bruce_barlow

Almost every time I see an "I wanna build a 4x5" post it's because people want to "save money." And almost every time they come back two years later moaning that they spent twice what they wanted, it took six times the amount of time, and they're are still at least a little unhappy with the results.

 

I think there's a fundamental question of "Do I want to make pictures or build a camera?" If you want to make pictures, buy the cheapest used 4x5 outfit you can find, and get picturing. You can always get a better anything later IF you think you need it or inherit the money. If you're a craftsman with the time, skills, and inclination, making a camera can be very satisfying.

Before spending real money, try making one out of corrugated cardboard that fits snugly on the back of the camera and extends 9" or so. I used one successfully on Mt. Washington, where the winds will blow a dark cloth to Scotland. Still carry it folded in my film holder bag, just in case.

I love my Saunders/LPL with the VCCE head (I print only B&W). Much superior to my Beseler 45 MX.

I made three negatives of the same composition: 8x10, 4x5, and 35mm. I printed them all 8x10 and put them up side-by-side. I'm hard pressed to tell the difference between 4x5 and 8x10 negs, but the 35mm print is radically inferior.

 

On the other hand, I agree with the comment about Azo and amidol - wow! Glad I have 1,000 sheets, although I'll bet Michael and Paula's replacement is at least as good when it arrives.

 

It's a good exercise - nothing like seeing for yourself.

I vote 210. Long enough to be a great portrait lens, short enough to be a little forgiving with depth of field. You might want to try a 210 first, and then go longer when you have the hang of doing them.

 

By the way, Polaroid Type 72 makes wonderful instant portraits (ISO 400, coaterless), which you can instantly mat in pe-cut mats and give to subjects. It's a ton of fun, and you'll really learn fast.

 

Enjoy!

I'd vote for looking for a good used one.

 

PLEASE be careful of the inexpensive tripods coming out of China these days. EVERY ONE of several (three or four) that we've had come through Fine Focus Workshops in the last year has failed (leg locks not staying locked, heads not locking) while holding relatively light 4x5 wooden field cameras, and we've loaned good tripods to students for the remainder of the time. Fortunately, we've had no disasters, but lesson learned: life's too short to use an unreliable tripod.

I agree with the Tri-X recommendation. That said, I routinely make portraits at 1/2 second exposures...successfully.

 

If you think the subject is moving, tie a piece of string to the camera, stretch it to the subject's nose, and make a Sharpie mark on the string at that point. You can drop the string, finish making adjustments, and then just before you're ready to expose, line up the string again to make sure the subject is the same distance you marked.

 

I like to rehearse the process: "Blink, look, snap" with the subject. Each word is about a second apart, and when I say the word "snap" I'm clicking the shutter release. Blink means blink. Look means look into the lens and hold deadly still. Snap. It seems to work. It sets their expectations, as long as I then do what I say I'm going to do.

 

Try 4x5 B&W Polaroid Type 72 (ISO 400) - lots of fun, great practice, immediate feedback. You can get pre-cut mats and mount them for customers with linen tape. I do this as fundraising for worthy organizations. The pictures are often wonderful, especially at slower shutter speeds.

I love to make 4x5 portraits on Polaroid - almost instant gratification. If you learn how to use your 4x5 and 210mm lens (my favorite lens for these) your results can be fantastic.

 

Practice using your camera - focusing, using rise and fall to frame, closing the lens, cocking the lens, and so forth. I can have a good portrait framed and focused in 30 seconds or less. I've pre-metered the scene, so I know what aperture and shutter speed to use. Then, it's street theatre - I have a set patter to tell the subject what I'm going to do, we practice once, and then do it for real. I can usually get 85-90 out of 100 the first time, and the whole process takes less than 2 minutes.

 

I get cut mats, backing board and linen tape. I use Poalroid Type 72, which is at least ISO 400, and typically behaves for meat a higher ISO. I can peel and mount the print in no time (cut a U-shaped piece of board as a positioner for the print on the cut mat, then lick and stick linen tape. Into a plastic bag and Voila! People love them because they will be very good if you've practiced and are quick, sure, and confident. I've given away all of my best ones, but I don't care because it's so much fun!

 

Try it! All your 4x5 photographic efforts will benefit from becoming so familiar with your equipment, your eye will sharpen, and you'll have a great, artisitcally satisfying time.

 

Bruce

Abbout black mats...

 

If you have color photographs, try them in sample black, neutral gray, and white mats. Looks different, doesn't it?

 

As a life-long white-only mat user, my latest advice is: us whatever looks the best. Forget about convention and what others say. It's your picture - it must look the way YOU want it to look.

Jim McBride:

 

If you haven't used Type 72, you owe it to yourself to try a box. Same 400 speed. I compared it directly with my beloved Type 52, and found Type 72 sharper, less grainy, and lovelier in every way.

 

And, none of the messy, stinky coating stuff.

 

Bruce Barlow

Jay,

 

My invitation to contribute to the next one is genuine, and you didn't choose to respond to that. How bout it? What would you like to see?

 

Bruce

Jay, thanks for the feedback. Many are requesting a sequel, and Richard and I are collecting topics to cover. I have already invested far more capital than I'll ever recover in improving production values, especially sound. What we had was useable, but not of the quality I want to have.

 

If this one was "very basic," what would you like to see that's applicable to making repairs in the field? We chose topics based on Richard's repair experience - what customers tell him and send him to fix. We were trying to choose the most common problems and offer field-ready, easy-to-implement solutions, and I think we did that.

 

We can't reasonably do a program on camera repair and restoration in the shop, but we can address the most common problems photographers have in the field - like having the camera fall over, even into a pond. Richard also spends a lot of time on prevention ('don't let your dark cloth become a sail"), and preparation ("what to carry in a camera bag"). His drying out a lens is ingenious, and I've spent a lot of time myself marking my film holders.

 

But for the working title "Richard Unleashed" we have been trying to get input from the world on what else they'd like to see. So what specifically would YOU like to see him cover that photographers in the field would find useful?

 

Thanks again for the feedback. And I'm curious. You're not on my customer list of folks who've bought the DVD either through "*Bay" or the website. Where did you get a hold of a copy?

 

All best,

 

Bruce Barlow

Brian Shaw's right. Pull the film out more slowly and your problems will disappear. Spend the $75 on film. Good luck!

Sometimes after you've Focused on the Far and Tilted for the Near, it looks out of focus in the mid-range. Print this on your thumb and use it as a rule: Close down the aperture while you look at the ground glass. When the mid-range looks in focus, close down one more stop for insurance. It's hard, because the image gets darker on the glass as you close, but you can see it.

 

Good luck, and have fun!

 

Bruce Barlow

www.circleofthesunproductions.com

Sigh. Fred.

 

Fred Picker was many things, including one of the best teachers photography has ever seen. His ego was also bigger than the planet, however, and it prevented him from sharing the limelight with anyone.

 

He would promote Richard as a camera designer, repairer, etc. But never as a photographer. He had workshop staffers such as Dave Usher, Tim Frazier, Susan Barron, and others who should be household names in LF because they may actually be better than Fred, but Fred did little or less to promote their recognition. Ansel knew that having famous staffers only enhanced his own reputation. Some of us tried to tell Fred that. Some of us got fired.

 

Richard is gaining a deserved reputation as the best camera repairer and restorer in the world, which I firmly believe he is. He doesn't work tremendously hard at bolstering his own reputation as a photographer because that doesn't pay the grocery bill. And I think he'd rather spend the time photographing. I respect that.

 

Soon, he'll start gaining a reputation as one of the finest camera designers around. I know. I've seen what he's building for ULF cameras (see pics of the prototype at his web site, www.lg4mat.net). Imagine sexy black hardware rather than the aluminum shown. Gorgeous, functional, and lightweight. Innovative. relatively inexpensive. Richard is excited and happy as I've never seen him. I like to see that.

 

Yeah, we're already thinking about Return of Richard, Son of Richard, Richard Unleashed, or whatever we title it. I have several other programs I want to do first, but that will give us time to come up with a good, meaty set of topics. If anyone has ideas for what they'd like to see, please let me know. It will happen. They're fun to make.

 

Thanks for the kind words about "Camera Repair in the Field with Richard Ritter." It's extremely gratifying to know it's well-received.

Careful! Sounds like you're trying to make the Wista do an axis tilt. It only has base tilt, which is easily performed. The Wista has no axis tilts, front or rear.

 

No hammer required...

 

Good luck!

 

Bruce

Ken,

 

Thank you! Just printed a copy of your order, and it will be mailed today.

 

"Camera Repair in the Field with Richard Ritter" is different from the "Printing with Fred Picker" video that features a younger, slimmer, less gray me, different mostly in the breadth of topics it covers. "Printing" went into depth on a topic that needed it. "Camera Repair" covers a wide range of tips, techniques and ideas suitable for the breadth of equipment and stuff we need for success in the field. Nevertheless, we're proud of it, and I think you'll like it. We need to recognize that Richard is one of the finest resources large format photographers have today: he has an incredible breadth and depth of knowledge of photography, is a sensitive, fine photographer, and is an unassuming guy who I think is utterly charming on video. This ain't just hype: ask any of our workshop alums who've rubbed shoulders and broken bread with him for a few days. I'm proud and honored to have him as a friend, and lucky to have him as a nearby resource.

 

Next up is a video on "Large Format Basics." I never learn well from books, so no matter how good Simmons' and Stroebel's books are (and they're very good), I need to see stuff demonstrated. Hence a video demonstrating using a view camera, loading and unloading film holders, developing sheet film, and approaches to working in the field. Hope to have it by August... That said, I've shot big pieces of it twice already and am not happy. But I know what I want to do better, so third time is the charm, I think. Have some more ideas, too, for later videos. My dead parents would be proud that I'm finally puting my college eduaction to work - I majored in film production at Northwestern long, long ago. It's fun.

 

Well, off to the store for a plastic container. Just bought a new lens. Huh? Richard explains in the video.

 

Thanks to the world for your response to the video and the film test kit.

Thanks for asking, I'll answer both questions.

 

Fine Focus Workshop's Fall Foliage Workshop will be in Pittsburg, NH (a Labatt's can throw from Quebec) in late September, arrival the evening of Thursday, the 28th thru Sunday, Oct. 1, housed at the Lopstick Lodge. Visit www.finefocusworkshops.com for details. I was up there two weeks ago scouting locations, one of which has been dubbed "The Glory Road," for good reasons. We should have a good time. If you want to come, please visit the website and then send a deposit to Ted Harris. We need to confirm our Lopstick reservations soon, or we'll lose the wonderful rates they've given us.

 

There's more detail on the website about Richard's video: www.circleofthesunproductions.com. The idea is twofold: to give folks some ideas and techniques for repairing disastrous camera injury (Richard opens the video by pushing over a Zone VI camera and lens and smashing it on the ground, which has turned the stomach of almost every LF viewer so far - great entertainment). He then fixes it on the spot so he can keep photographing.

 

The second point is, quite frankly, to help folks get over...shyness?...to try stuff (I'm a convert, I'll admit to prior paralysis). It's only a camera. Richard's wonderful quiet competence is fun to watch, and inspirational in curing this form of camera shyness.

 

Other segments include Permanent Repairs, More Field Repairs, Lenses, Tripods,What to Pack in the Camera Bag (addresses tools and extra socks), Film Holders, and Packing Equipment for Shipping (Richard finds that a VERY high percentage of stuff shipped to him arrives with further damage due to bad packing - so for those of us who contemplate shipping stuff to far away places rather than check it on an airplane this segment is valuable). And more. It's pretty rich, we think, and worth the time, with lots of practical ideas. I learned a lot making it, and I thought I already knew most of it!

 

I'll probably get this thread deleted for SPAMMING. Sorry to be so long-winded.

Richard Ritter's video "Camera Repair in the Field" is now available.

 

http://www.circleofthesunproductions.com

 

Bruce Barlow

We had a workshop student a while back who had the 545 Pro. I fell in love with it - the timer starts automatically when you pull the film, adjusts the time to the ambient temperature, beeps at you when it's cooked just right, and gives great backrubs.

 

That said, I haven't bought one... and still use the 545 that I've almost worn out, and the 545i that I use even though I broke the lever mostly off.

 

Richard Ritter says beware buying a used Polaroid holder, because they can wear like my old one and be worse than useless - the packet won't release to reveal the film when you pull it while in the camera, and so your now REALLY expensive Polaroid film remains unexposed. Not good. That's why I got a new one. Then I dropped it.

Richard Ritter, Ted Harris and I offer workshops in southern Vermont/NH that end up being tailored to your needs. We have a number of different 4x5 cameras that you could try out, if you don't yet have one, or we'll work with you with your to get you comfortable and proficient.

 

The next one is in May. Please visit www.finefocusworkshops.com for details.

I used ONLY Polaroid for the first year I used LF. It's a fabulous learning tool. Try Type 72 - ISO 400, beautiful, coaterless. Two of my finest pictures are Polaroids. I have only one of each, and they're like little jewels.

 

If you really calculate the economics of Polaroid vs. film/developing chemicals/proofing/enlarging/enlarging chemicals you will find that the difference is less than it might seem, even with recent Polaroid price increases.

 

Lastly, read Brooks Jensen's article in the most recent LensWork about how he used three or four Polaroids for instant feedback on composition, then made his "keeper" negative. Now that's the way to use the material.

 

Bruce

Let me offer some SPAM:

 

Think about coming to our May workshop. We can set you up with a 4x5, a pretty wide variety of lenses, a Polaroid holder and Polaroid film (film being the only part of the equipment and supplies that you'd pay for). For three days, you can try it with folks nearby who know LF inside and out. Between Richard Ritter, Ted Harris and me, we have four or five different cameras available to try, and can talk you through what you want to photograph and therefore the best choices for cameras and lenses. Between the three of us, you'll probably get three really good, really different opinions!

 

Our workshops are mostly out in the field photographing in New England. The May session gets you smart before summer, and keeps you warmer than our February Snow and Ice workshop. You can always bring and use your 35mm equipment, too. We even allow (gasp!) digital.

 

More details at www.finefocusworkshops.com.

I love my LPL with the variable contrast head. I also have a Beseler with an Aristo cold light, and the LPL delivers the same cold light qualities (without the falloff at the edges) - I've tested them side-by-side.

 

Don't know how readily they're available used, but were I you, I'd find one.

 

Good luck, and remember that you can contact print with the enlarger you have, and 4x5 contact prints can be exquisite.

Try LF portraits using Polaroid Type 72. It develops a print in 30 sec to a minute, it's a beautiful film, and it's ISO 400. With a 210mm lens and only natural light (probably outside in open shade) your shutter speeds will be slow enough to where with a little coaching, marvelous things happen. If folks need to hold really still for a long shutter speed, they resort to summoning up who they really are, and that makes it to the film. I think all of my best protraits have been on Polaroid, and I no longer have them because I gave them to the subjects!

 

That said, the Polaroid is one-of-a-kind. It is a great learning tool, however, and will teach you a lot about your equipment and working methods.