claire_curran

I use Heliopan center grads on my Rodenstock, Fujinon, and Schneider lenses. I have found the Heliopan filters to be of excellent quality. With most center grads you must increase exposure by 1 1/2 stops. I would suggest you look at www.badgergraphic.com for their prices. This company usually has lower prices on equipment.

Your 90m lens will cause you some problems if you use the Cokin system. The filter holder sometimes vignettes the images. To save yourself time and money, just bite the bullet and get the Lee system. You can start with the Cokin system, but if you really enjoy what you are doing, you will end up with a larger system, such as the Lee.

I find using my 35mm camera for metering my LF work to be the most workable solution. I can accurately meter a scene with all the filters I may be using placed in front of the 35mm lens. No guess work with filter factors. It boils down to what works best for you in the long run. If you don't own a spotmeter, just use you 35mm camera. I am sure you know your 35mm camera well and are aware of any shortcomings it has with metering. I would set up the 4x5 and 35m, shoot the same thing at the same exposure, and review the results. Make sure you are shooting at infinity. I shoot color. If you are planning to shoot only B&W, I would switch to a spotmeter. Spotmeters give you more control if you plan to use the Zone System.

I find that upholstery supply stores are the best places to find all kinds of foam. You can obtain remnants for reasonable prices.

Hi John, I also live in OC and shoot LF. I travel extensively looking for great landscape. Send me an email. Claire

I have the 5x7 metal Canham. I have my quibbles with it but would choose it any day over a Wisner. Keith Canham is a fine person with a good reputation. His cameras work and are readily available. Listen to what the other posters say about Ron Wisner. He does not have a good reputation in the photo world. One added bonus with the Canham 5x7 is the Canham 6x17 roll film back that Keith just came out with.

The line on the left side of the transparency is a processing problem. It normally indicates that agitation is not being done properly during development. This type of processing problem normally shows up in neutral, same toned areas, such as a sky. The problem is frequently seen when film is processed in film hangers, whether processing B&W or color. Sometimes agitation is not sufficient to properly develop the film touching the hanger. Show your transparency to the lab and ask them about their agitation methods. They are undoubtedly using a machine line. If the agitation is done with nitrogen burst, it is rather easy to adjust. There is evidence of a light leak in the lower left corner of your trans. I agree with the other poster that the milkiness is a light leak.

Cokin makes adaptor rings up to 82mm for the P system. If you have the A system, you will be limited to 62mm. I have the P system and have adaptor rings for all of my smaller lenses up to 82mm. You can easily obtain Cokin information from B&H.

Hi Steve, I tried to send you a response to the questions you asked me but my email was refused by your server. Something about Norton anti virus. I will try again. Claire

I have the older style Calumet and use a 65m Fujinon in a recessed lensboard on the camera. It is a bit of a pain, but once you get the feel for just how far you can go with the swings and tilts, you will enjoy using the lens. Pay close attention to the corners of the groundglass when using the lens, corner cutting can be a problem, particularly when using filters.

Thanks, Rob, your answer is very helpful. Please let me know what you think of the back after you run that brick of 120 through.

A 5x7 metal Canham.

Photographers who have bought Canham's 6x17 back and have opinions, I

would love to hear from you. Thanks.

I agree with George Stocking. I would just add that the "very best stuff" in my photographic gear are my eyes. Without those, well, I guess all the other neat gear I think I need would be useless.

I use a Polaroid 545 back for Quickloads. I have run hundreds of sheets through the back. I have had two unexposed sheets in all. When I pull the paper out to make the exposure I always feel the packet, no matter how cold it is, with my fingers. If the film has not stayed in the back, I can definitely feel a ridge where the film lies in the Quickload packet. I push everything back into the holder and start again. Sometimes I must pull the Quickload out and reload it.

I carry a lot of gear and use the old style Lowe Pro SuperTrekker AW. The old style has outside pockets permanently attached to the pack. The new style has removable bags for which one must pay extra. You can periodically find the old style for sale on e-Bay. You don't say anything about film holders. These take up a lot of room, unless you are using QuickLoads. Go on Tom Till's website or look at Jack Dykinga's latest book, "Large Format Nature Photography." They both show you how they lug their gear around. Otherwise, Brian Ellis' recommendation of a backpacker's pack is the way to go. I also have the Lowe Pro Pro Trekker AW, the size down from the SuperTrekker. I doubt you could fit all the gear you mention into that pack.

Has anyone hiked the West Fork of Oak Creek recently, perhaps this

past week end? If so, how far along are the maples? Thanks.

I talked with Keith Canham shortly before he left for FotoKina about his 6x17 back. I have been waiting for years to get his 6x17 back. Right now I use the back of my 6x17 V-Pan on my Canham metal 5x7. He told me that the back still had a few bugs that would be worked out by the end of FotoKina. You can get the latest info on the 6x17 by checking his website. So far the back is not for sale. You could also call Keith. He usually is there or will promptly call you back.

This year was another drought year in the Southwest, paticularly the Colorado Plateau. The last two years in Zion have not been particularly spectacular for fall color. I shoot in Zion every fall and have done so for many years. I do expect this year to be similar to the two previous years. If you have never been to Zion in fall, it is well worth seeing, even without the spectacular color. You will always find pockets of wonderful color. Spend time scouting and exploring side canyons. A friend just drove Tunnel Road above the park and told me that the oaks in Clear Creek canyon looked very brown already.

Does anyone know how the fall color is shaping up with the aspen and

maples in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah?

I use all the soft and hard ND Lee grads. The hard grads are very useful because they truly are .3, .6, and .9 densities. The soft grads only have the true density near the top of the filter. If I am using a soft grad and my meter reads a two stop contrast range, I use the 3 stop soft grad to get the two stop contrast range under control. Lee hard ND filters have a bit of graduation in the transition zone between clear and density. This helps to control the problem of noticeable use of a grad in the area between brightly lit background and shadowed foreground. I highly recommend purchasing a .6 hard grad to see if hard grads would be useful in your work. There is a learning curve to using grads. The proper use of a grad is a real art. Some photographers are dismayed to see their results from use of grads in their work. Stick with it, practice, and expect to make mistakes. The benefits of using grad, particularly in color work, will be well worth the time spent learning. Here is a tip to proper placement of a grad: I cut a harder stock paper to fit the graduation on all the types of grads I own (each company graduates their grads differently.) When I am using a grad for a shot, I place the paper (which is folded in half and cut to the length of the graduation density only) over the grad. I then stop down to the F-stop I will be using and line up the grad to the exact point where I want the grad. I use this on my wide angles (65m and 90m) with no problems. The paper effectively blocks the light and lining up the grad is so simple. I have never had problems with grads showing up on wide angles and that is with stopping all the way down.