will_stedman

<p>Thanks Joe. How long do you recommend for the pre-bath? <br>

Can I also ask you, even though it's completely off the subject, what your favorite film/developer is for 4x5? This is my first venture in to LF, having shot medium format with my favorite film, PanF, and Perceptol. Unfortunately, Ilford doesn't make PanF for sheet film and the delta 100 I've tried with perceptol and ID-LL just doesn't look right. </p>

<p>Will</p>

Thanks Georges for the info. I had no idea about the added time for rotation on the expert drum. I actually just

ordered the Jobo 2509 for my 2500 tank. It's on backorder from Calumet. I figured out that I just don't have the

money for a new or used expert drum. Also, I read other threads and there seems to be mixed reviews about the

2509 reel. It seems that it works iust fine for some people. So I'm going to take my chances.

 

Cheers

 

Will

Thanks Steven, that's exactly the feedback I was looking for. I guess now I should just save my money, although I

might get lucky on Ebay. Thanks.

 

Will

<p>I was wondering if anybody has used a Jobo expert drum for 4x5 sheet film developing with a motorized uniroller (unicolor) or if I should just use the 2509N reel. I read a thread somewhere where it was mentioned that the expert drum must be used at top speed on a developer, so I just wanted to make sure that the uniroller speed is adequate for even developing. Thanks in advance for any input.<br>

Will</p>

I took the plunge! I just bought a 210 apo symmar this morning from B&H that is in 9+ condition for $586. I've read

your responses and those from previous threads and decided that paying a little extra for a tip top shape lens, in terms

of all the working components such as shutter and elements etc, is worth it to me for the long run. Also, if I ever figure

out a color print workflow, in terms of darkroom, scan, print, then I will have a really nice apochromatoc lens. I also

read product descriptions and found that the symmar has an optimum working aperature range down to F16 while the

Rodenstocks went down to F22, if It should ever become an issue at extreme enlargement. Lastly, I had budgeted

$1,000 for a lens and so, summimg it all up, I did pretty well.

 

Thanks again.

 

Question for you guys, I need help filling out the rest of the components for my Sinar P2, such as recommended film

holders, do I really need a fresnel, and the issue of light metering (I always just use a sekonic light meter for all my

shots with my RZ67 camera). Should I continue on with this thread or post a new thread regarding such items?

 

Will

Thanks everyone for your input. As you may have presumed from the question (as well as my last post), I'm just

starting out in LF. I'm mostly interested in doing portraits in my amateur home studio and have been working with

Mamiya RZ67 film setup. It's good to know that there shouldn't be too much difference at F11 and that you can still

shoot wide open for creatve effect. I'm thinking of going with one of the apo 210s I saw at KEH for a few hundred.

Thanks again.

 

I may post again when I get to the point of actually taking a picture.

 

Will

I'm looking to purchase a 210mm lens for my 4x5 camera. I've noticed that the working aperature range for some lenses are F22 and

above. Can anyone recommend a lens that works well in the F11-F16 range? I'm limited to this range by my lighting system.

 

Thanks

 

PS. I want to say thanks to those that responded to my earlier post. I did finally make a comment.

 

 

Will

Thanks for everone's input. Sorry for not clarifying, but I have a 4x5 Sinar. I've looked at KEH and have seen many

quality lenses for much less than I imagined. I think I may start out with 210mm apo as my first lens. One more

question for you guys: which lens shoots best in the F11-f16 range? I have a pretty weak lighting setup, so shooting

at F22 or above is out of the question without substantial purchase in lighting equipment. I think this may rule out a

210 apo Sironar N. Any suggestions? How about the 210 apo Symmar?

 

I have other more basic questions related to workflow that I will save for later (as I mentioned before, I've literally never

shot LF before).

 

Thanks again for everyone's help.

 

Will

<p>Hello,<br>

I'm assembling a sinar P2 right now for a very small studio of dimensions 12ft x 17ft. I do mostly portraiture currently with a Mamiya RZ67 and 110mm and 180mm lenses. I'm new to large format and was wondering what would be a nice lens for the space that I have. I'm looking to spend up to $1000. Thanks.</p>

<p>Will Stedman </p>

<p>I've read a lot of negative comments about the Mamiya 180mm soft focus lens. I purchased one in (Like New) condition from KEH for less than $300 and decided to give it a try. Last night I did one roll of PanF, testing all 3 filters and taking one pic without a filter at 5.6 for comparison, and the results looked pretty good, focus-wise. My daughter's face had a creamy texture while here eyes were sharp but soft. Out of the 10 shots, 2-3 of the pics were out of focus, but I owe this more to my test subject (5-year old daughter) who was bouncing around on a sugar high. </p>

<p>As I struggled to understand why my experience seemed to differ from the majority of posts I've read, I started thinking that perhaps many people are using the prism finder for exposure metering. I haven't purchased a prism finder yet and I , instead, go with the light meter reading for everything. While it's kind of unnerving to completely rely on the light meter for exposure, I am allowed to use the pop-up center magnifier in the waist level finder, which, without it, would have been impossible to focus accurately. I centered the image around my daughter's face so that I could always use the center magnifier to focus on her eyes. I also read in the threads that the filters don't work well with back lighting. This may also be true, as I used a key light just off center and a hair light with side reflectors to light my subject in order to create very little backlight. So, perhaps the light setup had a great deal to do with it as well.</p>

<p>Of course I may have forgotten to mention the most probable explanation for my results: dumb luck! I've only been shooting medium format for about 6 months and was previously a digital guy. Anyways I thought I would share my experience anyways in case it could help somebody else. I think the best thing may be for me to try a repeat roll of film to see if I can get the same results.</p>

<p>Thanks again for everyone's input. As it will be awhile before I can complete my 4x5 system to full functionality, I decided to buy a 180mm soft focus Mamiya lens from KEH which I can use right away. I basically purchased a $1500 lens in LN (like new) condition for less than $300. Amazing price! Thanks for the suggestion on KEH. I received the lens today and it really did look "like new." I will eventually tackle the 4x5 camera within the next 3-4 months. </p>

<p>Thanks for the replies so far. Just to clarifyfor Brian, I would like a portrait lens for the 4x5 camera that can produce excellent enlargements up to 30"x40" if I had to. I would want the lens to be able to produce enlargements that are the "next level" from my medium format camera. <br>

One limitation that I should have mentioned from the onset is that I have a pretty small space (12x18ft) in which to shoot.</p>

<p>Hello,<br>

I was wondering if someone could recommend a decent portrait lens for my SinarP2 4x5. I've been trying to figure out a good focal length for portraiture with a large enough image circle for shifting etc. I have about $400-$500 to spend on the lens and I don't mind buying "used" if necessary. I bought my entire Mamiya RZ outfit used with B&H and was very satisfied but B&H does not have many used large format lenses. I was wondering if anyone could recommend an additional company that has good quality used lenses, or at least the company's assessment of quality is accurate. Thanks.</p>

<p>Will </p>

Thanks Tim, I will let you know how i fare. I do have elements instead

of CS3 but I guess that shouldn't make too much difference.

 

Monika, I had another question for you about the custom profile. Is there any risk after paying for and installing the profile

that the computer's overall color calibration can drift over time such that the custom profile becomes inaccurate? I know I

can keep calibrating my monitor routinely but is there any risk of the custom profile having to be replaced with a new one

eventually? Just trying to make sure before I take the plunge.

 

Thanks again for everyone's help. BTW, I may have worked out a workflow for B&W printing of my scanned negatives. I

used the "advanced B&W" feature in the print driver, which according to the manual is supposed to deliver "stunning"

prints. Well, having shot with Ilford PanF ISO50 medium format film for the first time and using F11 to make my portrait

guineapig (5-yr old daughter) in sharp focus, the 8x10 print was the best technical print (composition still lacking) I've made so far. I'm desperate to get some 16x20 printing paper and see what that looks like. I followed the previous advice of "keeping it simple" by using the basic Epson scan software instead of the formidable Lasersoft. I actually made it all the way through the process of shooting to printing without having to adjust exposure, contrast, levels, etc. Ilford film does have a wide latitude for exposure so I guess I should give some credit to them.

<p>Will do Len. Have a great weekend.--Will</p>

<p>First of all, I want to thank everyone for their input. <br>

To Tommy: I'll experiment with sRGB for my digital workflow and see if that makes a difference.<br>

To Harry: I did calibrate the printer and monitor for my digital workflow using colormunki and the results were still hit or miss. I will try the Monace software that came with scanner package, though, for my medium format stuff. <br>

To Monika and Len: I've tried the recommended (from printer manual and numerous books on color management) procedure of keeping printer color management off and letting photoshop determine colors, etc while choosing the correct epson profile for the paper. Again, it's hit or miss. And I've tried what Len was referring to, the opposite in configuration with photoshop "off" and the printer "on" for color management, and sometimes I get pretty good results. I guess it comes down to consistency for me. I haven't tried hacing the printer calibrated for the paper.<br>

Monika, can you suggest a good calibration for the printer? I think I know what you are referring to: there are services available, such as digital dog, that will allow you to print their target on your printer with paper of choice and then you send the print to them and they send you an ICC profile from their expensive color calibration system (EyeOne Isis, etc). If I'm totally off in left field, let me know.<br>

Again, thanks to everyone. </p>

<p>Hello,<br>

I'm having a problem with developing a consistent workflow for both film and digital. I scan medium format B&W negatives with Epson V750 using the Epson software or I take digital pics. I save the files as tiffs and the files seem to look good on my monitor which I've calibrated with colormonkey. Then I try to print from either Adobe Photoshop elements or Lightroom to an Epson 4880 using ultra premium luster or exhibition fiber papers. I've tried the ICC profiles for the printer/paper from epson and I've also tried making my own profiles with colormonkey. The results: sometimes I get nice prints and most of the time I don't. I try virtually the exact same workflow and occassionally I'll get a good print. I have a higher chance of success with B&W as the blues and reds are almost always off for my color digital files. <br>

If someone has developed a consistent workflow that would be compatible with my hardware, I would be very appreciative if you could help. It seems that my workflow is pretty consistent until it comes time to print. Film developing, scanning, digital imaging, etc seems pretty stable.<br>

Thanks.</p>

<p>Will</p>