Polaroid 4x5 conversion

[cyrus]

Just got my 4x5 conversion from a Polaroid 110B. I am LOVING it! Finally, a handheld 4x5 that is light and not TOO noticable! I tried the super speed graphic, but this is lighter (though of course there is no interchangeable lens) and less intrusive.

With a couple grafmatic backs, I am burning through 4x5 film at about the same rate as with 120 film (so much so that I am looking into a source for cheaper 4x5 film - does anyone have much experience with artisto.edu? anyone?) though I have had my expected share of errors too such as using the same grafmatic twice, resulting in 6 double exposures in one, and no exposures in the other grafmatic- but that's the price of learning (I have had to steel myself to accept these sorts of things in learning LF, and have also had to learn to never hesitate in taking a photo because by the time I think it over, the magic moment is gone.)

I haven't gotten around to printing the negs though -- they look fine but you never really know until the print is dried.

The conversion was done by a brilliant fellow nearby who didn't want me to mention his name because he's previously received legally threatening mail from you-know-who, and because he really didn't need the advertising since he does the conversions as a sort of hobby. He was kind enough to also sell me a couple of original filters and the lens hood.

I am particularly happy with the built-in rangefinder in the polaroid. The range finder window is smaller than the size of the 4x5 negative image area, but that's not really a big deal when composing the image as long as you remember that you may end up with a bit of extra space around your subject. Over time, I suspect I will be able to mentally compensate for that and end up with tighter shots. Of course, since there is a parallax, shots closer than 6 ft. will have to be focussed using the ground glass. I haven't had a chance to fool around with that yet either (memoral day projects).

I am also kinda concernd about the amout of effort it takes to open the polaroid front -- I think it could use some lubrication, what with the sound of the grating metal hinges. Not sure where to apply the lube, exactly... and I'll lube up the grafmatics too. Also, I need a neck strap since I don't want to drop it.

So, that was my contribution. I'll be happy to answer anyone's questions.