conrad_hoffman

Don't know the answer but I can't afford anything better than sRGB and nobody that looks at anything I do will have better than sRGB, if that. Thus, I can't see any value in a better monitor. I'm not even sure it would make much of a difference for my printing.

I don't have a particularly good camera in my phone. OK for snapshots but little else. The color quality can't match my Nikon and the DOF is inherently so large as to be really annoying. I don't usually remember that I'm carrying a camera, and forget to even use it. The last time I did, the shots were just OK and I had no desire to print them and put them on my office wall, as I often do. Might make a lot of people happy, but if I can't do better I don't get too excited about it. That said, my mobility sucks and just getting to something interesting is difficult, much less when carrying a ton of stuff. I'd love to use my 4x5 again at some point, but the reality of hauling it around might prove too much of a hassle.

Some of the best tonal quality I ever got was on Panatomic-X, but the slow speed didn't suit most of what I shot. Days long gone.

I offer a similar caution when using Luminar. It does some very handy things, but it's easy to get carried away and create over-saturated and unrealistic images. I'm not aware of any software that comes with built-in good taste. :D

Long ago I had Turner Bellows in Rochester make me a new bellows for my Toyo. I don't think they do bellows anymore, but you could ask. It's possible to make your own and this wasn't uncommon in days past, but I'm not sure it's worth the effort. Somewhere I have articles on how to do it. IMO, the biggest problem is sourcing the right materials.

I'm of a certain age and have a vision of quality that's based on machined parts and finishing that's of another era. The rules have changed and those methods are not only economically unsound, they no longer give a product with the desired traits that anybody would want to buy. My Z6 is exceptionally well engineered and probably as rugged as any former Nikon, though I'm not sure it could be used like a weapon, like the original F body. The original model T was built like a tank, but there's nothing it could do better than the worst modern vehicle. Also, look at what a modern S-series Z lens is capable of, compared to just about anything that's ever come before. I've got no desire to go backwards!

The lens thing recently happened to me. No possible way was I going to need the 105 mm. When I got where I was going, the 105 would have been the perfect choice. Most of my other blunders involve menu settings that I've forgotten about, VR off when it should have been on, auto ISO on or off when it shouldn't have been or maybe non-cpu lens selection being wrong. You'd think with all the stuff that can be displayed in the finder I'd notice errors, but in all honesty I just don't pick up on that stuff. Information overload I think.

I always loved the look and feel of my FM. Because I wasn't shooting film anymore, it went out in The Great Cleanout. If it works, that would be the one I'd keep. The FG is a very underappreciated body, small and gets the job done. Also, totally disposable if it fails.

Certainly true in principle, but it gets harder every year. Not a lot of VCRs are made these days and a DVD drive is probably easier and cheaper. The overall trend is as I said. I've been in manufacturing my entire career and even with volume, mechanical parts have gotten worse and worse cost-wise. Part of it is labor- some things are hard to fully automate and wages have gone up even in the low-wage locations. Some of it is environmental. Shops that do plating and metal finishing have ever-stricter operating and disposal rules. Semiconductor fabs are no environmental picnic, but the huge volume of everything put in one place makes up for some of it. Think of it as pushing the volume savings upstream a bit. Any parts that can be stamped, molded or etched, combined with electronics, will be preferred. I don't know much about sensor VR assemblies, but they're probably the most sophisticated mechanics in a camera these days. Lots more mechanics in lenses and lenses cost a lot more these days!

The general trend with everything is to eliminate as much mechanical crap as possible and replace it with electronics and software. This has been going on for decades to reduce costs. IMO, a big advantage of small sensors is greater DOF. OTOH, a big advantage of large sensors is less DOF. Depends on what you need. Combine something like a Z7 with the very good S-series lenses and you may find what you used to consider in focus, isn't. I'm having this problem with product photos using my Z6. Shots that used to be acceptable on film now require focus stacking to keep customers happy with the front to back focus.

OTOH, I think I just saw a 4-day Nikon sale on refurbished D850s for under $2k and some other cameras. Still, mirrorless for me has been a game changer.

I strongly recommend a proper stop bath. It became a "thing" some time back not to use it, but if you use an acid fix it's kind of dumb not to. OTOH, I switched to alkaline fixer from Photographer's Formulary back when I was doing film, and that shouldn't (I think) be used with an acid stop bath.

IMHO, dSLRs are going away for a variety of reasons, though prices may not drop because they're expensive to manufacture. OTOH, cameras in general are heading up in price because there's almost no low end market anymore. If you have tight budget constraints, a used dSLR might be the best bet. Mirrorless is certainly the future and rapidly becoming the present. You'll probably find your results improve with mirrorless because of the better view under many light conditions.

Why do I get a message saying I have to wait 600+ seconds on the first reply to a posting? Not every time, but it's really annoying. Crap, 581 seconds for this message! Then 24 seconds a few seconds later.

If the film is old, expect some fog. If new, just have at it and enjoy!

Definitely blast it with UV light, bright sun or whatever, for several hours. You don't want it to get worse!

I'm guessing that could be the beginnings of fungus (spots) and separation (edge).

Part of a $4 phone tripod from Ollies Discount plus an old Sunset grip and... I couldn't get the screw tight. Probably not what you were looking for! ;)

There are a bunch of us that do or did wet process photography and would love to show off our encyclopedic knowledge, given the slightest nudge.

Nice!

You're the main researcher on the topic, so you'll have to tell us! Many decades ago I put a 135 mm Tessar on my 4x5. It had an old style Compur shutter and was stolen from a folding camera. I could afford the $99 Calumet and a few holders, but not a lens. It didn't really cover 4x5, with a bit of darkening in the corners. Pictorially, it was wonderful, plenty sharp and very nice tones. I never shot a great number of 4x5 negs, but the ones with the Tessar (on Ektapan) were my favorites.

Yeah, the paper is as important as the ink.

Interesting, but I can't see a single reason to use that lens for anything. Nice shelf queen for the collection, if I were still collecting.

I've done a lot of small product photography with nothing more than high CRI spiral fluorescent bulbs in cheap aluminum reflectors. What's more important is having reflectors and gobos. In my case those are just sheets of white and black Fome-Cor or similar stuff. I run a saw down a length of 2x4 to make small stands for them. Plastic milk jugs with the bottoms cut off make great tents for very small objects.

P-mode on my Z6 often uses slower shutter speeds than I might choose, the camera "knowing" the stabilization will be sufficient. I use P-mode quite a lot, at least for non-challenging lighting situations, and it does as good or better than I might. Where it falls down is when I know I need more DOF and need to push the ISO and close down more.