

Shutter speed ERROR(aka, timing is off)

The advantage of having a built-in shutter like on a 35mm or MF focal-plane bodied camera is that if the shutter is slow, all your lenses will be able to compensate the same amount. With LF, most people are using lenses that have INDIVIDUAL shutters, so every one is DIFFERENT. That means; to get the best results, you'll need to test EVERY lens you use to know where your exposure time is with each lens. Sounds complicated, but in all reality, it really isn't. Having a little card for each lens, so that you know that say for instance: 150mm lens @ 1/30(marked on shutter) is actually running @ 1/20, you know you'll need to compensate 1/3 of a stop with aperture for that lens. Same idea for every shutter speed, on every other lens you have in your kit.

There can be workarounds, such as using the Sinar DB shutter system with barrel lenses. This can also mean that lenses can be CHEAPER, and potentially more plentiful vs they're shuttered counterparts. The DB shutters are a CENTRAL shutter system, that means 1 shutter for all your lenses. Having a backup of these is also important too btw !

Since transparency shooters are generally not 'spray and pray' type shooters, and more careful with exposures than those who shoot b/w or color negatives(at least that I've found), it behooves one to know EXACTLY how each of their lenses/shutters is running. This leads to less "surprises" post-development(and back home from a trip), and can allow one more ease of mind that their equipment is doing its job correctly, and that YOU, the operator, are the "weak link" in the chain...

Just some little things I've experienced in the past 2 years of shooting primarily transparency film.

-Dan

[ImSoNegative]

i use the spot meter as well, for me the trick is timing, either early morning or late evening or better yet an overcast day, its very easy to blow the highlights out or have blank shadows if you're not careful.

[Drew Wiley]

I learned photography with chromes and almost never goofed an exposure, even when I had a relatively primitive meter. Spot metering is preferable. In bright sunlight it is generally
wise to retain high values and just let the shadows block out in some pleasing sense
relative to the composition rather than blow out the highlights, but this is really an esthetic
decision. But after awhile one just gravitates toward the kind of lighting ratio which works. Here we get a lot of fog, which is a wonderful natural softbox. But I can shoot chromes
successfully anywhere.

[Ivan J. Eberle]

Daniel Stone mentions something important above about the vagaries of metering for LF if you don't know the amount to compensate with your shutter timing. It's rarely as accurate at the high speeds with LF shutters, while modern SLRs have quartz oscillators to keep it in close specification (some pro level small film format cameras test the exposure each time the shutter is fired and report out if not within spec. At least my Nikon F5 did). Even with a very close spot meter in large format the exposure can be complicated by things like filter factors with ND grads and bellows extensions.

That said, I can get good chromes, within the realm of when the light will allow (Subject Brightness Range). That's often not going to be the case in outdoor settings, however, especially whenever there is strong specularity. I carry both neg and transparency films with me for when the light is fast changing and I want to nail the shot anyway.

It's about a gazillion times easier to shoot color neg materials like Portra with LF. Valid reasons for shooting chromes are you want a nice positive original. Ilfochrome (nee Cibachrome) is now kaput, so there really isn't much reason to learn the ins and outs of transparency. If the workflow of the lab you outsource your scans to can't handle neg films-- find another with a 16 bit scanner software that can!

At $7 a pop nowadays for 4X5 color... I'm shooting transparency less and less, squeaking by for the last couple of years of what remaining stocks I have of Astia for those scenes that I KNOW are within subject brightness ratio bounds, etc.

[stradibarrius]

How do I judge what scenes are within the bounds of the film? Is there a rule of thumb for the number of stops spread that transparency film can handle?

[Frank Petronio]

When people shot chromes for professional work - back when there might have been a useful reason to use E6 at all - all of the experienced and successful pros I assisted did brackets of six chromes, a third stop apart, at least one stop up and down. Or they did clip tests and push-pulled. The only people who assumed they could do the best exposure in one shot were amateurs. If you handed a client only one frame they'd be pissed.

Why do you think bracketing controls were some of the first "computerized" features built into 1980s cameras? And they had much more accurate electronic shutters than our mechanical large-format shutters.

There is no such thing as correct, perfect exposure anyways, so looking at a range reveals a lot of subtle details you'd never see if you only shot one.

All of the above is a huge argument for negative film ;-)

[John Brady]

I switched to color negative film recently for my 8x10 work, but I spent a lot of years shooting Velvia and Astia. My advice has mostly been mentioned but here is what I learned.
Use a spot meter, avoid mixed light. Meter for middle gray in the scene, soft lit grass or leaves will work.
Avoid blowing out the highlights.
Shoot in soft balanced light only, early morning or late day. Overcast works too.

My experience has been trying to use chromes in anything other than optimum situations is a waste of time and money. Shooting chromes will make you a better photographer but it's a frustrating way to get good.

Unless you have a very compelling reason to shoot chromes, negative film is a better choice.

www.timeandlight.com

[Leigh]

When shooting film like Velvia or Provia what is the best method to get the correct exposure?

Shoot at box speed. Use an incident light meter correctly and do what it says.

The film manufacturers have done far more testing than you would ever have the time or money to do.

The idea of using ZS makes sense for those few who have actually gone through the extensive testing and
system calibration required to do it right. Most of the folks advocating it are just trying to show off.

If you are really interested in using the ZS, start out as I suggested. Take spot meter readings of the various
scenes as you shoot, and keep copious notes of actual metered points and readings. Compare your results
with the developed chromes. Once you understand what zones VI and VII are you can start using the ZS.

- Leigh

[biedron]

How do I judge what scenes are within the bounds of the film? Is there a rule of thumb for the number of stops spread that transparency film can handle?

Once you determine the mid-tone, use your spot meter to measure the important highlights and shadows, and judge those measurements relative the mid tone.

A very broad rule of thumb for transparency film is roughly 4-5 stops total - roughly 2 stops above mid-tone, and 2 stops below. Again, that is a rough range. It will vary with film (Velvia 50 is probably close to 4 stops usable range), while Provia might be a little more. And the highlight end probably exhibits sensitivity to the color - e.g. blue may "blow out" with less exposure than red.

Assuming you are going to scan the transparencies, the type of scanner used will play a role in how much of the shadow detail you can eke out - drums scans giving the most shadow detail.

Split neutral-density filters are your friends for keeping highlight tones within bounds, but they aren't appropriate for every scene (need a more-or-less straight line demarcation between bright ad dark regions)

Bob

[Drew Wiley]

Frank - anyone who has to bracket a chrome is what I'd call an amateur. I've never bracketed in my entire life, and I've shot chromes in all kinds of cameras for decades in all
kinds of conditions, with almost never an exposure error. Who would want to hire a "pro"
who guesses exposure, or who racks up the budget machine-gunning LF film? I've never even wasted 35mm film like that. Maybe a backup chrome in a real dicey commercial shoot
if you didn't trust the E6 lab. But there were plenty of reputable E6 lines around here to
choose from.