Forsaking 35mm for MF?

DougK

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These might be "different strokes for different folks" questions, bear with me while I set the scene and then I'll ask.

I was surveying my camera shelf tonight in preparation for the fall color season and I was struck by the realization that even though I've made some very nice shots with my 35mm and digital gear, I never really feel like I do justice to the scene or that I'm in tune with my equipment. In contrast, it seems like every time I pick up my MF gear and head out I move into a whole different zone: I'm way more focused on each shot, I "see" much more clearly, and my hit rate goes through the roof.

I've also had this nagging feeling that I simply spend too much time/effort/money on gear and that I'll never really be as good as I can be unless I simplify my gear and focus on mastering one or two cameras and one film format.

As a result, I'm seriously contemplating moving over completely to my MF gear, keeping my Stylus Epic (or my Nikon digital) for those times when extreme portability is required over raw image quality, and then ditching the rest of my 35mm gear.

Now here come the questions: has anybody else here ever had these feelings and made this kind of move? Were you completely satisfied afterwards or did you regret it afterwards and wind up buying back into 35mm? Am I crazy or might I be on to something? Or are you just salivating over the potential flood of gear I might be releasing into the marketplace 🙂?

I've been chasing this issue around in my head for a while now and I would welcome all honest opinions and thoughts before I make my decision.
 
I did kind of the opposite thing.

I went from 35mm to a Hasselblad and a Pentax 67.

Then I bought a Mamiya 7II and love it but the love affair did not last. I am not sure why.

So I sold it and bought an Xpan and I am madly in love. It's been this way for about 5 months now and I haven't used my 503 in quite a while.

If you can, borrow or rent the medium format camera you are thinking about before you buy one. I will say, having two different formats is a good thing.
 
I know how you feel. But I don't "move" or "migrate". I adopt. I use film and digital 35mm, SLR and rangefinder, film MF, SLR and rangefinder, and I am contemplating 4x5 LF photography.

I think it's like with languages. Once you learn another one, you don't just "drop" the other one; whether you keep practicing them it's up to you.

Unless you are extremely dissatisfied with your 35mm gear, I'd say, keep it. Maybe you'll find out that after using MF gear that it's not for you, who knows?

Just don't go nuts over it! 😉
 
dkirchge said:
Am I crazy or might I be on to something? Or are you just salivating over the potential flood of gear I might be releasing into the marketplace 🙂?

That last thought has crossed my mind (wiping my keyboard right now). But there's some truth in this. The cost of MF and the fact you only get 8 6x9 shots per 120 roll means I don't waste _any_ shots, and probably work twice as hard to "get it right", and the scene has to be "MF worthy". See the other thread we have going about LF chromes... at over $5- per shot, the hit rate better be _really_good_.

OTOH, there's shots that I'd never take with MF or LF, such as trying to capture "that decisive moment", the "fleeting expression", "funny face", "dumb look" etc. With 35mm and digital, I'm often just shooting for the fun of it, and not expecting works of art and hoping to learn something.
 
Def going the other way. 4x5 is my reason for photographic life.

There is something that can not be explained about being over a light table with a loupe even if it's with a neg.

We won't begin bringin chromes in here as I know da*n well how far up the creek sans paddle I am with them already...

Damned if I do, damned if I don't... 😉

William
 
The Xpan is the salvation of some photographers. Some people just don't "see" in any of the standard formats.

David B is right - borrow or rent first and keep the equipment you already have.

I would suggest that you get some cardboard and cut out holes that are proportional to the different film sizes (include panorama) and about the same size as the prints that you normally make. Go outside and find something interesting to look at. Start framing it through the different holes. If you find one frame to which you keep coming back - over and over - that is your format. If you find you can comfortably frame the scene through several different formats then you probably just need to spend more time with the cameras you already have.

Best wishes...
 
Note: Kin Lau is talking about the 6x9 format on 120 film. 6x6 will give you 12 shots, 6x4.5 will give you 16 shots, and 6x7 will give you 10 shots. Double these numbers if you use 220 film.

When using a roll of 24 exposure in my Xpan, I get 14 shots. Plenty for me. A little more than from my Hasselblad 503cw.
 
The xpan has been my salvation. I have shot a lot of 35mm over the last few months. More now than ever and that is because of the xpan and it's format.

It is a medium format camera that uses 35mm film. You might consider one of these before going to medium format film.

(I made some large prints (5.5"x14") from my xpan negs. I even used Ilford HP5+, and I am very pleased.)
 
Thanks all for the comments so far, please keep 'em coming. I should have mentioned in my original post that I currently own and use two TLRs (a Seagull 4A-109 and a Lubitel 166U) along with a Fuji GA645 and a Holga. I've put a fair amount of film through all the cameras except the Holga (which I bought because it was basically a good deal on five rolls of film 🙂), so I've some experience with 6x6 and 6x4.5 formats.
 
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Listen to Gabrielma's advice! Love affairs often don't last, or at least they grow less intense. And that's the moment you'll be looking around you for new love affairs. Keep your current 35mm and digital gear. Only start selling after a year IF you find that you really don't use it anymore.
 
i've done it both ways.

i went from 35mm to medium format and now back again.

i had a few canon slr's and small small rf cameras then sold it all and bought a couple of mamiya 6's with a couple of lenses.
i loved the 6 and was happy for like 10 years.
but then i got tired of carrying a bigger camera, got tired of the darkroom and sold it all and went straight to rf.

sometimes i miss the 6...

joe
 
Selling gear just usually leads to regrets and reduced flexibility! If you choose not to use a selection of your stuff, how about packing it away in an out-of-the-way corner wrapped securely in plastic bags, and just ignore it for a while.

Yeah, I hear you on the use of MF... I'll sometimes wonder why I'd consider using the smaller gear at all; if the shot is worthy, it's worth the larger film size! But 35mm stuff does have some desirable attributes too!
 
I think the main problem with med format is the size of the cameras. With 35mm you can have just a single SLR, and it's portable and flexible enough to be used in a studio as well as on the street.

With MF, it's either this or that and nothing in between. You won't be lugging a 6x6 SLR through the streets for grab shots.. and a rangefinder doesn't give you the flexibility for close up/tele/polaroids.

I did at a certain point sell of my 35mm AF-SLR gear and bought a 6x6 Bronica SLR. It became quickly clear that although it's a splendid system, it's also a backbreaking one. After a short while I complemented it with some 35mm format gear again (rangefinder). I also learned that doing macro with 6x6 is a lot more difficult than with 35mm due to the magnification required to fill the frame.

If I were to do it all over again, I'd do it the opposite way: a medium format rangefinder for on the road, and a small format SLR for macro and specialty stuff..
 
From high school onwards I've used both 35mm and medium format. I like MF for slow, deliberate work, especially landscape, nature and semi-formal portrature. OTOH, I feel like a different kind of photographer when I carry a 35mm, especially a rangefinder. Lightweight, tripodless, and free to follow any fancy that takes me. My choice of which to use often depends on my mood. You might want to hang on to your 35mm gear awhile longer. Six months from now your mood might shift towards street shooting and you'd miss your gear.

Gene
 
What has been said.

I think maybe it's not a good idea to get rid of ALL your options from a given format. I've found myself switching to MF, then 35mm RFs, then SLRs and back again in these last years and I've always enjoyed and learned something new.

That said, if you have some redundant equipment playing in the same league, it couldn't hurt to get rid of something in order to help you get something else to play in the new MF league...

OTH, reading your current MF equipment, I think you're already pretty good served 🙂
 
I believe you can have more than one love in photography or better yet, one should have more than one tool to paint with.

Medium format becomes like a fine brush when I feel I want to slow down and shoot for enlargements. I absolutely love the richness in tonality of the format. Another benefit, especially with 6x9, is that I can get my results back that very evening after the shoot. With 35mm I often have to wait a week to finish the roll.

35mm is for when I want to cover more volume in a day or for when I want to shoot hand-held in low light. Also, the smaller camera is often less intrusive in a social setting.

With regards to volume, my large developing tank either holds two rolls of 120 or 3 rolls of 35mm. The difference being 16 to 24 exposure in 120 versus 72 35mm exposures in the same chemistry and same developing time.

My digital is my spray can. I've done 400 shots or more in a day with the digicam.
 
Caveat emptor: Too much medium format worship can lead to a love of large format photography. It is not a bad thing, but not one you can always do while traveling with friends and family.
 
I'm in the process of paring down my 35mm gear because I am shifting strongly towards MF. You just can't match the larger negative with 35mm, no matter what lenses you use. That said, I won't sell all of my 35mm gear. There are times when a really compact camera is needed. Or when only a really fast lens will do.

So, how versatile is MF? Well, I have used my Mamiya 645 Pro TL to shoot my kids playing soccer, which is pretty fast-paced. The thing really does handle like a large 35mm SLR. Granted, I may need AF when they get older and faster (now ages 6 and 9), but so far I'm pleased.

I'm also adding a MF rangefinder (the Mamiya SLR is pretty loud and noticable) - a Bronica RF645 kit 45mm, 65mm, and 100mm lenses is on the way. I know that, at times, I will miss the faster 35mm lenses that I love, so I'll still keep some 35mm gear. That's the part I haven't sorted out yet (maybe a Contax G1 or G2). But first I'll get used to the RF645 and then determine what I need in 35mm. And who knows, I might even add a DSLR for sports shooting (gasp), even though I really love darkroom work.

Robert
 
When my love for MF was in full bloom I shot a documentary project on it. After a month my right hand was permenantly numb because the strap from my bag was digging into my shoulder so much. I also had a spell of probably not unrelated back trouble -if you are going to do a lot of location shooting with heavy equipment there may prices to pay other than financial ones
 
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