Westons' technique for closeups

I would like to know if anyone is aware of what Edward Westons' technique was for taking closeups.Specifically I would like to know which lens ( focal length) was employed with a 8x10 camera and whether any extension equipement was necessary.

http://hv.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=000Efa

From his daybook entry of 8/3/30, he states that he was using his

21cm.Zeiss, which was needed to fill the 8x10 frame because the

pepper was so small. The pepper in this case was put in a tin funnel,

which provided the background.

And on September 18th of 1930 he wrote, "Getting closer - using a 5

inch Cooke lens on the 8 X 10 - making the heart of an artichoke to

fill the entire plate - a celery heart becomes heroic..."

 

<p>

 

On August 29, 1927 he wrote, "Yesteday I did the pepper again, - and

what a satisfaction to hac a cleanlined, brillian negative! This,

and a shell negative, done yesteday too, were made with a $5 R.R.

lens bought a few months ago second hand. I like the quality, and

being of shorter focal length it is easier to focus and requires less

exposure. I stop down to U.S. 256"

 

<p>

 

U.S. 256 refers to the old Uinform System aperture equivalent of

f/64. By R.R. he means Rapid Rectalinear, not Rail Road.

I seem to recall that these exposures were measured in hours, and

that some were ruined by his porch moving as vehicles drove by!

That would be about right. Figure that normal roomlight is about 1/30

sec. at f:2 at ISO 400. At f:64, if I've done the math right, that

would be 32 sec. Now figure that film was probably on the order of

ISO 6, if that much, in those days. That would be about 34 min.,

plus figure at least a stop or two or three for reciprocity, and

you're up to one, two, or four hours.

Further thought:

The bellows factor would also add more exposure to the calculations

in addition to the other estimates provided. Filling the 8x10 frame

with a 5" lens for an artichoke, pepper, etc is certainly a bit more

than 1:1.

 

<p>

 

Fred