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Thread: Greetings from Switzerland

  1. #1

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    Greetings from Switzerland

    Hi there,

    I am new to large format but not to photography (I have a collection of film cameras from 35mm to 6x7), although it has been many years since I developed my own films. I expect that to change as I learn 4x5 cameras with B&W film before wasting any colour slide film.

    I bought a Sinar P2 which is quite bulky and heavy so not ideal for landscapes, but lets see if I take it out from the studio I am about to setup. My plan is for still life to start with as well as portraits and then landscapes once I know how to use the equipment ... nothing worse than losing the light while you read the instructions

    I am sure to be on the technique and gear threads to start on my learning path. I do at least already have a sturdy tripod and head on which it all balances, but maybe ... just maybe ... I need a wooden one such as Berlebach or Ries and one of their bomb proof heads. I think LF is just another excuse for GAS.

    Ravi

  2. #2

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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    Welcome, Ravi. You're in one of the most beautiful countries on Earth, for sure. Returning to photography more than four years ago, I took my monorail and Bogen 3051 on a morning LF get-together trip. It was a 26-lb (nearly 13 kg) package and I was 13 years older than when last I had been hopping about with it. Seeing others with field cameras moving easily while I lugged mine quickly persuaded me to lighten my load. I now carry an 11-lb camera/tripod duo.

    Anyway, you've arrived at the right forum. I hope you'll keep B&W in mind when you get to your landscapes as well.
    Philip Ulanowsky

    Sine scientia ars nihil est. (Without science/knowledge, art is nothing.)
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  3. #3
    Vaughn's Avatar
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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    View cameras come with instructions??!!! I figure they are like the mules I use to pack into the wilderness...do something wrong and one receives a swift kick to let you know. If you are subject to GAS attacks, then a field 4x5 will find you sooner than later...but the P2 will be fun to work with.

    Welcome!

    I use a Ries -- but will be looking for something lighter/smaller for bicycle use and my 8x10.
    "Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China

  4. #4

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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    There's a member of this forum who is an extremely talented American photographer who lives and works as a commercial photographer in Rome. Several years ago, in a personal message exchange, he suggested that I start using a levelling base instead of a tripod head. It was some of the best photography advice that I've ever received. I only use a tripod head now if I need the precision of a Manfrotto geared head.

    That's for a standard carbon fibre or aluminium tripod. I like to use a Ries for 8x10 outdoors. I was a skeptic about wooden tripods until I had an opportunity to try out a friend's Reis J 100 with a J 250 double tilt head. I was an instant convert. It doesn't weigh that much more than my carbon fibre tripod, and it's rock solid and very well-balanced for outdoor carry. It's also a pleasure to use. That said, it is arguably overkill for 4x5.

    For 4x5 and 6x7, I typically use a Gitzo Series 3 tripod and a Gitzo levelling base. Levelling the tripod from the legs is not rocket science. The levelling base gives me 15° for final levelling. In exchange, I get a more stable platform for the camera and I don't have to carry around, or bother with, a tripod head.

    The photographer who gave me that advice hasn't posted here since 2015, but it appears from his simple, bare bones website that he had a show last year: http://cbroadbent.it
    Last edited by r.e.; 26-Jul-2021 at 13:12.

  5. #5

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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    Quote Originally Posted by Sandokan View Post
    Hi there,

    I am new to large format but not to photography (I have a collection of film cameras from 35mm to 6x7), although it has been many years since I developed my own films. I expect that to change as I learn 4x5 cameras with B&W film before wasting any colour slide film.

    I bought a Sinar P2 which is quite bulky and heavy so not ideal for landscapes, but lets see if I take it out from the studio I am about to setup. My plan is for still life to start with as well as portraits and then landscapes once I know how to use the equipment ... nothing worse than losing the light while you read the instructions

    I am sure to be on the technique and gear threads to start on my learning path. I do at least already have a sturdy tripod and head on which it all balances, but maybe ... just maybe ... I need a wooden one such as Berlebach or Ries and one of their bomb proof heads. I think LF is just another excuse for GAS.

    Ravi
    Hey Ravi, good to see you here too!

  6. #6

    Join Date
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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    Quote Originally Posted by Ulophot View Post
    Welcome, Ravi. You're in one of the most beautiful countries on Earth, for sure. .... I now carry an 11-lb camera/tripod duo.

    Anyway, you've arrived at the right forum. I hope you'll keep B&W in mind when you get to your landscapes as well.
    Indeed it is Phiip, even if I live in the flat boring part. After a vacation in Interlaken and Zermatt, I did scout out some places and I was already calculating lens, how much shift, which would be best location for the shot... etc. I did also start to think about joining a gym (round is a shape but is not the best shape for walking around carrying heavy stuff).

    Quote Originally Posted by Vaughn View Post
    View cameras come with instructions??!!! I figure they are like the mules I use to pack into the wilderness...do something wrong and one receives a swift kick to let you know. If you are subject to GAS attacks, then a field 4x5 will find you sooner than later...but the P2 will be fun to work with.

    Welcome!

    I use a Ries -- but will be looking for something lighter/smaller for bicycle use and my 8x10.
    Thanks Vaugn . Yes ... I think it will be one of those experiences; I remember all the pains I went through with a rangefinder, and that was a camera that could be carried around the neck. For tripods, I recommend the ProMediaGear 42 range which is what mine is currently sitting on, but my digital camera wants it back.

    Quote Originally Posted by r.e. View Post
    There's a member of this forum who is an extremely talented American photographer who lives and works as a commercial photographer in Rome. Several years ago, in a personal message exchange, he suggested that I start using a levelling base instead of a tripod head. It was some of the best photography advice that I've ever received. I only use a tripod head now if I need the precision of a Manfrotto geared head.

    That's for a standard carbon fibre or aluminium tripod. I like to use a Ries for 8x10 outdoors. I was a skeptic about wooden tripods until I had an opportunity to try out a friend's Reis J 100 with a J 250 double tilt head. I was an instant convert. It doesn't weigh that much more than my carbon fibre tripod, and it's rock solid and very well-balanced for outdoor carry. It's also a pleasure to use. That said, it is arguably overkill for 4x5.

    For 4x5 and 6x7, I typically use a Gitzo Series 3 tripod and a Gitzo levelling base. Levelling the tripod from the legs is not rocket science. The levelling base gives me 15° for final levelling. In exchange, I get a more stable platform for the camera and I don't have to carry around, or bother with, a tripod head.

    The photographer who gave me that advice hasn't posted here since 2015, but it appears from his simple, bare bones website that he had a show last year: http://cbroadbent.it
    HI. I do actually know the work of Chris B and he is very talented. I have a levelling base on my PMG 424 on top of which I have a RRS panorama clamp which is currently holding the Sinar. I do not know if I will need a head for the view camera, but for 35mm I have the Arca Swiss P0 geared head because sometimes more movement is required (BTW I have RRS L-shaped camera plates on all the time). The A series is a bit lighter, but my lesson learned with tripods after buying Velbon, then a Sirui, then a Manfrotto ... was, it was much cheaper to just buy the best (RRS or PMG) at the start of the journey. The PMG 424 is more like the Gitzo 5 series but I have a 2 series for travelling. I use https://thecentercolumn.com/ as my goto resource.

    Quote Originally Posted by minh0204 View Post
    Hey Ravi, good to see you here too!
    Hey Minh, good to see you here too, hope you and Kim are well.

  7. #7

    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    Greetings, I live in Switzerland too.

    I don't do Large Format anymore, so I'm selling all my equipment. Now I have a much smaller Nikon DSLR and a Konica SLR. Still doing B&W photography most of the time.
    "I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

  8. #8

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    Re: Greetings from Switzerland

    Quote Originally Posted by waltschwarzkopf View Post
    Greetings, I live in Switzerland too.

    I don't do Large Format anymore, so I'm selling all my equipment. Now I have a much smaller Nikon DSLR and a Konica SLR. Still doing B&W photography most of the time.
    HI Walt,

    I went other way, from film, APS-H, Micro 4/3 to FF and now trying 4x5.

    I will PM you if you have any accessories left.
    Ravi

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