LF tips for the field.

[John MacKechnie]

I would appreciate any tips you might have shooting Large Format in the field. For example, I've discovered that the strings that adjust my Zone VI tripod legs make a convenient hanging place for my darkcloth and extra lens and board if it is in the protective wrap and I am extremely careful. I usually don't lug my heavy bag with me. How do you carry a couple of extra film holders and small gear.

I just read the John Sexton newsletter and he mentioned that he uses a lot of velcro and has his camera and dark cloth rigged to hang onto his camera back or to wear the dark cloth around his neck like a cape.

How about shooting in the wet and snow. How do you protect your gear? How much weather can the typical wooden camera manage?

I look forward to reading your replies.

Thanks John

[John MacKechnie]

I just realized that I posted this in the wrong section of the forum. Sorry.

John

[matthew blais]

I think you'll see a lot of info here, and a belated welcome..
http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=20430&highlight=tips+field

[Walter Calahan]

Get a 3-wheeled jogging baby stroller to move your gear. No need to bust your back.

Also the top cover that shields baby, shields the gear in nasty weather.

[John MacKechnie]

In the other "tips" thread, i read about an Adorama Visualizer, but they don't seem to carry them at this point. Can someone give a more thorough description of what this is?

John

[Brian Ellis]

In the other "tips" thread, i read about an Adorama Visualizer, but they don't seem to carry them at this point. Can someone give a more thorough description of what this is?

John

I don't know about an Adorama Visualizer but I discussed "The 4x5 Visualizer" that B&H sells in another recent thread. I imagine the one Adorama sells is probably the same thing with Adorama's name on it. Go to www.bhphotovideo.com and in the search box type "VIV45Q." That will open a window that has a picture of the visualizer and a detailed description of it. I've used one for years and find it invaluable.

[Sheldon N]

I made my own "visualizer" out of coat hanger wire and a piece of string. It doesn't matter what size the rectangle is, as long as it's the right aspect ratio. Then just tie knots in the string that match the field of view of your lenses (focused at infinty). Easy as pie, and cheap!

The other lifesaver of a piece of gear that I've got is a carabiner and a piece of nylon webbing (bought at a local mountain climbing store). It goes over my ballhead then allows me to hang my full backpack on the tripod while shooting and keep everything out of the mud and water. My Gitzo is pretty sturdy, no complaints with 20lbs of gear loaded on it.

What conditions can you shoot in with LF? Two weekends ago it was predawn snowshoeing, fog at sunrise blowing across a frozen lake next to Mt Hood, covering the tripod legs (and the ND grad filter!) with a fine frost.

Yesterday it was hiking up a cold winter stream in a confined gorge. Wore hip waders, set up everything in knee deep water with the bag hanging off the tripod. I then hiked (waded) all the way up the gorge and had to balance my tripod/backpack/coat on my head while wading through chest deep waters. Shot a waterfall at the end of the gorge, spray was so strong that I had to cover the camera with the darkcloth to keep it from getting drenched pre-exposure. I still managed to drop my lenscap in the rushing waters... watched it float away helplessly.

Admittedly these were with the Arca, but I even had my wood field camera out shooting in the rain on several occaisions. As long as you dry everything off afterwards you'll be fine. :)

[Caroline Matthews]

Get a 3-wheeled jogging baby stroller to move your gear. No need to bust your back.

Also the top cover that shields baby, shields the gear in nasty weather.

If I hear about the baby stroller one more time, I'll SCREAM!!!

[vinny]

Hanging your pack off of webbing is good but the weight isn't centered that way. Replace the screw holding the ballhead with a 3/8 eye bolt that you've sawed a portion out of to make a hook. you could also use a open eye bolt but it's won't have as much of a "hook" to it.

[Sheldon N]

True, however the one plus of my setup is that the internal frame of my backpack rests nicely against the tripod legs, holding the pack still. If it hung from the center bottom of the tripod it would swing freely in the breeze.

[domenico Foschi]

I made my own "visualizer" out of coat hanger wire and a piece of string. It doesn't matter what size the rectangle is, as long as it's the right aspect ratio. Then just tie knots in the string that match the field of view of your lenses (focused at infinty). Easy as pie, and cheap!

The other lifesaver of a piece of gear that I've got is a carabiner and a piece of nylon webbing (bought at a local mountain climbing store). It goes over my ballhead then allows me to hang my full backpack on the tripod while shooting and keep everything out of the mud and water. My Gitzo is pretty sturdy, no complaints with 20lbs of gear loaded on it.

What conditions can you shoot in with LF? Two weekends ago it was predawn snowshoeing, fog at sunrise blowing across a frozen lake next to Mt Hood, covering the tripod legs (and the ND grad filter!) with a fine frost.

Yesterday it was hiking up a cold winter stream in a confined gorge. Wore hip waders, set up everything in knee deep water with the bag hanging off the tripod. I then hiked (waded) all the way up the gorge and had to balance my tripod/backpack/coat on my head while wading through chest deep waters. Shot a waterfall at the end of the gorge, spray was so strong that I had to cover the camera with the darkcloth to keep it from getting drenched pre-exposure. I still managed to drop my lenscap in the rushing waters... watched it float away helplessly.

Admittedly these were with the Arca, but I even had my wood field camera out shooting in the rain on several occaisions. As long as you dry everything off afterwards you'll be fine. :)
Oh my God, you have a FATIF!!
I am homesick....

[Brian Ellis]

"I made my own "visualizer" out of coat hanger wire and a piece of string. It doesn't matter what size the rectangle is, as long as it's the right aspect ratio. Then just tie knots in the string that match the field of view of your lenses (focused at infinty). Easy as pie, and cheap!"

There's a big difference (for me) between this kind of thing and The 4x5 Visualizer that B&H sells. The Visualizer is opaque black laminate or plastic or some such material about 8x10" with the 4x5 cut out in the center. So when you hold it up to your eye everything is blocked out except what you see through the 4x5 cut out, i.e. you see only what the film will see. I find it easier to visualize the photograph that way than when I can see not only through the cut out but also everything surrounding it as well. Just a thought. I'm not trying to start a "my visualizer is better than your visualizer" fight. : - )

[Alan Davenport]

Carry a couple of plastic trash bags. You can pop a trash bag over your camera to protect it from a shower, or lay one on the ground to protect your bag from the mud.

[Louie Powell]

1. I made several viewing frames from scraps of mat board. Just cut a 4x5 hole in the board, and made a couple of marks on the edge noting the focal lengths of my lenses. When I hold the board a distance away from my eye equal to the focal length of a lens, what I see is approximately what the lens would see. Keep one in the car, another at home.

2. I carry one of those folding canvass tables - $5 at Target. Provides a place to put down the backpack when shooting in lousy weather without having to deal with mud, etc.

3. A Paula Chamlee trick - stitch a short piece of red ribbon in the exact center of the long dimension of your darkcloth. That helps you identify the dimension when you start to use it, and also simplifies the process of folding it up when done.

4. I have a plastic "A clamp" that I clip onto one of the many attachment spots on my backpack. If I need to attach the darkcloth to the camera, I wrap it around the front standard, and use the clamp to pinch it close under the camera. Works better than velcro.

5. I use Cokin P filters. To save weight and space in the pack, I keep them in a CD case that slips in next to the film holders. Used a Dymo labelmaker to annote the CD case with filter factors for each of the filters.

6. Made a table listing reciprocity failure compensation for various exposures longer than one second. Glued to the side of the spotmeter for ready reference.

7. Made a "zone dial" for my Adorama spot meter by applying a strip of white correction tape around the meter lens. Marked one stop increments and annotations to allow me to quickly judge how to adjust exposure based on zone placement.

[Eric James]

Here's a great thread full of useful field tips:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=20430

[Louie Powell]

One more:

8. I use a silver Tiltall tripod. I've marked 2" increments on the legs with a black sharpie. That way, if I need to lower the top of the tripod to frame an image, I have a guide for adjusting the three legs by the same amount.

[Sheldon N]

Oh my God, you have a FATIF!!

It took a minute for me to figure out what you were saying, since I hadn't heard of a Fatif camera before.

Unfortunately (or fortunately? :)) my camera in the picture is actually a 4x5 Arca Swiss Field Orbix (110-141) with the 30cm telescoping rail.

[Clay Turtle]

If I hear about the baby stroller one more time, I'll SCREAM!!!
:eek: I used the wheels / rod & attached it to a pack frame. That way I can wheel the thing around where the terrain is smooth enough but when it gets rough, the carriage wheels come off & I use it as a backpack (which is what it was designed for to begin with) I use a fold down like those small carts & pack the gear into plastic tubs w/lids which stack one on top of the other & bungee them to the frame.
PS
Carry a couple of plastic trash bags. You can pop a trash bag over your camera to protect it from a shower, or lay one on the ground to protect your bag from the mud.
Alan Davenport I use the larger storage (zip lock) type bags used for clothing or bedding storage. they are generally advertized in conjunction with using vacumm attachments so the air can be removed to reduce storage space used. But I don't stick mine in the mud as it is used to cover the camera when it is in the plastic container as well as a covering when it is on the tripod when in damp, humid areas. {which around here is just about any where I go in the field}

[Christopher Breitenstein]

I bought an internal frame day pack on clearance for $20.00. It's basically a heavy duty School bag. It can hold 10 film holders, a light meter, filters, a shooting note book and a liter of water in a dignified manner.

I normally use just one lens; which saves a lot of space and reduces weight (but this in not the reason for using one lens).

I have tried the cape thing, and found it to be a nuisance. It limits you to one hand when focusing and composing, the other hand is usually occupied holding the dark cloth tightly around the camera.

With a little planning ahead I have found my need to carry equipment into the field reduced drastically. Such as knowing how long you are going to be out shooting, and taking a reasonable amount of film. test batteries and meters at home so you don't need to take spare batteries and a gray card into the field etc.

yours;