I took the plunge

[Mark Andes]

After a year of lurking and reading every forum question, I took the plunge and joined the large format fraternity. I bought a used Tachihara about 25 years old. When I received it from the seller I was blown away. It looked brand new, like he never used it. It came with two lenses, a 90 f8 Schneider and a 210 f6.8 Caltar II N. With 4 film holders and a new tripod, I was off to take my first pictures.

I remembered all the advice you folks had given. I took two shots of the grape arbors in my town and took them to the store for processing. A week later, when I opened the package a pointed the chromes up to the light, it was like a warm glow came over me. There was the most astonishing picture I had ever taken. The exposure was perfect, the color accurate and the focus dead on.

I just would like to thank all of you on this forum for all your great advice and encouragement to LF beginners. I am now hooked. Thank you.

[Jeremy Moore]

Wow! My first pictures were horrible, I'm impressed. Stick with it!

[Steve Hamley]

Mark,

Welcome to the Dark Slide!

Glad your pics came out great, and guess what? Many more are sure to come.

Steve

[Gem Singer]

Congratulations Mark,

You have the ideal camera and lens combination to learn and grow with. You may want to add a 150, eventually, as well as a few more 4X5 holders, but that outfit should keep you busy for many years to come. You will really enjoy new adventure. Best of luck.

[Donald Hutton]

Hey Mark

If you only add another lens or two and a couple of film holders, consider yourself extremely lucky! LF is seductive and addictive - be prepared for the worst....

[John Berry ( Roadkill )]

Welcome to the brotherhood of obsessive compulsive photography.

[Calamity Jane]

OH NO! You didn't??!!

You have no idea what a Pandor's box you have opened Mark!

Once you get those first few LF images you have started down a new trail and Heaven only knows where you will end up! One thing leads to another and there will be more equipment, more time in the darkroom, more this, and more that . . . .

Poor boy . . . .

;-)

[John Kasaian]

Good for you! Enjoy the adventure!

[JohanHB]

...with all the above.

cheers,

johan

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Hi there,

Great fun and very good luck with it.

Do try to keep it simple, it's very easy to get silly with equipment.

Smile,

[mark anderson]

there is no 12 step program, welcome to the hotel california

[Ralph Barker]

Congratulations, Mark.

Now all you need is a big brother for your 4x5 Tachi - an 8x10, perhaps. ;-)

[Scott Davis]

Pretty soon you'll be hearing the words, "12x20", "30 lbs", and "light weight", and "Pyro", "Azo" and "Plat/Pall printing" coming out of your mouth. It is a sickness, kind of like a symbiotic parasite that you don't mind having. I started off with a Sinar A1, then moved to a field 4x5, and now I've bit the bullet and gotten an 8x10, and I know I'm not done yet!

[Janko Belaj]

welcome and good luck ;-)))
(And keep it at minimum weight. I would like to have "all" lenses ever made, but sometimes those 3 I have made me think hard which one to use. And sometimes I feel it would be the best to take on hike just one of them. And than similar story with film... And... 12x20? (YES!))

[Edward (Halifax,NS)]

Welcome to the club. That setup should keep you happy for a couple of years - then you will get the itch to spend more money. I would add a 150mm but that is my favorite lens. :-)

[David Karp]

Mark,

Congrats. Have a lot of fun with it.

[Jeff Morfit]

Welcome to the Dark Slide, Mark.

Jeff

[Mark_3632]

Welcome to the addiction. It is a slippery slope filling every waking hour with fantasies of new pictures to take. Of putting your new love through her tilts, shifts, rises and falls. Stealing away on weekends to caress your new mistress with the exotic Japanese name. Dry firing shutters hoping for even the smallest buzz, like a poor man puffing butts from an ashtray. Feeling the burn and orgasmic satisfaction of opening that package from the processor, or that dripping first look at the neg right out of the wash. It is a life of servitude. Don't fight it. The road down is smooth, easy, and filled with good company.

Welcome to the passion.

[Carlos]

Bravo, Bravo, Bravo ....