travis_bushue

<p>For what it's worth, yesterday morning I ordered a bunch of chemicals from Photographer's Formulary. By noon yesterday I had a confirmation of my order, and by 9pm UPS sent me their tracking number and estimated delivery date.<br>

I'm not making excuses for poor customer service from Photographer's Formulary, or promoting them over any other chemical supplier, but my experiences with them have been very pleasing.</p>

<p>Larry,<br>

I looked them up, and I believe that's a '67 Dodge Coronet, and a '65 Pontiac Bonneville in the rear...</p>

<p>Today I processed another roll of found film. It's this sort of film time capsule excitement that keeps me hooked. The photograph details are in the 'details' tab of the photo. <a href="../photo/12230710">here</a></p><div></div>

<p>Thanks Robert. I am going to give that a try this weekend with some 25 speed film. That may work well enough to not mess with finding a low grain pusher film. Experimenting is all part of the fun right?</p>

<p>1- I love shooting film for the look it gives me.<br>

2- Mixing chemicals to develop my films is something I love to do.<br>

3- Hoarding film is therapeutic to me.<br>

4- As several have already pointed out, there's a magical moment in time when the image begins to appear in the developing tray. Knowing that I controlled the negative and the print gives me a warped feeling of being completed somehow.<br>

5- There is something very personal to me about holding a chunk of metal with a bunch of levers and dials, and switches on it. The mechanicalness of it all makes me feel warm when I switch and dial and twist until it's just right to click.<br>

6- I have some cameras that are over 100 years old that are fully functional and I still put film through them. It satisfies me to use these while I wonder how many people and places they captured before I became a keeper of them.<br>

7- Because developing a time capsule of found film and being able to peek into someone else's life so many years ago satisfies a strange curiosity of mine. Digital cameras don't have 20 year old time capsules in them. :-)<br>

8- I could never afford a $60,000 60 megapixel camera, but shooting 25 ISO 5x7 film gives me finer resolution and detail, and I don't have to spend hours massaging the image with a computer.<br>

9- Finally, to me film is just plain fun. I watched a print come to life in a converted bathroom darkroom 30 years ago, and was sucked into the world of film...it has me...</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Hello All,</p>

<p>I have been shooting 25 and 100 ISO film outdoors in 5x7 format with good results. Recently though I have a need for speed, and have a bit of a problem in the lens I have on my camera has no flash sync provisions. The camera is an 1895 Premo long focus with a B&L RR lens. Amazingly this camera is still fully functional. The really usable shutter speeds are 1/25th and 1/100th (max). This will be an indoor portrait project so I will certainly need 800EI minimum to give me some lighting control.<br>

In looking at what is available to me - HP5+, TXP320, Foma400 - I am curious if anyone has previous results they can show with these 5x7 versions in ambient light ( no flash ) pushed to 800 & 1600 EI. My concern is grain here. Ideally I would like to find which one of these films presents the least amount of grain. The developers I keep onhand are HC110, Rodinal, Xtol, DD-X, and Tmax. Given the price per box of these 5x7 films, I really would like to do a bit of research before buying flim. Any examples of these would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!</p>

<p>Hello Gene,</p>

<p>I couldn't agree more! This is a wonderful combination -Efke25 & Rodinal.</p>

<p>Matthew-</p>

<p>Thanks so much for the info. I am all sorts of excited to get home later today and check the dates on my three BHF cameras!</p>

<p>Thanks Kent. I have been to that site before as they have a lot of general information. What I was hoping to find out -and it's not super important- is what dates corresponded to the different features like the metal knob -vs- the plastic knob.</p>

<p>Nice shot Matthew. Those cameras are fun to use. I am curious, do you have information that could help sort the dates / features of these cameras? I have a few of this model, some with a plastic knob, some with a metal knob, and I have no idea on the dates beyond what a few sites give as generic manufacturing dates. Also of interest to me is that of the glass lens dates? Anyway, here's a <a href="../photo/11251173">link</a> to my "smoothest" looking BHF, perhaps you could have a look and tell me a ballpark idea of the dates for it. Thanks!</p>

<p>Hello Kristen,</p>

<p>Which model do you have? You say Brownie 2C, but also mention pocket. Is yours the box camera, or the pocket folder? Either way, with a little home-fashioning you likely will be able to still use your camera once the details are nailed down.<br>

I have an abnormal craving for using these very old cameras, and have converted a few of then to use modern day 120 format films. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thbushuephoto/sets/72157624991756694/with/4991901676/">Here</a> is a link to one example that may help you in your quest. That particular camera was originally 122 format (3 1/4 X 5 1/2). Once converted to use 120 film, I am getting 6x14cm negatives from it.<br>

As for the film to use with these? It's been my experience that Fuji Acros is tops since it has such a wide lattitude of exposure. That forgiving nature coupled with rudimentary shutter speeds seems to work well. Hope this information helps a bit.</p>

<p>As it's been pointed out, "old timey" is subject to many interpretations. I have been messing around with some film that give and 'older' look based on some that I have found in the Library of Congress archives.<br>

I have recently been using Efke 25 films both Pan (R25) and Ortho (PL 5x7). While I have not completely nailed the extended tones with the ortho film-developer combo's, the pan film does well in Rodinal 1+100 stand. To me -again interpretations vary- this combination is pretty good for representing all the zones with adequate tone and detail in each. Here's an <a href="../photo/11770850">example.</a></p>

 

<p>Oops! I just checked and the 3x4 I've been using is Efke 100 not Foma 100. The 4x5 is the Foma 100. For what it's worth, the Efke 100 stuff is also rather nice sheet film. The only complaints I could have against that film is the soft emulsion, but with a hardening fixer I've not had issues with it.</p>

<p>I use this film a lot in 3x4 and 4x5 sheet form. It is very nice in ID-11 - D76. As far as quality issues go, I haven't seen any and have been through probably 50 boxes of the stuff in the past couple years.</p>

<p>That's awesome stuff Larry! Thanks for the laugh.</p>

<p>Over the years I have ordered quite a lot of gear from KEH and never had even the slightest issue with their products. Typically I have always bought the EX or above rated items, and they have been just that.<br>

Today I received shipment of a power winder from KEH. The one I ordered was in EX condition, and was listed as such on the invoice. The wrapper on the item I actually received was clearly marked BGN, and visually it was obvious the winder would never work as it was seriously bent.<br>

I called KEH and they apologized for the packing mistake from their warehouse, and immediately issued an order to send me the correct item, and sent an email with a FedEx free return shipping label to return the part I received. When I explained it would take a couple days for me to get the part shipped to them, the agent advised to just toss it, and again apologized for the inconvenience the mistake cost me. <br>

Sure I'm out a few days while the correct item ships, but I am ultimately very satisfied at the way KEH immediately ponied up to the error and made it right. I'll keep shopping KEH as long as they respect the customer this way.</p>

<p>Congratulations, and welcome to the asylum!</p>

<p>Nicholas,</p>

<p>Have you tried to steam your negatives after they are almost dried? Long ago I struggled through the curl madness that you have described. I still do battle with Lucky films in 120 format. For what it's worth, here is what I discovered, and changed to minimize this problem.<br>

When washing my films, I am real careful that the water temp is 20º C. Prior to developing, I make up my photoflo and let that come to the ambient room temp in my bathroom. After the film is washed, I leave it in the room temp photoflo for about 10 minutes to get up to that temp evenly. Then I hang the film in the shower stall with just the clip holding it at top. If the film looks like it has some curl to it, I may steam it with the shower heat for a few minutes and let that take the curl out.<br>

What I have found -in my environment- when I used to hang the film up while it was 20º C using the weighted clip at the bottom, there was enough difference in temperatures between the bathroom and the film, and the combination of the weight "pulling" the film it would curl like mad! It seems that once I stopped pulling the film with the weight of a bottom clip, and equalized the film temp with room temp, even the gnarliest of curl monster films behave nicely. I have no scientific explanation for how this has cured my curl-monster woes, but it sure has cured them.<br>

While this is an added hour in my development prep time to makeup my photoflo early, it sure has become worth it to me. No matter if I am scanning, or enlarging, working with flat negatives is a pleasure.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>For what it's worth, I too am on the PrintFile brand band wagon. I have been using their products for 35mm, 120, and large format negatives with zero issues. No scratches, no fuss, they do what they are supposed to do. I don't exactly know how many years I have been using them, but I can say that I have many boxes filled with negatives in their sleeves.</p>

<p>Sassan,</p>

<p>For what it's worth I have found Fuji Neopan 400 at EI1600 in Xtol 1+1 to be marvelous. The grain is very fine, and this has become the 400 film of choice when I need to shoot at 1600. There are a couple examples in my folders, but here is the most recent.<br>

http://www.photo.net/photo/10450556<br>

Hope this helps.</p>

<p>Dave,<br>

Thanks for the suggestion. I did as suggested and rolled the lens back and forth exercising the contacts without romoving the lens itself. The symptoms have changed a little, but it's still not operational. I did remove the lens and clean the two sets of three contacts with isopropyl alchohol. The problem still exists.<br>

The change to the symptoms is this; when allowing the camera to sit for 10 minutes or so, the shutter will fire correctly on the first or second try, but then will not fire at the slower speeds selected until it is turned off for a while. The condition of the camera while trying this is to have the multi-exposure lever set, darkslide out, power on etc. The battery that is in the body is two days old, and measures 6.3VDC. The previous battery that measures 6.28VDC does not change the symptoms at all.<br>

With respect to the lens, and body contacts for the lens, those are bright gold and I cannot detect anything on them when using magnification to view them. When installing the lens, it is smooth and does not bind at all. The lens snaps into the lock position firm and crisp. There does not seem to me any play or slack present when the lens is locked onto the body.<br>

At this point I am ready to box it up and send it off to be checked out. Thanks for all the suggestions.</p>

<p>Jerry,</p>

<p>With the multi-exposure level set, the back off the body, the shutter fires as before. No matter what speed is selected on the body, the shutter fires at the same fast rate as before. I suppose this can effectively eleminate the back as the source of this problem.<br>

Just for the sake of testing, I did remove/unseat the lens and the prism to ensure they were in the correctly seated positions as well as the aperture being set firmly on a detent. I checked all the shutter speeds to make sure the symptom was consistent and it is. <br>

Thanks again for your suggestions.</p>

 

<p>I think I misunderstood your suggestion before. When I set the multi-exposure lever I did not remove the back to see if the symptoms changed. When I did that test it was with the back still attached, and the symptoms didn't change. I will give that a try and see if I can fire the shutter without the back on the body.<br>

I think I also didn't describe the LED scenario well. The LED readout in the prism matches every shutter speed that I select on the body. I did check all the shutter speeds to verify that the LED readout matched them all. So in that respect, the only failure is that no matter what shutter speed is selected on the body, and displayed in the prism LED's, the shutter fires at the fastest speed.<br>

Thanks again for your suggestions.</p>

<p>Hello Jerry,</p>

<p>While I have been having this problem I have not used the MLU feature. I just set the MLU feature and no change to my symptoms at all. The shutter speed flashes in the prism with the speed that is selected on the body, but the shutter still fires the same fast speed. <br>

You mentioned something about the multi-exposure feature so I also tried this. When the multi-exposure lever is positioned to allow multi-exposures, the shutter fires the same, however, the solid lit LED goes out. This makes me wonder if an interlock on the back is contributing to this fault in the single exposure mode. Unfortunately I only have the one back for this camera so I cannot try another back.<br>

I may hunt up another back to see if it will change my symptoms any. What puzzles me the most is that this happened while the camera was sitting dormant. I process my own films, and certainly would have noticed huge exposure problems with my film if this was happening the last time I used it. Thanks for the suggestions Jerry.</p>

<p>I have a Bronica GS-1 that seems to be having shutter problems. The camera has a non-metered prism finder, a 120 back, and the Zenzanon PG 100mm lens. This camera has been trouble free for me for about three years now. I have not used this camera in a few months, and took it out to shoot some studio work recently. This is when I noticed the shutter seems to be stuck at the 1/500th speed no matter what the shutter control is set to.<br>

With correctly loaded film in the back, the back mounted correctly, dark slide removed, lens cap off, power to the "on" position, half pressing the shutter release causes the prism finder led's to blink at the appropriate speed as selected on the body. There is also a solid lit led to the right of the blinking speed led's.<br>

With the camera in this operating condition, mounted on a tripod, and a shutter speed selected to 16 seconds, it is very obvious that the shutter does not stay open as the speed was selected for 16 seconds. After some research on this I have not turned up much information on what could be the source of this problem.<br>

The corrective action that I have taken was to replace the battery with a brand new one even though the previous battery measured 6.3vdc. I have also removed the prism finder to inspect all the contacts as well as the contacts on the film back. I am really at a loss what could be the cause of this problem when all the operating conditions are correct, and the only failure symptom is a very fast shutter operation.<br>

I would certainly welcome any suggestions for things I may have not known about this Bronica before I ship it off to be repaired by the shop.<br>

Thanks in advance...</p>