Just bought a ETRS on eBay for one heck of a deal... Now have questions :)

[intuity]

I just bought an ETRS "system" on eBay, complete with lens, finder, two backs,

and body... And I have a question about some of the capabilities because I'm

new to 6x4.5.

 

I have owned a Pentax 67 in the past, but I've never had a 6x4.5. I

understand from reading in the forums that the orientation of the back

dictates that the frame is shot in landscape, is this correct? I will find

this out when I recieve the camera.

 

I'm pretty sure I got a heck of a deal, because the auction closed at $217.50

for everything, including a 220 and 120 back. As soon as I get it, I'm going

to go have it cleaned and lubricated before I start getting to know it -

anyone have any ideas on good repair houses in the Indianapolis area?

 

If I understand correctly, this camera weighs (fully loaded) about as much as

my 67 - how well is it balanced with the 80mm lens? I will probably end up

having to invest in a sturdier tripod...

 

Judging by the frame size, the maximum enlargement size that would be

acceptable from a 6x4.5 frame on a roll of Fuji NPS 160 would be what, 11x14?

I believe I should be able to get roughly 24x36 out of my Ercona, since it's

6x9 - is it even possible to make the comparison in frame size versus maximum

grainless enlargement?

 

I'd appreciate any and all comments - and I look forward to posting some of my

images here for critique :)

 

Jake Hawkins

[john_papandreou]

I have used a ETRS for years, It is a very capable camera, the lenses are very sharp, the cameras are very reliable. I have never had a shutter fail or a body fail. I have had one back fail after hundreds of rolls of film.

 

The back does not rotate you just rotate the whole camera.

 

The camera is lighter than a pentax 6x7, any good PRO grade tripod will be fine I use a Bogen/Manfotto

 

The enlargements from T-MAX B&W I have printed taken with my Bronica can Exceed 24x20 with no loss of sharpness - NOTE I am printing with a

DURST L1200 Enlarger with a Rodonstock Rodagon lens on to Ilford paper no digital involved. I have had a number of images taken on NPS Color neg Hand printed to 11x14 with a Enlarger and they are sharp and almost granless.

 

I had the same images printed on a Fuji Fronter to 10x15 they lacked sharpness an had grain ??? I later found out that a Fuji Fronter scans a medium format neg to the same Resolution as a 35mm neg and that was the problem.

 

Also Links

 

http://medfmt.8k.com/mf/mffaq.html

 

http://www.tamron.com/bronica/etr_guide.asp

 

http://www.tamron.com/bronica/prod/etrsi.asp

[david_henderson]

You get landscape photographs with the camera orientated normally. If you want portrait orientation you turn the camera 90 degrees.

 

If you're having prints made conventionally then in my view you're good for up to 16" x 12". If you're scanning and printing digitally then your size will be governed more by the limitations of the process you choose than anything else. For example a good drum scan of a well exposed and sharp original and printed on a LightJet could make a print 36" x 27" which could stand close scrutiny- at a cost. Up to that point and maybe even to a little beyond it you can have what size you want so long as you're using a scan/file- production/print technique to match it.

[bryan_attewell]

Great deal on your camera, hope it's in good nick!

 

The images are actually 5.5x4.2 cms in size. Even a moderate flat bed scanner will give you 2400 dpi, and, assuming that you are going to print at 300 dpi, thats an 8x multiplier. (Of course you can scan at a higher resolution and print at lower). That gives you a print size of 44 x 33.6 cm (17.3x13.2 ins).

 

I normally use Ilford B&W film and would say that Delta 100 would give you a very acceptable smooth grained image at that size. From my limited experience of colour the same would be true of ISO 100 Fuji transparency film.

[intuity]

I appreciate the responses - as for the 2400 dpi scan, that's assuming digital printing. I don't think anyone is really doing optical exposure anymore, as most of the minilab equipment I've used (Fuji Frontier 370 and 390, Noritsu 3011) scan digitally and then print via laser/LED exposure, which is a shame. When I was in high school, my advanced photography class learned C-41 and E-6 process for films and RA-4 paper process, but good lord, it was tedious and a massive pain. My thumbs are still sore from winding the stiff dichro filtering gear knobs on our Beseler, six years later! :) Not to mention, color processes are finicky as all get-out and I don't feel like plumbing in instant-heat and thermostatic control into my baby darkroom just yet.

 

I'm headed into Indianapolis today to visit Firehouse Photo (a huge pro/custom lab) and see just how intense their operation is and whether or not they can get me good scans, as my local guy (who has a Konica minilab) won't even think about scanning my negs... "One roll would fill up my minilab's hard drive, not even a question!"

 

Plus, they do one-hour E6 slides and plates. Who could ask for more? :)

 

More to come, I'll keep y'all posted!

 

 

Jake Hawkins

[fred welch]

If you want top quality, fine grain, tack sharp prints from your negs, in any size up to 24x20 the answer is simple: Forget digitally scanned images and get yourself a darkroom with quality enlarger and lenses. Traditional printing is still the best way to get top quality prints. Plus; you get all the pleasure from hand printing your own negs.

[erie_patsellis]

Jacob, depending on which side of Indy you are on, Galloway's in Terra Haute processes and prints medium format, Both C41 and E6. They also will dev only, and scan.

 

erie

[kmcgrew]

See this message thread for some good tables on print and negative size, aspect ratios, and so forth:

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00JKlH&tag=

 

I just posted it earlier this morning.

[intuity]

Yeah, I live in Terre Haute - but I have a serious beef with Galloway. I went in and asked if they sold Portra, and I was told that they can't order it, and if they did, they couldn't sell it before the expiration date - this is after telling them that I would buy a brick at a time. Not to mention, they "don't do custom backprinting" - which is a total crock. They have both a Fuji Frontier 370 and a Noritsu 3011 - I've operated on both machines, and I know that they can do custom backprinting. The guy I spoke to was not only extremely rude, but he was VERY unhelpful.

 

So, I take all of my work to Mic's. He is most defintely a photofinisher, and has the finesse to deal with pro work. In addition, the only reason I would HAVE to deal with Galloway is that they print on Endura, and Mic doesn't have a spare mag for his Koninca lab, and can't order Endura through his supplier.

 

I hope that I'll be able to fix this, because I would rather deal with Mic, who does quality work and actually takes the time and effort to make my work look good.