carlo_ontal

<p>thanks folks.<br>

Ian - great colors and cool composition.<br>

now all I need is to find insurance....</p>

<p>Arie - thanks, that surely is the way to go.<br>

Hi Mary - unfortunately I am only now setting up a new site, but there's a link to<br>

some images from the 8x10.<br>

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6640&highlight=ocarlo</p>

<p>Are you in the Philippines, by any chance?</p>

<p>thanks gentlemen,<br>

Apparently, reacquiring citizenship is a simple matter of $50 at an embassy.<br>

Also, friends would be there at the airport with a van, so I'm not too worried.<br>

Customs on both ends would be the bigger problem, as I'm obviously carting around enough gear for a small crew. I've been told I can show up beforehand at a US Customs office and have my gear verified on the spot. PI customs is probably another story.<br>

I do have work portfolios and tearsheets to prove I'm a working pro.<br>

Looks like I'll need a professional insurance. Any ideas for stateside companies? will do some digging of course. I'm estimating I have 25,000 worth of gear.<br>

thanks again</p>

<p>greetings all,<br>

In a couple months, I plan to fly to the Philippines for a year-long sabbatical<br>

where I hope to be purely a photographer again.<br>

While I was born there, and still have friends, it has been 30 years or so, though I recently came back<br>

for a visit.<br>

I intend to bring all the gear I have - for specific needs re: fashion, portrait and conceptual stuff I want to work on.<br>

I will have: Phase One back and Mamiya RZ system and Mamiya 645 system in carryon-cases.<br>

Elinchrom Ranger kit x 3 in checked-in cases.<br>

Deardorff 8x10 system in checked-in case. 10 cases of Polaroid 665 in a case.<br>

tripod/accessories in one checked-in case<br>

That's probably two handcarried Pelican cases + MacBook and small drives,<br>

and 5 Lightware cases checked in.<br>

Having never traveled with this much gear in an unofficial context, I'm wondering what issues I'll face both leaving NYC, and entering the PI.<br>

If it matters any, I can probably re-acquire my PI citizenship if it'll help any.<br>

Alternatively, is there a safe and not-insanely expensive way to shipping just the lighting gear and doodads to myself there?<br>

I also probably still have enough B&H receipts to prove to US Customs that I bought the gear Stateside.<br>

Any thoughts/advice would be most welcome and appreciated.</p>

Hi eric,

Thanks - I am curious - when you say they upres very well,

do you use any special program?

and what's the largest reasonably sharp print size have you gotten?

thanks again all.

carlo

Gents,

Thanks for replying.

Power isn't an issue - there are always hotels, and actually I work for the UN, so we have base camps where I can get clean electricity.

Its more the hassle of keeping the negs dry and clean.

Most importantly, I can only give a spare Polaroid print back, and I would really love the option of a portable digital printer running on batteries.

That rules out sending film back to the States or SOuth Africa.

In their context of a life of intense suffering,I need to give them back something small, at least, and in color, and right there on the spot. They have much bigger concerns, of course, but you really feel an unjaded power of photography, and one's own satisfaction in giving them the joy in recognizing that they are alive after all.

I hear ya about the crop factor - I've heard of uprezzing programs that actually do a good job. I just wanna come closer to a 4x5 neg,

and would love to hear from an actual experience.

I guess I'm trying to be cheap, yes, by seeing if I can get away with

a P20 over the P30s/P25s.

My wallet isn't exactly overflowing, but it probably has more to do with the self-conscious guilt re: my surroundings.

I do have have a couple months before coming home Stateside, so I'll keep thinking...thanks again.

Dear all,

I work in conflict areas in Africa, where lugging around my 8x10 Deardorff w/

a 4x5 reducing back,and Polaroid Type 55 is getting to be a losing proposition.

Not to mention trying to wash with dirty water - when I can find it.

I have been looking (online only) at the Phase One backs - with an RZ, and

here are some thoughts:

1. No way I can afford a P45.

2. A refurbished P30 and its microlenses might be nice for fashion work I want

to do later,but my primary aim is sharp mural-sized blowups of portraits a la

Avedon.

3. A P25 is more expensive than a P30.

Will the file sizes produced by a P20 - with some upressing program - possibly

come "reasonably near" 4x5 neg quality for mural blowups?

Having had no experience with any of the above (backs or digital prints from

them), can anyone who has had similar experiences help?

Many thanks in advance.

Hi folks,

Thought i'd share this lesson from the U of Hard Knocks.

About a year and a half ago, I brought a whole crate of Polaroid

Type 55 and 8x10 and a Deardorff here to West Africa.

Well, with all my real (video) work and everything, I never had

personal time to do my thang, till yesterday.

I had my lights, people came from all over - and my 545 Pro holder

failed me. The sheet would go in, but the paper backing / slide

wouldn't come out for the exposure. Just wouldn't budge.

Wasted a few sheets trying to make it work - no go. Freakin

embarrassing and feeling really stupid, I told them I'd retrieve a

spare somewhere and could anyone still interested come back tomorrow?

Opened up the 545 Pro - no problem. Got my spare, tried a sheet -

Big problem, same problem.

Then I realized I'd been using sheets from an opened box. Hmmm.

a few facts:

1 - I'd heard about Polaroid film beginning its disintegration after

the aluminum foil of the box had been ripped open.

2 - but all my film (including opened box) was in an airconditioned

room 24hrs the whole year.

So I opened up a fresh box and voila - problem gone!

I tried an opened box of polacolor - no problem, but can't vouch for

the color now.

Guess my sad lesson - after throwing 60 sheets of Type 55 out -

opening the alum foil degrades the color of Polacolor maybe - but

renders Type 55 unuseable. I thought that since color wasn't an

issue,

I'd be allright with whatever degradation happened...

maybe the extra width of the neg is enough to make a bulge?

Hope this helps someone...

and somebody say a prayer for my (unopened) 8x10 films!!!

greetings,

I had bought a first generation Hensel for use with a 4x5 and large

format lenses. I however need to use a digital Nikon D100 tomorrow.

I had heard that digital cameras have different tolerances when

syncing to strobe systems. Anyone know if it'll be safe to sync to a

Hensel Porty 1200w? thanks.

thanks gents - my possible booboo (popping the pack while it was charging) didn't seem to raise any eyebrows, so can someone address that? The previous owner seemed to have freaked out when he heard what I did - so what's the scoop? - might I have damaged the pack, leading to this problem?

I will see if there's time to take it to the only authorized repair center in NJ tomorrow - and test out new batteries as well.

Finally, would a charger that hooks up to a car battery, would this allow you to keep using the Porty while connected to the car battery?

again,with much appreciation....

greetings all,

I recently purchased a used Hensel Porty kit (first generation) that

came with two batteries.

I am only able to get around 5 pops, w/ each battery fully charged,

in any combination of heads or power ratio...

I knew the batteries were used, but 5 to 8 pops at full power is

ridiculous...

COuld the problem lay somewhere else?

CONFESSION TIME: when i first received the unit - i hooked up one of

the heads to test it - the power after died after 3 pops- so i hooked

up the charger, and later came by and gave it a few pops - then

powered off , disconnected the head, and resumed charging....

what would i have damaged by doing this, if at all?

it's sunday, everything's closed, and i 'm going nuts...thanks all

thanks all for your help.

why yes, in fact - i did get the wollensak in a raptar pro from dagor77. as with the 160mm.

there is no alternative to seing it with my eyes, though i was leaning in the direction of the newer of the two.

i'll make the time to test. thanks again.

thanks Bruce - actually got my 'Dorff from the same place/same guy..

you're right, they're cool people..

but i'm headed NYC way...

come to think of it, the tax I'd pay there would pay for fedex from Jim 8-)

ooops sorry - it is a Schneider Kreuznack Symmar-S 210mm 5.6

multicoated - but then i only shoot Polaroid type 55.

and ultimately, the portraits would be blown up life-size....

greetings again,

I don't remember how - but I've ended up with two 210mm lenses,

a Schneider Kreuznach 5.6 and a Wollensak raptar Pro 5.6.

If one were to favor sharpness over good color, which one do you

think I should keep? Haven't had the chance to test the Wollensak

yet,

but gotta make up my mind quick.

thanks again.

greetings folks,

The ground glass on the 8x10 back just broke - I had all along

wanted to get the Boss screen - is this something that goes over the

ground glass or in place of? How easy, or not, is it to put the

replacement back in? same goes for my 4x5 reducing back..

Also just acquired a Porty flash system - three of my lenses (14in

Comm Ektar on #5 Universal Synchro shutter, Wollensak 210mm and

160mm on a Raptar shutter) have the old-style two-prong flash sync

thingie - is there an adapter from this to the regular flash sync

cord?

many thanks in advance...

Reinier,

I, too, have found that tupperware boxes work. I cut out foam pads (for dishwashing), lay them down and make a bed. Then I use paper towels cut to size in between the negs, with just enough sodium sulfite to keep things really really wet.

Finally, more foam pads on top of the uppermost neg layer, also softened with the solution. The foam pads when wet get heavy and keep both the negs and the solution from sloshing around. Hope this helps.

carlo

dan,

actually i think i might be better off just keeping the 210 lens for now - and i

don't have time for selling anything on ebay.

actually, in the scheme of things, when digital backs are going for thousands,

anything in LF is pretty affordable, comparatively.

as for his other lenses : he indicated in a note a while back, and no, i don't

speak for him, and neither am i dagor in disguise...8-)

actually, in the ebay post, he does say that he walked into their vault and took

away a bunch of them...

cheers, carlo

thanks again righteous gents!

well, i suppose if it was good enough for Jane, then....

indeed it is dagor's lenses on e..ay

dagor does indicate that he has a batch of this and the 160s available, so if

anyone else is interested....

now what to do with the schneider 210? - any idea of how much cents on the

dollar i'll get with, say, adorama?

athough i could still keep it , consider it part of the learning curve...

on a side note - my deardorff arrived today - what a wondrous contraption! -

slowly surely the gap between where i stand and the pictures in my head

narrows and narrrows...

might anyone have any opinion on the above lens? it is advertised as

coated, razor-sharp, and covers 8x10 well. i have no reason to doubt

the seller - but would like others' comments, since i already have a

schneider 210 5.6 symar-s w/c apparently can only barely cover 8x10

at infinity...many thanks

whew! this is what i get for getting into LF, while working 14hr days, in the midst of a war in the middle east...

am putting pressure on myself since i'll be going back to africa,and it's not like i can just stroll to a dealer...

OK: i think i know what happened - i convinced myself that a given lens in 8x10 would somehow extend its focal length when used in a 4x5 reducing back! perhaps it was the longer bellows that would be available that got me confused. clintonian note to self: its the lens coverage, stupid.

So, things just got simplified, as per the Ansel quote: I can get rid of the 210mm, since I already have the 14in Commercial Ektar to cover my 4x5/8x10 portraits - and just need a normal-ish 4x5 lens that can also serve to cover the 4x10.

Gents - your knowledge of optics impresses! - as for me, i just gotta get the damn things and start exposing film! cheers all, carlo

thanks gents, although I am still no closer to finding the lens.

I understand that normal for 8x10 is 300mm and for 4x5 is 150mm.

What i need then, I think, is a 75mm 4x5 lens that, when used on the 8x10 with the 4x5 back, translates as a 150mm..Also,I understand a wideangle 4x5 will not cover the full 8x10 or 4x10 area - but will i have enough so that with cropping, I can still use 75% of a 4x10 image, when shot at f8?

this is where my lack of actual hands-on experience is showing..and I have to go this way because i can't have both 8x10 and 4x5 cameras, but need functions of both.

greetings,

i am putting together a 8x10 package for Polaroid 8x10 - and with a

4x5 reducing back for everything else.

i have a 300mm Commercial Ektar that would cover my 8x10 needs and a

Schneider 210 5.6 that i assume would translate as a tele on 4x5.

Now I just need a normal lens for 4x5.

Am I correct in thinking that a 75mm or 90mm 4x5 lens, used on an

8x10 deardorff, would translate as a normal-ish lens when using the

4x5 back?

And if so, would it cover enough of a 4x10 image area (with the 8x10

back) so that i can crop any falloff or vignettes at the edges?

Any recommendations for a brutally sharp wide angle lens no slower

than f8?

Unless my whole train of logic is all wrong....please advise. thanks

all.

Luis, I had looked at getting one - but the 3800 price (new price for lens + groundglass) changed my mind in a hurry. In one of my searches, i received this reply from a gracious owner...hope this helps...maybe someday, i would still love to have one. note: I, too, was curious about the tilt - but as you can read below - he said there was no tilt - leaving me more confused. ************************************************************** 1. Let me first review what is included in the price:

a. the lens is 150 APO Symmar. The shutter is a Copal No. 0 (f5.6-f64) (1/500 to 1 sec plus B, T)

b. The rangefinder is 100% which means what you see in the rangefinder is what you are getting on the film. There is no need for the ground glass unless you wish to use normal film holders. The grafloc back holds grafmatics and other film format holders. I purchased the ground glass option so I could use a variety of film holders with a variety of film.

c. also included cable release, hand strap and the ground glass (as explained in b)

My Experience

This camera is a very light handholdable 4x5 camera. I have several grafmatics (holding 6 sheets of film each) and with the locking back I can attach a grafmatic and go ahead to frame and focus through the 100% rangefinder. I only need to set exposure and away I go with 6 shots before reloading a new grafmatic.

If I want to place it on my tripod or even hand hold with the groundglass attached I can. I then can go ahead and use a variety of sheet film holders. In this setup you can once again use the range finder for framing and focusing as I repeat, it is 100% so what you see is what you get or if you like you can use a dark cloth and view your images on the groundglass. This method is like traditional large format work.

I also use a polaroid back which locks into place. SOmetimes I even use my 6x12 roll film holder locked into place for pano shots.

The camera is perfect for portraits, street photographing, all manner of hand held situations. It is easy to travel with for such a large format. You can focus pretty darn close so I am sure you can get your headshots. Clearly the camera does not have tilts or swings. So if you shoot landscapes,buidlings etc that require these functions to alter the plane of sharp focus then you will need to use a traditional large format camera.