Request clarification of large format.

[Jac@stafford.net]

Let the laddie play with the knife.
He'll learn.

You'll shoot your eye out!

[Dan Fromm]

Old Fife proverb:

Let the laddie play with the knife.
He'll learn.

This proverb hath been taught in schools,
It is no jesting with edged tools.

[evan clarke]

Why is this important?

[BradS]

.....something David Goldfarb said in #98 resonated with me: I look to this website for discussions involving

"view cameras and/or sheet film." (I would extend "sheet film" in this context to include any non-digital, or pre-digital, capture medium.)

Threads that involve neither of those things are of little interest to me personally on this website,* acknowledging again that I am just one vote.

This perfectly sums up my opinion of the matter. Thanks. I will only add that I fully understand and accept that this is not ademocracy and my "vote" probably counts for naught.

[BradS]

....upgrade to software like APUG uses that allows for one to ignore threads or individual forums. That way posts, forums and threads the I consider internet garbage

YES! I too wish that these features were available here. I especially appreciate the ability to ignore individual threads. Sometimes even threads start out interesting wander off into the weeds and become tedious....then there are the threads that are just plain dumb from the get go...but that never seem to die (the "what film did you shoot today" thread for example).

[Racer X 69]

Question, is a medium format digital back used on a technical or press camera considered "large format" for this forum? And if so, how is "medium format" defined? By the actual size of the sensor, or by the size of the image file created?

Sandy

check the faq page:http://www.largeformatphotography.in...rules_faq_item

Vinny made this suggestion in post number 6, and only one member (DennisD) has referenced it in all 125 posts that have constituted this discussion thus far.


So I trotted on over to the FAQ page and right there, at the top of that page is the following:

The purpose of the forum is to provide a place for discussion of topics of particular interest to large format photographers. We especially encourage questions which will help build a repository of knowledge about the tools and techniques of large format photography, as opposed to "shopping" questions. For the purposes of this forum, we define "large format" as being essentially 4x5, or larger, sheet film. We do, however, allow what would otherwise be considered "medium format" sizes, IF exposed in a view camera (e.g. with a roll-film adapter), technical, or old-style press camera (e.g. the various Graphic cameras).

And as I observed, Dennis has read the guidelines and pointed out quite well how they apply here.

The guidelines clearly associate "Large Format" with sheet film or, in the case of "medium format", roll film. There is no mention of digital technology and for that reason it would appear that digital image capture is not included within the realm of "large format" as far as this forum is concerned.

And just as I did, he observed that the guidelines are clear.

Digital image capture using LF equipment is not considered "Large Format" at this discussion group. Although I would like to see it included, it is not by the rules, and I am OK with that. I don't make the rules here, I am only expected to know and abide by them.

If medium format digital capture (on whatever qualifies as a view camera) is accepted, do we need to define a size standard for a medium format sensor ?

There has been considerable divergence of discussion from the initial question, and in part of that discussion about the digital scanning backs available for LF cameras was mentioned and briefly discussed. Actually the rules seem to have not kept pace with the growth of the forum, as there is an area of discussion in the LF section here: http://www.largeformatphotography.in...gital-Hardware

Anyway, for me at least, the rules are quite clear. If anything they might need some tweaking to more closely reflect the growth of the forum since they were put in place.

Or the discussion areas in the LF section that don't actually fit the rules may need to be placed in a different (possibly new) section.

[VictoriaPerelet]

... Remember that film is also a new technology compared to older image taking technologies, photography will always change and progress and sometimes if we're lucky we get to keep some of the nostalgia and the feel of old world techniques and meld them with newer technologies to create an even more breathtaking image.

To put that in todays perpective. Here's interesting link about current commercial imaging:

http://www.dezeen.com/2013/11/27/cgi...alogue-images/

There's no camera, no lens, no sensor, no studio lights, no monkey who presses shutter to take selfies.
And "it" produces images of as many megapixels as one wants - "larger" than any physical camera can produce

[Bill_1856]

It's pretty simple: Anything that would have been photographed on a solid plate (glass, tin sheet, etc) in the 19th century is Large Format.

[StoneNYC]

To put that in todays perpective. Here's interesting link about current commercial imaging:

http://www.dezeen.com/2013/11/27/cgi...alogue-images/

There's no camera, no lens, no sensor, no studio lights, no monkey who presses shutter to take selfies.
And "it" produces images of as many megapixels as one wants - "larger" than any physical camera can produce

I knew this, I got most of my Profoto lighting from a product photographer that was retiring as all his work was lost to renderings, he did stuff like BMW car adds, all of those are renderings now, not actual cars.

Such is the world, mannequin people and digital cars....

[sanking]

Interesting how people interpret a set of facts in different ways. I looked at the same set of facts as others and came to the conclusion that the rules are not clear.

On the one hand, you have a FAQ which does not mention digital of any kind, which could lead one to believe that digital is not within the rules . . .

But on the other hand there are forum groups that treat both digital hardware, and digital processing . . .

I see this an inconsistency that needs clarification. It is impossible for a community to abide by the rules if the rules themselves are not mostly clear to all.

Sandy