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Thread: Hello from Australia

  1. #11
    penguinoid's Avatar
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    Re: Hello from Australia

    Quote Originally Posted by munz6869 View Post
    I haven't used the 8x10" much (well, I only really started in earnest this year with it, and then along came the plague lockdowns!!) - I'm used to my solid and precise Wista 4x5, so the wobbliness and wonkiness of the front standard is a bit confronting. But it's so so light, and I've made some decent snaps... and the bellows are a satisfying bright red. So I'll persist!! 8x10" ground glass is a bit addictive after all...
    It's been a difficult year so far, hasn't it? I was meant to be doing quite a bit of travelling this year, but none of that has happened...

    Interesting comment about the wobbliness of the Intrepid. I've had a similar experience with my 5x7, though it's the only large format camera I've used so I can't really make that comparison myself. For me it makes up for this in that I can actually afford it.... I really enjoy using 5x7, it makes 4x5 looks just too small (I have a reducing back for my 5x7, in case I want to try shooting colour). I guess I will have to eventually try out 10x8.

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and I hope you manage to get out and take some photos as the lockdowns gradually ease!

  2. #12
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    Re: Hello from Australia

    Quote Originally Posted by ericantonio View Post
    Hello!!! And welcome.

    Can you tell us a few things about Australia? Photo related?
    I can try, though hopefully others will be able to give you better responses than I could. I don't know any other photographers here, so my experience is rather limited.

    Quote Originally Posted by ericantonio View Post
    Where do you get your film? Online? Is it super expensive? Do you develop at home? Or lab? Are there a lot of analog photographers?
    I've been getting my film online. Large format sheet film is unavailable locally where I live. It's certainly possible to buy it from a shop in Melbourne (under normal circumstances, not currently!) and maybe Sydney. 35mm and medium format film is more widely available. I develop large format black and white film at home, and have developed 35mm and medium format at home in the past, but commercial developing is still available. I've never developed colour film at home; I've always done that commercially.

    I think there is somewhat of a community of analogue photographers, but I'm not sure how many. I'd guess it's relatively small, especially compared to the US. I don't know any personally, though.

    One thing I noticed in Australia after leaving the UK in 2001 is that there wasn't the same number of amateur photographers here as I was used to in the UK, and equipment was more expensive. Advanced amateurs would shoot with high-end Nikons, Cannons and Hasselblads in the UK, but with mid-range cameras here. Consequently, there isn't as much second hand film equipment available, and it tends to be pricey when it is available. Oddly, this doesn't seem to be true for digital equipment, which is no more expensive here than elsewhere.

    Pricewise, I remember film being more expensive here than the UK when I first moved here (c.2001), though this seems to have changed and I guess they're now fairly similar. I'm not sure how this compares with the USA. I'd guess it was more expensive than the US.

    Quote Originally Posted by ericantonio View Post
    Someday I want to travel to NZ, my daughter went to school there, is is possible to buy LF film there you think? I know it's a total different area, but maybe you would know?
    I'd guess so but I'm not sure: it's been years since I visited NZ, and I don't think I bought film there at the time anyway... I shot 35mm Tri-X, which I took with me. It's quite different from Australia, however.

    Looking online found these shops: https://splendid.nz/collections/sheet-film and http://southerncameras.co.nz/index.p...y&path=140_142 . I can't vouch for either of them, as I've never bought from them. Regarding price, it is worth remembering that prices are in NZ$ not US$, and NZ$1=US$0.67 at the moment, so the prices will look higher than they actually are. It will also include sales tax, which I gather prices in the US don't always do.

    NZ certainly has some beautiful countryside, so it's worth the visit for the photographic opportunities alone!

  3. #13
    Marc! munz6869's Avatar
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    Re: Hello from Australia

    There's quite a community of Large Format photographers in Australia. There's a forum http://forum.largeformatphotography.com.au, there's a very updated Large Format news page https://viewcameraaustralia.org, there are a couple of active groups like http://friendsopg.org, and active gallery/workshop practitioners like https://www.goldstreetstudios.com.au for starters!

    Marc!
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  4. #14
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    Re: Hello from Australia

    Quote Originally Posted by munz6869 View Post
    There's quite a community of Large Format photographers in Australia. There's a forum http://forum.largeformatphotography.com.au, there's a very updated Large Format news page https://viewcameraaustralia.org, there are a couple of active groups like http://friendsopg.org, and active gallery/workshop practitioners like https://www.goldstreetstudios.com.au for starters!

    Marc!
    Thanks! I wasn't aware of the forum — I will have to check that out. I'm aware of the Large Format news page, which I read from time to time, though I don't think it's exactly a community thing — there is no way for new members to join. If it's a community, it's a fairly closed one. I think most things like the Friends of Photography Group and Gold Streeet Studios are Melbourne-based? Melbourne does seem to be the place to be for large format photography, at least in normal (non-COVID) times. (Which will return eventually!)

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