roger_smith4 Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 I just read about this super large format (4 by 8 feet) camera on Wired. What do you think of the design? Would it really be sharp? Zoom with your feet? Nah, zoom with you car. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59929,00.html "He constructed the machine, dubbed Peanut, out of an old mail- delivery truck he bought on eBay and surplus military parts, including a lens that came straight from a submarine periscope. The camera truck takes photos that are 4 feet tall and 8 feet wide -- more than 3,000 times larger than the typical negative. It's essentially one step above a pinhole camera, the standard prop used in introductory photography classes. Irving composes his images by driving closer to or farther away from his subjects and stands inside the camera to make the images. "It's amazing to be inside a camera as it takes a picture," said Irving. "You step in there, shut all the doors, and you see this projection of everything outside ... only it's upside-down. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael_veit Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 Don't tell Irving, but there's rumors of Kodak discontinuing 4'x8' Azo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_levine Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 Where would one get 4x8' sheets of film?Or developing trays or tanks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael_veit Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 <<Or developing trays or tanks?>> Maybe he drives into vats of the stuff? Agitation would be hell on the transmission, tho. All kidding aside, if that's been a dream of his which he finally achieved, all the more power to him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_symchyshyn Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 I think it's a FANTASTIC idea, Good for him! For the whole story check out... http://www.cameravan.net/pages/1/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellis_vener_photography Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 Are the shifts, tilts & swings geared?<P>The big Polaroid cameras (20" x 24" and larger) use lenses that were originally designed for the Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david l. Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 Its been done before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_sampson Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 I met someone who was doing a similar project, using a VW bus as the camera, about 15 years ago at the Visual Studies Workshop. That guy (if it's not the same person) was using a paper negative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triblett_lungre_thurd Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 yeah, i think it's a fantastic idea in hands a bit more capable. looks to me like he's made some 24"x36" paper negs so far and of pinhole quality. you'd definitely get better results with a ulf and then investing yer time and money cobbling together a ULF enlarger out of a stat camera. but whatever floats yer dingy, me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_collins Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 This certainly re-inforces the conviction of many LFers that all great photographs can be made from the edge of a road... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david l. Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 I wonder if this guy saw the Vera Lutter show at Gagosian�s Chelsea gallery a few months ago. She created unique 8 x 15 foot prints of various industrial environments by using room sized cameras with photosensitive paper. The images were, of course, negative and although I believe she used a pinhole as a lens � the images were remarkably sharp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roger_smith4 Posted August 7, 2003 Author Share Posted August 7, 2003 I wonder what sort of ventillation system he has? I can imagine the fumes from his buckets of chemicals not being too pleasant. It isn't clear, but it seems that he is doing the developing inside the truck. I don't think I'd want to drive around in a darkroom. "I expose the negative for however long I need to for that particular shot. I then sponge on developer and fixer, which I've already prepared in giant buckets" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triblett_lungre_thurd Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 it's not too bad, a professor wanted to test the enlargeability of tech pan by blowing up a 645 neg to 4x8'... coopted the class to do so. we converted two opposing huge stainless steel sinks into trays(dev-fix) and sponged it on 48" sections at a time in place of tray rocking, one person sponging, one person spooling, then drained one side for the wash after. i wouldn't wanna do it alone, but developer up to yer armpits is nothing new to anyone who has worked in a lab. i put my d2 on the kitchen counter one night and printed some grass onto my linoleum floor,(liquid light)... i used sponges fer that. skipped the quick rinse between dek and fix,... then brought the garden hose in from the front yard and rinsed it out the back door. poly'd it later... me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triblett_lungre_thurd Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 if ya wanna do yer floor like that... lemme make a suggestion. use ag+, me p.s. i'm thinkin' it'll flex better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
struan_gray Posted August 8, 2003 Share Posted August 8, 2003 I would be more impressed if he did panoramic photography by wedging the steering wheel on full lock, jumping in the back and unrolling the paper at the right rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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