jose_angel

Please, could you tell me more about the coverage of the Germinar? In the Tuan's article don't be specified the exact diameters (just 750mm at 1:1, nothing about the measured aperture. He remarks that for infinity, the image circle will go over a half).

 

(The image circle of the Nikkor, as I read in the brochure, is 420mm @f/9 or 440mm @f/22, I supose at infinity).

 

Thanks again,

I have found a new (never used) and very good priced lastest unit of

the discontinued Docter Apo-Germinar 450/9 in copal 3, cheaper than

the 450 Nikkor M. It has the spacer provided to improve the sharpness

in the corners at different reproductions.

 

I would like to know about the image quality of this lens compared to

the Nikkor. If the sharpness of the Nikkor is better, I think it

isn't worth to buy the Docter, and I will buy the Nikkor or other in

a future. I know that the Nikkors are optimized to infinity, and have

a larger image circle, but I have read that other lenses (like the

apo-ronars, g-clarons) could perform better at certain formats... I'm

so satisfied with my 300 apo-ronar in 4x5". I also have read the

Tuan's article.

 

I will use this lens with larger formats (from 8x10 to the largest

possible, -and also with 4x5"-), only for portraits and some

landscapes.

 

Your thoughts will be welcomed. Thanks,

Leonard,

 

I think that the Wheeler's Tiltb program is based in the formula you have described; but he asks for the third parameter to input, u' . Your answer makes me thought that this input, u', is refered to the calculation of the lens tilting angle in the close up range. I have made some calculations; from 2 meters to infinity, the tilting angle doesn't vary sustancially, and as closer to the lens, more the degree of tilting.

 

I would like to know concretely what is the program asking for, best said, how I have to measure this parameters (u' in the Tiltb program and r in the DOFTilt program). I don't have here the Wheeler's notes, but I try to remember that it hasn't any reference to this parameters... he describes u' and r in the Wheeler's Palm documentation pdf.

 

I have saved your pdf to read this evening at home, it looks so interesting... Any of your thougths will be helpful.

 

Thank you,

For a long time I have been using my Palm device with the Wheeler�s

wonderful programs, the best and easiest system I know for

calculating DOF, bellows factors, lens to focus or to subject plane

distance, etc.

But there are some programs I can�t use because I don�t understand

what are some parameters (inputs) refering to. I will be grateful if

somebody help me with the next paragraphs:

 

1. I want to calculate the tilting angle by back focusing. I run

Tilt, then Tiltb program, and the inputs are Rail d, Glass d, u´, and

Back tilt (in degress). What is u´ ? In the Wheeler´s documentation I

read that u´ is �...the horizontal distance to the subject plane�. Is

it the same as u ? (u is the distance from the subject focus point to

lens). If I set the camera, for example, pointing to a mountain

slope, does it mean the distance from the lens to the point where the

lens axis contact the slope? (I´m refering to the point I could see

in the center cross of the ground glass. The focus point could be

another point, for instance, in a corner.)

 

2. After calculating that tilting angle, I want to know the DOF with

the lens tilted. I run DOF, then DOFTilt, and the inputs are r (in

degrees) and N. What is r ? In the figure 7 (page 19) we can see

three lines that goes out from the lens. The line in the middle is

named u´ . I can imagine that the lines above and under u´ are

refered to r . Is it correct? If so, what is r , the angle of the

cone that goes out of the lens, or the angle from that line

named �u´ � to either of the above or under lines ? (The figure 5,

page 14 is more clear; the �above� and �under� lines could be �high

u´ � and �low u´ �).

 

I have more questions, but better for a next time... it´s hard to me

to explain this concepts in english... Thanks,

Carlos, I had been using the Jobo drum with the 4509n reel for hand developing during a long time with success. You must have the same results than mine, perfect. I used at this time TMAX RS. Your process looks normal.

 

Some thoughts:

 

IMHO Xtol is a developer than needs a high minimum amount of concentrate to work properly. Perhaps with your dilution, the concentration is in the limit. With one liter of solution you are also rubbing at the minimum level needed. Try to develop for one time with a powerful TMAX...

 

The lines you describe seems to me more a problem of light leaking or a bad positioned film than a chemical problem, specially if only one sheet shows this lines... I experienced a problem a time ago when I don't close properly the inner spout of the drum. A broken central tube could be also the reason of a not light tigh drum. The separation plastic attachments don't seem to me the cause of this lines with hand processing.

 

Good luck,

Excuse me, just a question for Janez;

 

Are your prints digitally treated? I like it very much...

George, I have been seeing your gallery, so beautiful... Your contribution will be useful here! The complete information with each shot is great.

I have the CF and never use it on the 110XL (4x5").

And thank you Ellis for your info about the Canham 6x17! It's the first thing I read about it!

The cheapest is to buy a good enlarger. There are not expensive ones, complete (LPL or used omegas, beseler, etc.)

 

If you go for the first or third possibility, you will spend for the graphic, the camera, the light source and other materials and then you will go to buy a new enlarger... it's worth to spend in a working one.

 

Good luck,

I find the Beatties a bit hard to focus; the grid are something rough for me to distiguish fine details.

 

I never used a Maxwell´s one; Are this screens made with plastic or with glass? Have the same system than the Beatties?

I bought a Beattie Intenscreen Plus made for a Deardorf camera (serial no. 85130). My camera is a DLC Canham. Size of the screen is exactly the same, 4x5 inches. The corners are cutted.

 

The Beattie screens have two components: a plastic screen that have the grid on one side and a fresnel on the other, and an ordinary glass that are used in contact with the fresnel side, to protect it. The thickness of the two parts together are about 4mm (you need to know also if your camera have enough space for it). This kind of screens are not designed to use in conjunction with another fresnel or ground glass.

 

If you take the measures of your current screen, perhaps another user could give you the info that you are looking for...

 

Good luck,

I would like to repeat that Kevin remarks on his post " to inspire and educate...finished and high quality... the best work you possibly can... don't send anything you wouldn't hang or offer for sale..."

 

I can digitalize one of my best 35mm slide shots, and print ten copys in my HP deskjet in a 5x7" paper. Result could be so beautiful, but it's not my best work. My possible partner could send me his best LF negative, enlargered to a 11x14" fiber based paper, archival processing, mounted, signed and dedicated, with a lot of darkroom working hours on it. I'm sure that he will feel a great dissapointment with my print...

 

Perhaps could be a good idea to specify what we want to send to our partner, or to establish categories.

Jacques,

 

You can find some 4x5" Kodak b/w film in ARPÍ (Ramblas de Barcelona, 38 - 3rd. Phone no. 933 017 404). They usually have some packages of Tri-x and other Kodak b/w and color 4x5" sheet films; if you want to buy 8x10" film, you need to order it before...

 

Another shop is CASANOVA (phone no. 933 016 112), only color 4x5" film. You need to order also for the rest...

 

I advised you to phone them before... to find what you are looking for. It's nearly impossible to find spare boxes in the 8x10" size, specially in b/w. They can request you to buy a minimum amount of boxes.

 

Tri-x 4x5" is around 50EUR per box (50 sheets). You have also to order a "butifarra" (Catalonian sausage, my favourite), or if you prefer a "Pantumaca" (jam and tomato, bread, garlic) and a "Crema Catalana" (a dessert near to a creme brulee). Oh, God, I'm remembering the last "escudella" stew I had...

 

Good luck,

I agree with you. Excess are unpleasant. A bit are stimulating. I think that most of the photographs I see in my surroundings are overfiltered. The majority of my past photographs are also overfiltered too. I think that if you could see an unnatural attracting effect of a filter in a photograph, it was probably overfiltered. The worst for me is the "Cookin filter brochure effect".

Kevin, this article help me to clarify my thoughts. Perhaps it will be of interest for you also:

 

http://www.wisner.com/myth.htm

 

That you are saying is true, in some lenses.

Last time I put my Pro Trekker on the weigth, was 9,8kg (about 22lbs), including a DLC45, carbon fiber tripod, 10DDS, three lenses, etc. If I want to go lighter, I leave the pack at home (with their 4kgs), and take a single mountain back pack with two lenses and a few DDS. The weight in this case are moreless the same than yours.

Usually my girl friend or my sister helped me taking the water and food for both.

 

When I go with the 4x5 complete outfit I always use two telescopic sticks (sorry, I don't know how they are called, sticks designed for mountaneering, like the skiers ones). They are a great help, weight are distributed on the legs and arms.

The jump from the 135 to the 65 is so big for me. I would go for the 65mm, but I would buy also a 90mm.

 

If you want to have only one of these, the 75mm have a very wide feel, moreless like a 20mm in an 135 camera. In my work, the 65mm is extremely wide, and less useful (in my kind of work). A classic combination would be 65-90-135, mine is 55-75-110. My Grandagon-N 75/4.5 works really well. Center filter is needed.

My Beattie Intenscreen Plus is absolutely in contact with the protection glass that cover the fresnel... I think it isn't out of the focus plane. It's made of plastic, perhaps more used ones could have a little bend, it isn't my case (I bought it five years ago).

 

I find this screen a bit grainy, and a bit hard to focus. I am looking for another GG&fresnel with a smaller grain. Perhaps the Boss screens work better. I would like to hear another opinions.

 

With my Grandagon 75, corners appears something dark. I find it so brigth with the 110 and up.

 

Good luck,

Please, excuse me because it is a stupid answer, I don't know about your work, and how much lenses/sizes do you want to use, but, why to oversize all the lenses with the step-up rings? If you use back packs, you know that space is important...

 

I was in your same situation, and bougth some stepping rings. When I unscrew the used filters, a lot of times the step up ring goes out like glued to the filter... then I needed to unscrew the stepping ring (what a hard work!) and attach it again to the lens... the time I really save isn't worth to me to buy more rings and caps... sorry, I know I use the filters as less as possible, I don't know about your preferences, I understand that wouldn't be the same...

 

I will save money in caps and rings and buy a very good stepping rings. Best ones are easy to screw and unscrew. Perhaps S.K. Grimes made this ones in the USA.

 

Good luck,

Like Joel, I use my CPE-2 Plus only for film procesing... enough for me. I don't process color, just b/w film. Temperature is controlled with a termometer in 0,2 Celsius steps. Control is not automatic, you need to rotate a knob a bit more or less to place the termostat in the desired temperature (I think like the CPA-2), but its so easy and it works perfectly. I think also that it's absolutely necessary to add a pump to circulate the water (this model doesn't have it), control is much easier with it.

 

For printed papers and b/w film, I think that the cheapest CPE-2Plus is enough. But if you want to use bigger drums for bigger prints, or the Expert drums you will need a bigger model.

 

Good luck,

I am using the Saunders enlarger to print 6x9 and 4x5 with the anti-Newton negative carrier, without the Saunders bladed mask (I use a black card cutted for 6x9 that I put over the top glass, to block the light outside the format), and with the original 4x5 mixing chamber. I don't have your "ring" projected in my baseboard.

 

I think it could be caused by a smaller mixing chamber, or by an inadecuate lens (Which lens do you use?).

 

Good luck,

And I don't remember if there are B&W top-pol linear ones in the slim mount...

Paul, I opted for the B&W, because I have in my bag some B&W Top-pols in different sizes, and I wanted to have all this filters with the same color... but

 

In some sizes you can't find the "slim" version, slims don't have front thread (you can't use with it some lens hoods), for wide-angle lenses the B&W "normal" versions are too deep (=vigneting), linear ones are not multicoated, circular ones are more expensive, etc. (in my local B&W supplier).

 

The price of the Polarizer in 86mm is too big for me; as my widest lens is a Grandagon 75, I decided never use CF+pol at the same time. It isn't needed the CF with the 110XL when shooting 4x5.

 

At last I bougth slim line multicoated circular; I don't have tested the "colour" but I'm satisfied with the results.

 

For the next filter, I will have a look at the Heliopan's catalog, here are cheaper and I wonder if the quality are the same... I read some time ago that the two brands use "Schott" optical glass, but I don't know anything about this.

 

Good luck and Merry Christmas,

Mr Carey Bird, please let me to thank you, of course, for your very valuable technical info about the Nikons, and also for sharing with us your vision of the nature&world, your thoughts, your knowledge, etc.

 

I must tell you that you are guilty together with other contributors in this forum about my foolish dedication to this kind of art. I´m sure that I´m not the only one influenced by your existence...