musings

<p>Sorry, Yvon, for misspelling your name previously (fingers were outracing the brain)...I would still be interested in the answer, though...</p>

<p>Yvonne -- just curious, but why are you regretting selling your K10? Is this due to disappointment in the K20 or simply because you wished you had a backup in case the K20 is inoperable?</p>

<p>Very cool, Justin. Sounds like you will have a great trip. The epicenter of waterfalls in NC is Transylvania County. I am sure you have that already dialed into your plan. If I can sneak off of work, I might take a jaunt over there myself. It's a beautiful county, especially at that time of year (and in the Fall). Cheers, Jeff</p>

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<p><em>Now if I lived in the Carolina's there are roads to the top of many summits and the Blue Ridge PW is probably enough to create a lifetimes worth of compelling landscapes within 1/2 mile of the car!</em></p>

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<p>That is very true, Justin. North Carolina has great access to some of these summits and wilderness from state highways and roads. If you come down here for a visit, we can haul the Toyo CX from the car trunk to the shooting location. A lot of the wilderness in NY is less accessible, so 35mm/DSLR is the way to go, especially a weather-sealed beauty like the K10. Rest assured, if I came up to NY, I would only bring the K10 and a few lenses to stay light and quick... :-)</p>

 

<p>While I am excited by the (potential) introduction of the 645D, I honestly am getting tired of waiting. For commercial photographers who need fast output on a variety of mediums (print, web, et al), there is a very compelling reason for the 645D over a film MF system. Of course, Mamiya and Leaf and others have been filling this niche for some time now, so Pentax will have to work extra hard to integrate themselves into the digital MF shooting club. I can't see the 645D in the hands of a hobbyists; it's target will be pro commercial/fashion photographers.</p>

<p><em>(Op Ed: I recently bought in a Toyo 45CX 4x5 large format camera with a Graphex 90mm lens on eBay for $200. It's in excellent shape and the ground glass and lens are flawless. Digital and film MF and digital FF are no match for the large format system. You won't see me hauling this to the kids' soccer games, but when the shots are deliberate and structured (i.e., landscapes), then there is no comparison.)</em></p>

<p>I think Pentax is on the right path with the 645D, but it will be an uphill climb for them. I hope they can make it in the digital commercial shooting world.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Great information, Bob, thanks! I wasn't aware of the potential incompatibilities even within the same manufacturer. I will be sure to research the model release of my Toyo 45CX to ensure that any new GG/Fresnel is compatible with it (as well as the lens focal length as you stated). Cheers, Jeff</p>

<p>Thanks, Michael. I have a Prinz 36x58" dark cloth on its way (along with the Wista loupe), so hopefully that will help brighten the GG a bit. The glass is Toyo, and though it is used, it seems like it's in good shape. I will skip the bright screen for now and see how the new dark cloth and loupe help with the focusing.</p>

<p>The Toyo 45CX is so much fun to use, by the way...really a blast!</p>

<p>I have mixed feelings, Johan -- the K20 is a great camera, but the K10 is such a workhorse. Part of me is jealous, too, since it will be a long time before I can trade my K10's in for the K20's.</p>

<p>Lighting is going to be a real challenge with that number of people. Get as much natural light in as you can and rearrange people as necessary to get even coverage. Odds are that some folks in the back will be dimly lit, but do what you can to minimize weak lighting in the rear.</p>

<p>My recommendation is the same as Rose's -- shoot panoramic. Here's my thought: go medium tele on a pano tripod head on the lift. Find the lens center and use a bracket extension to mount the tripod at that location. This will reduce parallax error in the photo (there are some good tutorials online on how to mark the lens nodal center). Shoot in marked increments on the pano head and then stitch together in Photoshop.</p>

<p>First, I would like to start with a big thank you to all of the long-time LF shooters out there who have helped this newbie get off to a good start. You guys are all top-notch and very helpful...much appreciated!</p>

<p>In my discovery of the excellent world of 4x5 shooting, I have been struggling a bit by the dimness of the ground glass. I have a 5x Wista focusing loupe on the way, but I have been wondering whether a Fresnel/bright screen would also help. Online reports are mixed...some say that the 1 stop increase is a big help in brightening the GG, while others say it's marginal if you have a good focusing loupe. Of course, being the new guy, I don't have a definitive opinion, so I thought I would ask the experts in this forum. One thing is for certain, the Fresnel screens are not cheap, so I don't want to venture into buying one without some good background info first. Perhaps the focusing loupe is all I will need...</p>

<p>Thanks in advance for all of the help...cheers, Jeff</p>

<p>I found the Manfrotto 3036 with a 3047 head for $86 on eBay but the auction ended before I could bid... :-(. That was a killer deal that slipped away...</p>

<p>I don't agree that the paparazzi suck. They exist because we need them to feed our insatiable appetite for all things celebrity-related. The accountability rests with the people who buy tabloid after tabloid and their life savings to see their favorite star in concert. Don't blame the paparazzi; blame the idiots who fuel this insanity.</p>

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<p><em>Subho, you can buy the lenses you want, all you need is patience, a willingness to buy used, and an eye for good deals</em></p>

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<p>Or, you can simply write a check to Mis for $3,600 ($1,800 x 2 for the "convenience charge"). ;-></p>

<p>Thanks, DN and Bohdan -- good input! (btw, Bohdan, my computer didn't read your earlier upside down post but now I see it on the other computer...pretty cool!). And, yes, I am beginning to appreciate the world upside down and backwards... :-)</p>

<p>Great photo, Mis...very clever! Brendon -- I like your idea...others, what do you think?</p>

<p>Perfect, guys, thanks!</p>

<p>I am having a blast with the Toyo 45CX, but one thing is for certain: I need a better tripod head for it. I am getting a little bit of slippage with the Manfro one that I've been using for 35mm/DSLR work. The Toyo monorail creates a pretty significant leverage point.</p>

<p>For a moderately sized 4x5 like the Toyo CX, what tripod head do the LF "Regulars" recommend that won't break the bank? I usually stick with Manfrotto stuff, but I am open to any beefy ballhead that will work well with LF cameras but won't cost an arm and a leg.</p>

<p>Sorry, but I can't read Klingon... :-(</p>

<p>Michael -- I agree...B&H is awesome (and to be fair, I like Adorama, too). That is why I was concerned when I couldn't reach their website a few times. My thread on this is now gone <poof...deleted by the admins>, but Henry Posner from B&H even chimed in to help sort out my connectivity problem. Now, <strong>that</strong> is customer service! :-)</p>

<p>Lindy -- that is one of the best answers I have seen you post in a long time. Thanks very much for the input! Cheers, Jeff</p>

<p>Marc -- Peter's advice is very sound: don't make any assumptions on the trigger voltage. You may have gotten lucky before so be sure to check the voltage levels with a voltmeter. You can also use a sync-safe device or fire the flashes via a remote RF trigger. The latter is pretty handy if you don't want to deal with wrapping PC sync cords around to the hotshoe adapter.</p>

<p>Robin -- no biggie, just a matter of perspective, I suppose. I think "EOS 5D Mark II" is a mouthful, but in the era of proliferating digital camera models, coming up with new names has to be a tough job. It was easier back in the film era when one model release would last a few years and was sequential (F1, F2, etc.).</p>

<p>Thanks, Ben! I <strong>*do*</strong> enjoy looking at that beautiful image on the ground glass! It's a joy to behold. I can't imagine trying to focus this baby without a focusing loupe, though...really need that in the corners especially. What fun this is...I think you guys have the best gig going in the photography world by far...</p>

<p>Some just like to torpedo everyone else's gear instead...</p>

<p>Fantastic photos, Dorus! My favorite is the one of your daughter along with brick wall (#4 image, I believe). That is a classic pose used a lot in professional model shoots.</p>