venchka
Veteran
Posted orginally by me on another Forum. I thought y'all might find the activities interesting.
Did you ever wonder what other folks are doing with their cameras? Folks who don't use chips and Photoshop and ink to make photographs?
Last Saturday I had the pleasure of meeting a group of people who, like myself, tend to the traditional, silver based forms of photography. Matt Magruder and his parents hosted the gathering at thier home on Canyon Lake. I witnessed first hand as Matt made wet plate photographs. Matthew Brady and others used wet plates to record the Civial War. Susan Ellen is currently using wet plates to record modern day soldiers. That seems like a fitting tribute to one of photography's oldest processes.
Soldier Portraits
Civil War Wet Plate Photography
There were view cameras a plenty in attendance. My new 4x5 field camera was the smallest. It looked like a toy beside Matt's 12"x20" Folmer & Schwing folding view camera. That's right folks. The ground glass on Matt's camera is about as big as a 23" flat screen TV. Think about that the next time you're chimping your little 3" LCD screen. Mike Castles brought his new Ritter 8x10. It produces negatives 4 times the size of my 4x5 negatives. Thanks to carbon fiber, it's probably lighter than my Zone VI wood and brass camera, also made by Mr. Ritter.
It's nice to know that I'm not alone. I also discovered some nice scenery which I plan to revisit soon. With all of my cameras and a bushel or two of the silver based sensor material.
Wet plate photography lives 145+ years after the Cival War. Film won't be dying in my lifetime.
Cheers!
Did you ever wonder what other folks are doing with their cameras? Folks who don't use chips and Photoshop and ink to make photographs?
Last Saturday I had the pleasure of meeting a group of people who, like myself, tend to the traditional, silver based forms of photography. Matt Magruder and his parents hosted the gathering at thier home on Canyon Lake. I witnessed first hand as Matt made wet plate photographs. Matthew Brady and others used wet plates to record the Civial War. Susan Ellen is currently using wet plates to record modern day soldiers. That seems like a fitting tribute to one of photography's oldest processes.
Soldier Portraits
Civil War Wet Plate Photography
There were view cameras a plenty in attendance. My new 4x5 field camera was the smallest. It looked like a toy beside Matt's 12"x20" Folmer & Schwing folding view camera. That's right folks. The ground glass on Matt's camera is about as big as a 23" flat screen TV. Think about that the next time you're chimping your little 3" LCD screen. Mike Castles brought his new Ritter 8x10. It produces negatives 4 times the size of my 4x5 negatives. Thanks to carbon fiber, it's probably lighter than my Zone VI wood and brass camera, also made by Mr. Ritter.
It's nice to know that I'm not alone. I also discovered some nice scenery which I plan to revisit soon. With all of my cameras and a bushel or two of the silver based sensor material.
Wet plate photography lives 145+ years after the Cival War. Film won't be dying in my lifetime.
Cheers!
BillBingham2
Registered User
Very cool to hear that this sort of thing is coming back. If you are interested in a 4x5 SLR please let me know, I have one that is going up shortly and it's in great condition. Several folks out there still fix them!
B2 (;->
B2 (;->
Dave Wilkinson
Veteran
Good for you Wayne! - reminds me I need to get out with my 5x7 Meopta again!....change from hearing about these LX...whatever's...that will be junk in two year's time!
Cheers, Dave.
Cheers, Dave.
jan normandale
Film is the other way
Yeah, but I heard they are working on digital backs for these 12x20 cameras. Advance orders are now being taken starting at a paltry $100,000 US!
(for the humour challenged, this is ironic humour)
(for the humour challenged, this is ironic humour)
venchka
Veteran
ROTFLOL!
At the moment...
135, 120 & 4x5 formats and conventional silver based emulsions and paper are challenging enough for me.
Someday I would like to experiment with contact printing using one of the ancient alternative processes. I need to figure out how to enlarge my small negatives to 8x10 or larger for contact printing. I know it can be done digitally with a scanner, ink jet printer and OHP stock. I'm a gluton for punishment. I would like to do the whole process in the darkroom.
At the moment...
135, 120 & 4x5 formats and conventional silver based emulsions and paper are challenging enough for me.
Someday I would like to experiment with contact printing using one of the ancient alternative processes. I need to figure out how to enlarge my small negatives to 8x10 or larger for contact printing. I know it can be done digitally with a scanner, ink jet printer and OHP stock. I'm a gluton for punishment. I would like to do the whole process in the darkroom.
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snip
Established
is it not done in much the same way as a making a paper enlargement? only with ortho or lith or something like that film? Or you could get a big view camera and make a board that fits in the front standard with a 4x5" aperture and do it in the same way as those slide duplicators for SLR's
Surely it is not that hard.
//Jan
sepiareverb
genius and moron
http://www.freestylephoto.biz/52082...ftone-Supreme-Ortho-Litho-Film-8x10-25-sheets
Here you go Wayne. Dilute dektol will give continuous tone, and you are good to go.
Here you go Wayne. Dilute dektol will give continuous tone, and you are good to go.
venchka
Veteran
Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OK, will this film yield a positive enlargement or a negative enlargement?
In other words, can I use the first generation enlargement (direct from my orignal negative) for contact printing, or will I have to contact the first positive to make a negative and then contact print from that? Sounds like too many iterations removed from the original to me. On the other hand, a scan and an ink jet print are 2 iterations from the original also.
$18/25 sheets ain't too shabby either.
Makes me say, "Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm"
Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OK, will this film yield a positive enlargement or a negative enlargement?
In other words, can I use the first generation enlargement (direct from my orignal negative) for contact printing, or will I have to contact the first positive to make a negative and then contact print from that? Sounds like too many iterations removed from the original to me. On the other hand, a scan and an ink jet print are 2 iterations from the original also.
$18/25 sheets ain't too shabby either.
Makes me say, "Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm"
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sepiareverb
genius and moron
venchka
Veteran
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
user237428934
User deletion pending
Looked at the soldier portraits. At least the small pictures on the website don't look very special. I doubt that the enlargements look any better. So why the effort with this large camera and this strange "film" material?
venchka
Veteran
Because we can!
Excuse me. I forgot my manners.
Because SHE can!
Excuse me. I forgot my manners.
Because SHE can!
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imajypsee
no expiration date
Did anyone see the Sally Mann documentary?
Did anyone see the Sally Mann documentary?
"What Remains": I think it was on PBS recently. She uses a huge view camera and makes collodian negatives and develops them in her big ol' Suburban as she photographs. Her work may not be everyone's taste (it took me a while to warm up to the dead body photos) but her process is sure daunting.
http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/mann/
I really like those soldier photos; wonderful work.
As for rangefinders, I'm still trying to master the blessed format/things.
Mary in SW Florida
Did anyone see the Sally Mann documentary?
"What Remains": I think it was on PBS recently. She uses a huge view camera and makes collodian negatives and develops them in her big ol' Suburban as she photographs. Her work may not be everyone's taste (it took me a while to warm up to the dead body photos) but her process is sure daunting.
http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/mann/
I really like those soldier photos; wonderful work.
As for rangefinders, I'm still trying to master the blessed format/things.
Mary in SW Florida
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