don_wilkes

<p>I'm going to try one more time to insert a link to the NatGeo page with the relevant information.<br>

http://gallery.pictopia.com/natgeo/photo/8389209/<br>

Hah. It seems to work now. The last time, I got an error message, and it forced me to use the back button to try to "fix" the content of the message. Unfortunately, that bounced me back to the annoying animated ad. I ended up sitting through that about seven times. Argh! I finally resolved things by hitting the "edit html content" button (or whatever it was), and stripped out everything I could apart from the paragraph marks. That seemed to do it<br>

So, let's see if this one goes through...</p>

<p>National Geographic itself is offering a 24x73.6" (about 61x187cm) print for $200. I doubt if you could create a better print yourself, especially at that price.<br>

I'd give you a direct link, but this irritating forum won't allow me to do that. So, just go to the National Geo site, hit on buy prints, and look in the past issues for April 2010.<br>

Cheers,<br />donw</p>

<p>Just because B&H does not have them does not mean they are no longer available. I just checked, and Midwest Photo (very nice people, too) still have them for sale:<br>

http://www.mpex.com/browse.cfm/4,4345.html</p>

<p>It would appear to be a Calumet CC401. If that's a 22" rail, then it is for sure.<br>

<br /> Cheers,<br>

\donw</p>

<p>Karmelo: If you're still quite new to large format, I strongly suggest you do a lot of "ordinary" shooting with it first. Get completely comfortable with it before trying something difficult. This format has its idiosyncracies, and things will go a lot better on an 'exotic' project if the basic mechanics are second nature to you.</p>

<p>You ask about "...also a reciprocity failure due to the film?" Well, 4x5 film is no different from the film for other formats, so I don't know why you ask. We tend to shoot at relatively small apertures, and do run into reciprocity, but it has little to do with the film, per se.</p>

<p>As for your question about the filters, you might want to look into a compendium lens hood. I'm not familiar with the Wista, but I'm sure there will be one made for it. You can usually either slide a square gelatin filter into a slot, or swing the whole device out of the way.</p>

<p>Cheers,<br /> Don Wilkes, Victoria, B.C.</p>

Jamie: Yes, that's the official lensboard for your model camera. However, the raised ridge is sort of a belt-and-suspenders light seal, which isn't strictly necessary. If you're at all handy with some tools, make a board or two yourself -- it's really not that hard, and it's dirt cheap! But, as the others have noted, these boards are still quite common, so you should be able to pick up some used ones for not very much.

Good luck!

\donw

Jamie: You can either make one yourself out of some thin wood, metal, or opaque plastic, or just buy a brand new one from Calumet: http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/CC45030/. If you go the do-it-yourself route, don't worry about the raised rim on the back too much -- I made a board by using two thin sheets of wood, so one sits inside the front standard, and it worked out perfectly. I have another board made out of a single slab of aluminum, and it worked fine, with no light leaks.

But, at $50, a brand new one isn't outrageous, especially pre-drilled for your shutter size.

You also might want to check places like Badger and Mid-West for used ones; they're pretty common.

Cheers,

\donw

The "Componon" shutter was probably a typographic error, and should have read "Compound" shutter. See: http://www.largeformatphotography.info/shutters-history-and-use.html

Cheers,

\donw

Regarding accidentally pulling tabs:

As I've never trusted the little wire things to keep the tabs secure, I wrap an elastic band around the holder, long ways. The ones from bunches of broccoli are just about perfect for the job.

Have a look at http://www.largeformatphotography.info/lenses-long.html There is some discussion of the Nikkor T 360 that you might find useful. You might also want to contact some of the folks that wrote the artice(s)

\donw

You can get a genuine manual (albeit for an A-II) directly from Mamiya. See: http://www.toyoview.com/AskToyo/toyo_orderbklts.html I did that, and was delighted; it's only $8.00

Cheers,

\donw

John: You might consider advertising or otherwise looking for a wideangle mounted in a *broken* shutter. Since you don't particularly care about getting the shutter fixed, you might pick it up cheaply...

Perhaps the usual purveyors of good quality lenses can put you on to some little sweethearts that happen to have shutters that are just not worth fixing.

Best of luck.

\donw in Victoria

Dan:

You might want to see some of the articles online at: http://www.largeformatphotography.info/, especially the ones at the top entitled, "How to get started in large format photography".

Using an SLR as a meter: Yes, you can do that. I have, and it works fine unless you are doing closeups (at which point you will have to compensate for bellows extension).

Polaroid: An excellent learning medium, but expensive. Also, you'll need a Polaroid holder (about $50-100 used). Doing your own black and white development is seriously cheaper, if you have access to a darkroom. If you're in a biggish city, and have access to labs doing E-6 development, consider shooting transparencies (slides); there's nothing quite like the rush of seeing a big 4x5 transparency on a lightbox the first time.

Most important: Have fun! Get out there and bash about. Make mistakes, but keep shooting. Read lots -- online and at the library. Soon enough, it'll make more sense, and you can start poking about more seriously in areas that interest you.

Best of luck with your new toy,

\don wilkes

Does anyone know if the Gossen battery adaptor (part V206A) would work okay in an FTn head on an old Nikon F? Would it fit? Would the meter have to be recalibrated?

Cheers,

\donw

Thanks, Vinny -- that was exactly what I needed. The final comment in that thread should settle it, coming from our friendly Ilford rep:

David Carper , oct 24, 2004; 11:32 p.m.

The Plus line of films were introduced right around 1990.

Does anyone recall when Ilford changed the designation (and,

presumably, the formulation) of FP4 to FP4+?

I recently discovered an old, exposed roll (from a bulk load)

accidently left in with a bag of ancient, funky film cans. It came

out very thin and fogged, even though I added 50% to the development

time for FP4+. It may be too thin to print conventionally, so I may

have to have a buddy scan any interesting frames for me, and print it

that way.

I have a hunch this roll may date back to the mid-70s, but won't know

for sure until I can see a contact sheet. Most of it seems

portraiture, and I'm hoping I can identify the subjects.

I am experiencing the same problems as Gonzalo, and have been having the same thoughts about trying to find Quickloads. Unfortunately, they are impossible to find here in Victoria, BC, and I'd have to have them shipped, possibly from Vancouver. The price is pretty discouraging, too.

As for Spotone -- that's not going to help. With a shadow on the neg caused by a speck of dust present when the shot was taken, it shows up as black on the print, which you can't spot out. I feel hesitant about doing retouching directly on the neg. I may try going the non-destructive route, and tape a piece of drafting film onto the neg, and use a pencil on that.

It's all very frustrating and discouraging. I swear I didn't have nearly this much dust trouble back in the '70s, when I last used LF. My next step is going to be carefully and thoroughly cleaning the inside of my old Calumet with a slightly damp rag, and hope that's been my main cause.

The article can be read at:

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/content/?041101fr_archive01

To find the slideshow, look in the upper-right-hand corner of the article for a link labelled:

"Open a slide show of portraits by Richard Avedon "

It's a JavaScript routine, so there is no direct link to the slideshow, per se.

Jace: Are you in Europe? If so, the strength of the HC110 concentrate is different. Read the following note I got from the Photo.net archives:

--------------------------------

The Macman , dec 28, 2003; 01:01 a.m.

It depends :-) Let's not confuse our europeean friends, if some are reading.

Dilution B means 1:9 for the 500mL of HC-110 they sell in Europe (CAT 500 1466). Their A is 1:4. In North America, A = 1:15, B = 1:31 and C = 1:19.

It's generally not a good idea to play with gooey stuff. HC-110, Ilfotec HC and others HCs are conceived to be played with only once, meaning dilute it all at once. Buy smaller quantities if you don't use a lot of it over a certain period of time, but dilute it all at once. Make sure you wash the original bottle with water a few time and pour that in as well.

--------------------------------

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=006thn

Simon: I found a spec sheet for the 90 f/4.5 Grandagon at B&H Photo. They list it as 0.7 kg. See:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=NavBar&A=getItemDetail&Q=&sku=44561&is=USA&si=spec#goto_itemInfo

Another site agrees, stating it as 700g:

http://www.prograf.ru/rodenstock/largeformat_en.html#table1

Martin:

See their website for some information: http://www.cosmonet.org/congo/index_e.html

As I recall, most of their designs are Tessars, which does not give you a huge image circle, but they can be quite nice and sharp. For 6x9cm, it should be lots.

I noticed that none of the responses to my recent question on

availability of Quickloads in Yosemite were sent to my email address

*except* for one from Kerry Thalmann, which did *not* appear on the

forum! This is very weird.

I'll check back later, and see if the post from Kerry ever shows up...

Cheers,

\donw

Many thanks to all who made such good suggestions! It looks like Sacramento may be my best option. We're skirting Seattle (always a good idea) by going down the Olympic Peninsula, and will be too pushed for time (I think) to stop in Portland -- the ferry we catch to begin the trip doesn't leave here until 10:30 am.

I find it hard to believe that I'll be standing in Yosemite Park come Tuesday. I've been daydreaming about this since 1975.

Cheers,

\donw

Does anyone know whether Fuji Quickloads (especially Acros or other

B&W) for 4x5 are available anywhere in Yosemite? I'm heading down

there, leaving Victoria B.C. Saturday, and the stopover I was planning

on the way looks like it'll be out of the question. I have holders

loaded with FP4, but was hoping for some Quickloads as well.

Does Best's still exist?