What were your 3 biggest rookie mistakes

<p>I have shot 35mm all my life and now decided to graduate to large format (mostly for the incredible resolution). Given that I understand the concepts of film speed vs. fstop vs. shutter speed, I was hoping for a little input from this wonderful LF knowledge pool to help me get off to a good start.<br>

So I will ask something that may be a little difficult for some to admit. What were your 3 biggest Rookie Mistakes when you began Large Format.</p>

<p>Easy: 1) First, not starting with a "normal" lens. Coming from 35mm it's somewhat painful for some of us to even consider a normal lens. But with LF, it far easier to learn movements when you can see what the heck you are doing. So your first lens should be a 150mm or perhaps a 135mm. Nothing shorter. And oddly, you'll likely find that you use this lens a lot even when you flesh out your lens kit with shorter and longer lenses.</p>

<p>2) Thinking that because I was good at 35mm that it would all translate to LF so the learning curve would be short. It does not, and it's longer than you'd think because there's a lot to learn. The analogy I like is that it's like switching from trumpet to saxophone. What you know about music in general translates, but what you know about physically operating a saxophone is about nil when you first pick it up. There's a number of learning curves to operating a saxophone, just as there are to learning LF. This is obvious in music, but somehow not obvious in photography. I don't know why, but that seems to be true.</p>

<p>3) Thinking that I was going to photograph the same way I did with 35mm (and no, this is a different topic that mechanical competency which is number 2 above). After you've learned the craft of working with a view camera (movements, sheet film, working with holders, etc.) you have to figure out how to make LF work with your photography instead of working against it. Basically you have to learn how to think before you shoot. You have to learn to compose without a camera stuck to your face -- how to compose with your head and not with your feet.</p>

<p>It is, without a doubt, a completely different way of working. With LF I walk the scene without the camera, working to find the single best perspective from which to shoot. Once I find it I setup the tripod and camera, then choose the right lens (no zooms in LF). what I'm sayin' is: I work to find the one best shot, and make exactly one exposure where in the 35mm world I would have fired off a dozen+ shots and hoped one of them would be good enough. With LF it takes me at least 15 minutes for any shot, and some take half a day or more. With 35mm this is just unthinkable.</p>

<p>4) I had no idea that LF would be this addicting. It's way more fun for me than 35mm. Way more. I'll never want to shoot film in a format smaller than 5x4 again. And resolution is just a small part of the reason. There's a lot more to LF than simple resolution. A lot more. You'll see.</p>

<p>And yes, I realize you only asked for the top three. No charge for the bonus. :-)</p>

<p>My rookie mistakes:<br>

1. Using too many movements - you'll be surprised how little you actually need to tilt or swivel to achieve sharp focus.<br>

2. Remembering to close the lens iris after focussing (just before inserting a film holder for "the shot") - you'll do this once or twice and then you'll learn not to. How will you know you've done it? Film will be way over-exposed.<br>

3. Remembering which side of the double-sided film holder you have exposed already. Label everything and keep a small "exposure record"/notebook to minimize this. A few doulble exposed shots and you'll learn not to do this (so much).<br>

Good luck. ˙sƃuıɥʇ ǝǝs ǝʍ ʎɐʍ ǝɥʇ oʇ ǝɯoɔןǝʍ</p>

<p>1. Forgetting to close the shutter before removing the dark slide.</p>

<p>2. Forgetting to remove the dark slide.</p>

<p>3. Re-inserting the dark slide the wrong way and then later on not knowing if the film was exposed or not.</p>

<p>In order to avoid these silly (film wasting) mistakes, I use a checklist printed on an index card. As long as I follow the checklist the only thing I have to worry about are the technical details of photography.</p>

<p>Bruce has a good point about starting with a normal lens. Other than that, go out and shoot some film, have fun and make a few mistakes. It's all part of the learning process. An excellent book to read is "Using the View Camera" by Steve Simmons.</p>

<p>So you want to limit it to just three? Just operating the film holder brings me up to about half a dozen.<br>

1) in the dark room not loading the film correctly in the film holder<br>

2) Not pulling the slide before the exposure<br>

3) not putting the slide back in after the exposure<br>

4) forgetting which side I had exposed and making a double exposure<br>

5)forgetting which side I had exposed and making no exposure.<br>

6) not securing the slde with the metal tab abd fogging the film<br>

7)....</p>

<p>Seriously - don't worry about the mistakes. It is all part of the fun</p>

<p>A lot are already covered so far. Keeping the shutter open while pulling the dark slide is a big one. So other things to remember I've found is that depth of field can sometimes stand in for shifts and tilts (ask the digital shooters you know how many pictures they make at f/45 or f/64). That shifts and tilts are very small movements, not these contorted exaggerated swings you see in the ads. Getting used to composing upside down (of course now it disconcerting to use a 35mm and see the image right side up!). Zooming in and out by lifting 20 lbs. of camera equipment and walking it forward of backward. Resetting your camera to zero after making adjustments. Seeing a picture in your mind and thinking you'll just set up the camera and snap up the photo. Or spending three hours setting up the shot only to step back and say "this ain't gonna work." Spending the day in the field and coming home with zero exposures. Or spending half a day in the field and coming home with 20 hours worth of processing work (actually not a bad thing). Realizing anything you did in 35mm has little bearing on what you're doing now.</p>

<p>Like anything, practice makes perfect. I rarely make the mistakes I made when I first started all those years ago. An when I think of photography, I almost always think in terms of LF. It's a maddening passion, and once you have a couple of handfuls of sheets shot, you'll wonder why ever did anything else.</p>

<p>BVS</p>

<p>Only been shooting LF for ~6 years, so I'm still a rookie in many ways and certainly not done making dumb mistakes. </p>

<p>I've made terrific shots using empty filmholders.</p>

<p>I've made terrific shots on film that was already exposed.</p>

<p>I backed into my tripod + camera and knocked the whole shebang over into a babbling brook. Thankfully, no lens/shutter on the camera -- that's what I was reaching for at the time -- so damage was limited to having to dry the camera out. And a bit of pride that went downstream... and I'm not sure that actually qualifies as a rookie mistake; that was just plain dumb.</p>

<p>Double exposure's been my most notable oops so far.<br>

Still sorting out the leaking plate holders for my Premo.</p>

 

<p>1) Not closing the shutter before pulling the slide. 2) Loading the holder wrong. You have to slide it under two retainers on the side of the holder. I got it over them on a few sheets. 3)Buying a cheap camera and a so so lens. 4)sorry, I made at least 5. Not getting instruction on the whole process, including film processing.5)Buying used film hangers which turned out to have a hidden photoflo buildup that came off on the edge of the negatives. It looked like vignetting, and was kind of nice, but random and unavoidable. It took a long time to figure out why the negatives were vignetting.</p>

<p>1 - do not forget reset the camera before every shot (keep your standards verticaly, and return to zero position shift-tilt-swing before composing every new frame)<br>

2- check exposure setting before you shot - fire one in advance before you remove the slide on film holder just to be sure that exposure is set properly.<br>

3 - do not be affraid to use older lenses</p>

<p>darko</p>

 

<p>I have two, one which I have to verbally recite every time. And that's after all the work to compose and with the movements and focus is to remember the sequence to insert film holder, cock and test shutter, cock shutter, remove film cover, release the shutter, insert film cover dark tab out. The other is as noted, use the least amount of movement. Ok, a third, remember to zero the movements before removing camera.</p>

<p>Excellent responses. Thank You very much. I can see right now that I need to keep notes for each exposures, and get a setup routine going and follow it.<br>

I neglected to tell you about the two mistakes I already made. 1) buying a lens on ebay that didn't fit my camera, and 2) buying Polaroid pack film when I have a single sheet holder.<br>

The good part is, I am passionate about photography and will, as you suggest, have fun in my new adventure.</p>

<p>Forgetting to take something on a shooting trip: Dark cloth ... no big deal, Loupe ... no big deal, Film Holders ... BIG DEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!</p>

<p>hmmm....<br>

1) Not making sure the film holder is seated properly<br>

2) Using too many movements.. You don't have to use movements (although I do on most shots) - Actually a good thing to remember is "Tilting does not alter the angle of the plane of focus..." a) focusing changes the angle of the plane of focus. b) Tilting changes the axis on which the focal plane rotates. --- The problem with using lots of tilt is that the focal plane close to camera has almost zero depth of field..<br>

3) Forgetting about bellows factor, reciprocity or filter compensation.<br>

4) Forgetting to warn the wife that my printer will be arriving on a lorry with a fork lift... :-)<br>

p.s. I left out the 'close the shutter before exposing film' cause I think you get that one by now..</p>

<p>1. As mentioned above, forgetting to close the preview button before taking the shot (or not!). Can't be done with a Copal shutter - so damn you Compur.</p>

<p>2. Getting the film under only one side of the DDS.</p>

<p>3. Agitating the film too much and dislodging it from the hanger. Lucky-dipping in the bottom of a 3 gallon tank of D-76 in the dark isn't much fun BTW.</p>

<p>1. Forgetting to reset movements to default positions after I'm done taking a photo. I've had a few otherwise excellent photos ruined because of movements I didn't know were present at the time.<br>

2. When using a SLR/DSLR as light meter, forgetting to verify that the meter's ISO matches that of my 4x5 film.<br>

3. Not stopping down enough in situations where movements can't render a landscape in sharp focus. All other things being equal, I would much rather error on the side of using too small an aperture than have annoying out-of-focus elements in an image.</p>

<p>Forgetting to photocopy that page in the LF instruction book and take in the field with me...you know, the one that goes something like "step one, level the camera,....step 12 push the dark slide back in AFTER exposure..." (this was pre-internet days, actually had to photocopy stuff)</p>

<p>that would cover about all 3 mistakes lol. Three? haha</p>

<p>I am still new at 4x5 so I continue to make a lot of the mistake mentioned above.<br>

while loading the film in the darkroom...got distracted (phone call I think) turned on the safelight, forgetting to put away the film I had sitting there. But, the kicker is I could not figure out why the film (for the next two months) was coming out fogged? D'oh (of course it wasn't my fault at the time, it was the film I bought, until I realized what I had done way afterwards.)<br>

Getting used to the slooow shutter speeeds, and small aperature setting. 35mm f5.6/f8 @ 125/250 the norm, 4x5 f22.f32 @ 1/50/ 1/25 the norm. And everything up above a dozen times or more.</p>

 

<p>The largest mistake I think is trying to rush anything you are trying to shoot. Any technique you use requires so much more time to properly focus. First learning to tilt and swing the lens board and thinking that I could just do the movement and quickly focus....HA what I illusion I had. The time it takes to do any movement and the constant focusing you need and adjustment to bring what you want in focus. My teacher was right, you either love the camera, or hate it. Some people don't have the patience needed to handle LF. I think another mistake is starting off with a 135-150mm lens. I think a 210mm is the minimal you should start with...just for the fact that you have such a larger image circle and you are able to do all your movements without accidental cropping of the edges. I think another mistake is getting a used camera that is soo old that you are unable to find parts for. If you want to use a 90mm lens but don't have the ability to purchase bag bellows...I would stay away from really old equipment. I have lenses with a Compur shutters which is the predecessor of the Copal shutters you see today. I can't have it repaired, just serviced and the worn parts have to be reused since there is nothing there to replace it with.<br>

These are the problems I have ran into in my beginning steps of LF photography. I know there are many more mistakes you'll make, and the most important thing you can do is just take your time, and practice and practice. You'll need the time and experience to get things right. Which that is where I am at right now, then you can play with these techniques and make much more interesting compositions than you ever could with your 35mm. But don't forget medium format, for the best compromise in quality and spontaneity.</p>

<p>1. Underestimating the idea of 1-shot, 1-kill. Get the exposure to the point where what you want is what you get on the negative and all the way through printing. Where I might have bracked a few times because I didn't take the time I needed.<br>

2. Jumping in and buying a few lenses that I soon realized I didn't need. 35mm, digital, and MF lenses don't translate to LF in my experience. lessons learned; thank you fleebay.<br>

3. Settle on 1 fast film and 1 slow film and 1 developer and then get very good at using them. I have tried 8 or more films in 4x5 and 5 or 6 developers. I settled on 1 slow film, 1 400 film, and 1 developer but still have the others.<br>

4. You will underestimate the learning curve. It's more than just a slower more methodical process. It doesn't take long before you realize what little you knew about your craft. It is humbling.</p>

 

<p>All the others had excellent points. Here are some others.<br>

1. going cheap on film processing. Nothing is worse than seeing a nice shot ruined by bad processing, gouges, and scratches. Find a good lab and stick with it. <br>

2. letting things distract you when setting up for a shot. Stay concentrated. <br>

3. forgetting what you did right, and what you did wrong - take detailed notes for every shot.</p>

<p>Some very good points made above, very many though. So don't let all this scare you off. I had far less trouble it seems than most. <br>

A couple notes I'll add to help you out. Get hold of a couple sheet films to learn or pratice loading in the light and then the dark, even if you sacrifice one or two good sheets. <br>

Make a note on your film boxes as to what's in them. I write how many unexposed or exposed sheets are in each box, and if empty, I notate that also. "Empty", "12 unexposed", "6 exposed normal development" etc etc ... If you load film holders, at least note on the zip lock bag what's in them, if loaded, unloaded etc... If you put them away for a while you may very well not remember if they are, not, or who knows??? <br>

<strong> </strong></p>

<p>1. Raising lens too much for its coverage, and ending up with dark corners.</p>

<p>2. Not enough developer in tank, leaving top part of film partly undeveloped.</p>

<p>3. Opening shutter before darkslide had been pushed back in. </p>

<p>loading the film upside down ( still do it from time to time )<br /> forget to close lens before pulling slide ( still do it from time to time )<br /> forget to tighten tripod after composing and camera shifts ( still do it from time to time )<br /> misplaced light meter ( still looking for it )</p>

<p>its been 20 years and i still make "rookie mistakes" ...<br /> there's a lot to remember and if you have other things on your mind, it is easy to forget things</p>

<p>Advice on all those dark slide and shutter sequencing mistakes: after I made any number of these mistakes in my first couple of weeks of shooting 4x5, I created a little acronym for the sequence of steps I needed to go through for each shot. I can't remember what it was, and everyone does the sequence in a slightly different order, but I just made up a word that used the first letter of each of the steps, and then I walked myself through "the word" each time I made a shot. By not having to think of the logic behind what I was doing, I got less confused, and by doing this automatically many many times in a row, I got to be a robot about it, which makes you less likely to be a human and mess something up.</p>