brian_jefferis

Where would one obtain lens boards for an old 8 X 10 Eastman Kodak view camera? Can they be made or would lens boards from other 8 X 10's work? Thanks

Does anyone know of a source for information about classic kodak lenses? Specifically, Wide Field Ektars. I'm looking for approximate

age, filter sizes they will accept, etc.

Don't know of any chemical suppliers in Australia but if you don't

find any give Artcraft Chemicals a call in Schenectady N.Y. USA.

(www.nfinity.com/~mdmuir/artcraft/html) Pretty sure he will do

international shipments if laws permit. Has very good prices as well.

Sorry, I have to correct myself. Development will affect your shadows

but they are generally fully developed in the first few minutes so use

development time to control your highlights.

I would say underdevelop (n-1 or n-2) and you will probably get a

decent neg. Your highlights are going to be what the development will

affect. Development really won't do anything to your shadows but

you'll probably have really nice detail in them and they can always be

printed down. Good luck!

I almost exclusively shoot with my Kodak 135 WF Ektar. It's an

extremely sharp lens and I routinely shoot at f/32. Diffraction

causes lots of problems in B&W as well as color but I have not noticed

any problems. The 100mm & 135mm only stop down to f/32. The WF's are

wonderfully light and sharp but you have to hunt for one in mint

condition.

Where did you find a camera like this? I have heard of a 4x5 SLR

before but thought it was just a fanciful idea.

Thanks everyone for your insights!

I was baffled by a situation today in which my subject was a vertical close-up of a dense bank of reeds. The bank of reeds began about a foot from the lens and extended away from the lens to about 15 feet. My intention was to create a strong, powerful feeling yet was unable to do this because of inadequate DOF. No matter what aperture or movements I used I could not retain sharpness front to back. I've never encountered a DOF problem as severe as this. My question is what could I have done to correct this? (I was using a 4x5 monorail with all movements available and a 135mm WF Ektar. I would have liked to use a longer lens but I neglected to bring my other lenses with me)

I've never tried bleaching a neg. although to me it sounds like VERY

risky business. You'll most likely lose your valuable pyro stain in

this process which will make your neg. really thin.

Question #1 I use 4x5 frequently and have never had a problem with

uneven development using trays and tubes. If anything you'll have

more of a problem with tank developing(uses horrendous amounts of

chemistry,they leak, and you have no control over individual negs).

A JOBO would be nice but they are expensive and if you are looking to

cut costs that's not the way to go. Trays and tubes offer the most

control. Question #2 You're gonna be hard pressed to keep any

equipment above 35mm under 6 pounds! (this assumes you carry more than

just the camera body) The Arca Swiss might be a good choice

considering just weight and bulkiness and if you carry a couple film

holders, lightmeter, 1 lens, loupe, and a decent tripod with head you

might just make it under 20 pounds. When I first started using 4x5 and

hiked more than a couple hundred yards from my car I thought maybe I

made a mistake and should have gone with medium format. Once I saw my

first couple LF negs. I didn't regret my decision. (they actually

weren't that great but seeing LF negs. for the first time is really

something) Question #3 Schneider and Rodenstock are really on par

with each other. You might try some older classic lenses. Some are

really nice and much less expensive than new lenses.

I've also had a brief experience with Camera Care myself. I too saw

their ad in Shutterbug and at the time was in the market for a 4x5

enlarger for my current darkroom. Since I live about an hour from

philly I decided to go check them out. Upon arriving I got the same

impression as Josh and was not too impressed with their shop or their

LF gear or how it was being kept. I did luck out though and found a

Bessler 45 MXT complete (and in excellent shape exept for the

thick layer of dust) with lens turret and it's price was quite

attractive. I didn't expect to be buying an enlarger when I was there

so of course the enlarger was too big to fit in my car. So, I asked

the man if he could ship it and I was prepared to pay the shipping

costs. I fully expected him to be able to ship it considering almost

all mail order companies will ship the merchandise they carry. Well,

this was not the case and he told me that I have to take it with me if

I want it. Anyway, before my response gets too long, the enlarger is

now in my darkroom after a hell of a lot of stress. My opinion of

Camera Care is not negative but I probably wouldn't shop there again.

 

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Brian

Correct agitation is fairly critical when using PMK or any other pyro

developer. The main reason is not necessarily uneven development but

pyro has a strong tendency to cause streaking which will ruin your

neg. During development a very thin layer of the developer will

exhaust itself rapidly on the surface of the film. When there is no

agitation (the agitation should be very vigorous) this layer of

exhausted developer will begin to slide across the surface of the film

causing the stains(streaks). Gordon Hutchings describes in detail the

why's and how's of PMK and agitation in "The Book of Pyro." I have

used an agitaion cycle of 10 sec. every 30 sec. which is longer than

recommended with apparent success. Temperature and capacity are also

really critical with pyro. Before I knew PMK was a one-shot

developer, I ran three 4x5 negs. one at a time through the tray of

PMK. When I was finished and turned on the lights I found the first

neg. was beautiful but the other two were blank. 1 liter of PMK

was fully oxidixed after just one neg.! (It has a larger

capacity than this but the exposure to air oxidized it quite

rapidly)Finicky stuff but can produce wonderful results.

I just recently started desilvering my fixer using a 2 1/2 gal plastic bucket and and plain steel wool pads. I pour my spent fixer in the bucket then throw a steel wool pad in the bucket and put a lid on it.

After about a half-gallon or so, I decant the liquid on the top and leave the sludge on the bottom to dry out. After it drys I put it in the trash. Is this an adequate method for desilvering fixer?

I personally use graded papers too and so far Ilford's Ilfospeed RC

works just fine for proofs and standard enlargements. As far as

high-quality FB paper I think you will find a very wide selection at

Freestyle Photo. (www.freestylesalesco.com) For a truly wide selection

mail-order is the way to go! I just received my catalog today and was

very impressed with what they carry. (prices are very reasonable) As

far as I know they are the only company that carries Oriental papers.

Though I have never used it myself, Oriental G is supposed to be a

wonderful FB graded cold-tone paper. Ilford Galerie is another

oustanding paper and even Luminos Classic. (though it doesn't tone too

well in selenium) Oh, and Cachet papers are supposed to be very nice

too! There is an enourmous amount of papers out there and most of them

are top quality so it really just comes down to a matter of personal

taste.

I was leafing through Gene Nocon's "Photographic Printing" one day and came across a section on lith printing. The images produced in this process are beautiful. I noticed that all the major mail-order companies only carry Sterling Lith DW and Kodak is the only maker it seems of lith developer. My question is twofold then: First, does anyone out there have experience with lith printing and could they tell me a little about it? Second, is Sterling the only maker of lith paper?

I've just started platinum/palladium printing myself. It is true that

you don't need a darkroom but having one sure helps. There is some

great text about platinum/palladium printing out there. One that I am

using and find to be a very straightfoward introduction is Dick

Arentz's "An Outline for Platinum and Palladium Printing."

(probably not available from your library) This text is available from

a number of photographic sources such as Photographers Formulary,

Artcraft Chemicals and Bostick & Sullivan. (They all have web pages

but can't remember their URL's) These places are great sources for

chemicals, texts and some equipment.

I have found the Toyo loupe to be satisfactory even more so when

considering the price. Compared to the Schneider loupes, the Toyo is

a steal. The optics are decent but I would have to say the

magnification is a little low. Then again with the 6x, 10x loupes,

one might have problems with actually magnifying the the etched side

of the glass to the point of interfering with focusing the image.

Besides, anything above 6x is overkill unless you absolutely need

microscopic sharpness.

I've recently begun deveolping my large format negs. in PMK Pyro. So far I've had good results. Disposal is quickly becoming a concern. I have been storing the spent solution in empty milk jugs but need to find a permanent disposal solution. I have a septic system and city water. Gordon Hutchings explains that for the past 14 years he has been draining the pyro from his darkroom into his septic system. I am concerned about taking this route because of pyro's toxicity. If anyone could offer a suggestion as to the disposal of it I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

I remember reading somewhere that one can temporarily repair pinholes

in a bellows with black photographic tape or electrical tape.

Although this will probably work for the time being you might have to

bite the bullet and buy a new bellows. They are pretty costly for an

8X10. Maybe someone out there can offer a better suggestion>

I recently purchased a Toyo 45CX. Though only having it a short while

I can tell you the Toyo 45CX is a very sturdy camera (amazing for this

price range!) The swing/tilt fuctions are a little stiff but this does

not seem to cause a problem. One compromise is the back which I'm

sure Toyo did to keep costs down. It's a standard reversible back but

is very easy to get used to. As far as interchangeble parts go, I

wouldn't base my decision to much on that because to do a format

change especially from 4x5 to 8x10 is rediculously expensive.

(somewhere in the neighborhood of $2500!!) I feel that the

interchangeablity is a nice option to have though. I have no

experience with a Cadet but all in all I feel the Toyo45CX is well

made and can most likely withstand a ton of use.