Thinking of getting a 4x5 enlarger - thoughts vs scanning

[MILC Toast]

Just an opinion:

I could spend 5 figures easily to get a scanning, printing and photo editing software setup to be like everyone else.

An old enlarger and a dark room might run around $4,000 for me since I'll have it in a $2,000 shed and it will definitely have my fingerprints all over it so among the people who still do it the old fashioned way, I'll still be unique.

Good or bad at it is another issue...

The other option is going big to do contact prints only but what you save by avoiding a 4x5 enlarger you pay in expensive lenses, film and less flexibility since you can't blow up and crop (without reducing print size).

The decision is easy for me because I'm trying to be low budget and I got my 4x5 Sinar F really really cheap but I think I probably would need that 5 figure budget before I would change my mind.

[jnantz]

wow MILC that's a lot of cash ... if I had 5 figures... I've been on a shoe string budget for decades, can't imagine spending that much ..
it doesn't really cost that much to make beautiful memorable photographs. it's the biggest lie in the world that it costs a small fortune to make photographs, and it's too bad people believe it! ...
most of the greatest photographs were made with gear that was nothing compared to today's cameras and lenses.. and pre-"modern" enlargers and lenses did/do not cost very much
... do what you like and like what you do I guess, but it really doesn't cost a king's ransom ( maybe it does now ? it's been a while ) to build a darkroom and have an enlarger in it ...
I can't really speak for dig-stuff I'm using a 15 year old scanner and commercial printer.. a more modern scanner and printer would cost something but 5 figures is a lot of cash ..
in the end it doesn't matter anyways .. do what makes you happy, that's all that matters anyways..

[xkaes]

$4,000? I've have a CB-7 and a 45MXII -- and got each of them for around $400. And 4x5" cameras works for me since I like large prints. And nowadays you can get all the darkroom gear you need for next to nothing. There might be a resurgence of film recently, but much less in the darkroom.

[SergeyT]

If one likes the look of SG prints over inkjet, cyanotypes, gum ,etc and wants their prints to look like SG print then the only way to achieve that is to make SG prints.
Likewise, if one likes the looks of prints made with another method - go with the method that you like, if you think that you can afford it and become proficient at it.
Some questions to answer along the way - "what do you want to achieve by making prints?" and "is method X essential for that purpose?"

[neil poulsen]

I have a well equipped, though confined, darkroom with 4x5 capability and use it to develop and print only black and white negatives. All my color work is done using digital capture and rendering.

I maintain my darkroom, because for me, nothing quite matches the look of a silver gelatin print. I very rarely print back and white digitally. Although, I think that would be worth exploring.

[Drew Wiley]

Well, even 4K overall investment in a complete darkroom is a bargain, given that fact that most enlargers in decent shape can be kept going for many more decades with little more than a periodic light bulb change. Scanners and digital printing devices, however, have to be repeatedly repurchased, due to either wearing out prematurely or the software going obsolete relatively soon. It's a choice been equipment designed to last, versus a kind of equipment related to consumer electronics, designed to need frequent replacement by the "latest and greatest" version instead.

Yeah, good darkroom b&w papers are getting expensive. But at least you're getting some real silver and gelatin on it, whereas with inkjet paper, you're spending just as much or even more for just a little sizing on an otherwise plain sheet of paper. And ever look at the cost of those inks, at least a color set? Not an apples to apples comparison, color & BW. But with a colorhead on an enlarger you can do both; and RA4 color paper is relatively affordable, certainly compared to color inkjet.

Regardless, there is a certain calming tactile enjoyment to darkroom workflow, versus sitting on your butt punching buttons nervously like I'm doing at the moment.

[jp]

One could easily spend $5000 on a 24" printer, and then $1000 on ink. Add $2000 for computer, monitor, $1300 epson scanner, and backup storage and you're pushing 5 digits no problem.

For a darkroom, the sink will probably be the most expensive item either bought or built. Budget a couple hundred for a good enlarger lens and focusing aid; The grain will be so tiny from the small amount of enlargement, it's more important than ever to get a good focusing aid if you need one compared to tiny formats. Easel, trays, plumbing and electric will probably use the remainder of the $2k.

[SergeyT]

One could easily spend $5000 on a 24" printer, and then $1000 on ink. Add $2000 for computer, monitor, $1300 epson scanner, and backup storage and you're pushing 5 digits no problem.

For a darkroom, the sink will probably be the most expensive item either bought or built. Budget a couple hundred for a good enlarger lens and focusing aid; The grain will be so tiny from the small amount of enlargement, it's more important than ever to get a good focusing aid if you need one compared to tiny formats. Easel, trays, plumbing and electric will probably use the remainder of the $2k.

It is implied that there a space for the Darkroom available.
It is also implied that none of the digital equipment is already acquired.

The reality for many could be quite the opposite.
Try to buy a space suitable for the darkroom in a highly populated prestigious area. Want to compare the costs from that perspective ?

[ic-racer]

I can get a nice 4x5 enlarger for a moderate price locally

The best way to obtain one...locally, as shipping can be very expensive. What kind?

[Ulophot]

Look around, ask around, and be a little patient.

About four years ago, when my Zone VI coldlight head died, I looked on Craigslist, just in case. Bingo: a thrift store a couple of hours away was selling one -- with a 4x5 Beseler enlarger! -- for $100. I called to say I was coming, and drove there immediately. While there, the lady in charge asked me if I wanted anything else from the lot the person had brought in -- expensive trays, thermometers, quart Pyrex measuring cups, chemistry, paper, etc. I took a good deal of it. Once home, I put the Zone VI head to work easily enough. Meanwhile, I cleaned up and sold the enlarger for $100 and later sold most of the other items -- not big money but enough for another box of film. So,my cost was a couple of gallons of gas.

The head lasted just a few years, and I'm about to offer it and another I happen to have to anyone who wants to invest in buying a new lamp or whatever. But you certainly can find bargains with a little persistence.