New York November NYC Meet-Up

So "Maggie" went to baby sit her granddaughter, so I set up my apartment as a darkroom, but I decided that I wanted to field test the Linhof Tech IV with the repaired Zeiss 100/2.8 Planar.

So I was minding my own business trying to shoot a roll of Tri-X when just outside my building I become a one man tourist attraction because of "Louis Mendez Factor" (LMF) because I have a big old camera that is retro and a bit crazy. The photographer was from Yonkers. LOL.

Then I loaded the Tech IV with FP4 and decided to walk to the Bronx via Randell's Island. So carrying a 7 1/4 pound camera is like carrying a newborn baby because it is about the same weight. Also you tend to cradle the camera and hold it tucked into your body. Walking you kinda feel your core midsection tightening up. I can expect a set of abs from carrying a Linhof "in the wild."

I ended up developing three 2 liter tanks full of film. The results from this field test of the 100/2.8 Planar were mucho sharp, displaying retro bokeh if close focused (even stopped down), and was low contrast with mucho mids.

I think I will get a 2X yellow filter to add some punch. This Linhof is brutal. Don't tell Maggie, but I'm in love. The Linhof definitely slows down my walking. I can clearly understand why the 100 Planar is a legendary lens. A very smooth yet sharp rendering. Looks mucho detailed like 4x5. I shot in the late afternoon on the eastside, so the lighting was kinda low contrast. Diafine 4+4 for Tri-X and FP4 worked very well, but for high contrast and high key lighting is the ultimate. Should be brutal high key high contrast with this amazingly sharp single coated lens.

This Linhof is a true "monster" dressed for Halloween with a hood, filter holder, grip, and cable release. I even added a stamp of Ray Charles to add guidance and mojo. LOL.

To honor my friend Louis Mendez I will name this camera "Junior" because of LMF.

I am happy-happy. John at Focal Point did a great job. On this camera I won the lottery.

Should be fun shooting this Tech IV with Polaroid at the Meet-Up. I'll bring out a few packs of FP-100. Also know I will be bringing out the secrete Polaroid back that Christian 3D printed that has no dark slide, but covers the entire print area. I hope to find out at the Meet-Up if the image circle is large enough. Christian is a mighty clever guy, and also like me he is stubborn.

Kinda funny that my boss who's name is Howard, (I call him How-Weird), when I called him stubborn, he screamed at me in anger yelling at me, "I'm not stubborn." LOL.

BTW the CDC reports that there is a 50% increase in the reports of "Linhof Disease." My friend "B." who I keep running into at the Leica Store and around town only three weeks ago bought a 4x5 Master V. I blame EBAY. The prices on these once expensive luxury German cameras are now "no money." Pretty much it is an epidemic and kinda like going from Cocaine to Crack except it is with cameras. LOL.

Beware of Linhof Disease...

Cal
 
icebear said:
I'm already infected with MM and piezo-pro disease, that kind of makes me much less likely to get into trouble with LD😀
Click to expand...

Klaus,

There is no cure for Piezography-Pro Disease only treatment that requires large infusions of paper and ink. Of course like health insurance this is expensive and costly. A box of 25 sheets of 17x22's lasts about a week.

I have been printing 50 2x3 images on a 17x22 sheet of Canson Baryta Photographique to create business cards. So far I have 32 different images, so when I show someone a stack of cards and ask them to pick a favorite it has a dramatic impact. When I'm completely done cutting and stamping I'll have about 1600 business cards and each one is a print.

I was clever and made a stamp that reinforces that each card is an individual print, because I have in big bold letters the word "COPYRIGHT" with my contact information.

The cutting out and stamping is mucho work, but any photographer who sees my cards wants to do the same for their work. Anyways these cards are a good way to present my work, and it becomes clear that I'm not only a photographer, but also a printer. Also it is understood that I'm clever. LOL.

Anyways if I can publically masturbate again: these cards are impressive. LOL.

Lately I have been trolling for another large format printer. "Don't tell "Maggie." LOL.

Cal
 
Tonight is the New York Magazine 50th Anniversary Party at Katz Deli. Could be an interesting event to shoot.

Tomorow night is a SVA opening for graduating students. My new friend Farras will be exhibiting some work I want to see. Basically black on black night shots of the beach at night printed really big.

Friday will be doing the Acella for Maggie's TED Talk.

So now I have 32 different business cards printed out. When I lay these out on a table it kinda resembles a contact sheet, but of 2x3 inch images. You can see that perhaps I'm not so crazy, and the photography kinda makes sense.

Anyways spreading out the images on a flat surface definitely offers great impact. Really proud of the work.

Cal
 
Hi guy's, I haven't been on for awhile I got bit by the flu, and been out of action
for awhile. I hope everyone is good, I'm going to make the show on Saturday and I
hope to see some of you there, let me know.
 
Range-rover said:
Hi guy's, I haven't been on for awhile I got bit by the flu, and been out of action
for awhile. I hope everyone is good, I'm going to make the show on Saturday and I
hope to see some of you there, let me know.
Click to expand...

Bob,

Hope you feel better. I will be missing the PhotoPlusExpo due to "Maggie's" TED Talk.

Hope to see you Saturday November 4th at the next Meet-Up.

Funny thing is I'll be celebrating my great luck in getting a great-great deal on a Zeiss 100 Planar for "no money" and pretty much getting a legendary lens for the cost of a $250.00 repair. We ill be shooting Polaroids to field test my Tech IV that I got from a seller in Israel.

I'm set with my business cards for the TED Talk. From the badge registration I glean that I'll be tagged, branded and identified as a photographer at this TED Symposium. Who knows who I might meet?

One way I annoy people is that I have more than my fare share of luck. Also it seems all kinds of strange and weird stuff happens to me all the time. Oh-well...

Another strange-unusual-odd solicitation again happened today...

Cal
 
Where / when are we meeting on Saturday. I don't want to stay in too long because I want to photograph. A beer or two or some lunch and then out again...unless it is raining.
 
Last night went to the 50th Anniversary Party for New York Magazine held at Katz Deli on Houston.

For dinner I had all this finger food: Pastromi sandwitch; Potato Pancakes; Knish; and even Pastromi Spring rolls.

The attendees were a literary crowd, people wearing glasses that looked like bookworms and nerdy. Not kinda funny looking like photographers. LOL.

So I'm kinda dehydrated from all the salt.

Thursday I think I will be heading to the Leica Store to borrow a 90/2.2 Thambar. They are doing a loaner program instead of setting up a booth at PhotoPlusExpo.

Last night a roving Nikon DSLR shooter from the party complimented my SL, "That's a nice camera." This kinda happens a lot at events, where Nikon or Canon DSLR shooters admire my Leica. Make no mistake: the SL is a DSLR killer.

"Maggie" showed me the hard copy shot of her in Vogue Italia that I took. It looks mighty great.

Cal
 
Calzone said:
Seems to be the future. Mirrorless has its advantages. Tell me a DSLR over an mirrorless advantage other than a lot of lenses.

I replaced a Nikon D3X with the SL. Never going back.

Why do these DSLR user owners coveting my SL?

Cal
Click to expand...

Maybe they think it looks nice? It looks different and has the red dot so people are curious. I really don't think the SL is as coveted as maybe a M10 if at all. I was at photoville and nearly every M leica was taken. Still a few SL's lying around.

You want advantages of a DSLR? Flash, AF speed and accuracy, Battery life. If you take specific camera models you can expand on that. The SL even misses out on one of the primery advantages of mirrorles. Size. The AF lenses are gigantic and the body itself is bigger than a DSLR. I know you like it, but I would hardly call it a DSLR killer!
 
Plenty of DSLR shooters stop me when they see my Pentax 67 or Rolleiflex or even my M4. Doesn't mean any of those are coveted or are DSLR killers. They just look different and interesting compared to the standard camera. Comparatively nearly no one stops me when they see me with the Olympus. Just ask John about his experiences with the Fujis
 
stompyq said:
Plenty of DSLR shooters stop me when they see my Pentax 67 or Rolleiflex or even my M4. Doesn't mean any of those are coveted or are DSLR killers. They just look different and interesting compared to the standard camera. Comparatively nearly no one stops me when they see me with the Olympus. Just ask John about his experiences with the Fujis
Click to expand...

Pro-Mone,

Do you think a decade from now Nikon and Canon will be making DSLR's.

What I am suggesting is that a decade from now mirrorless will be the replacement.

In my case it already happened with the SL.

I think if anything the M10 borrows a lot from the SL. More than you think. Many also make the mistake of think of the SL as a replacement for a M which it is not. The SL is designed to compete with DSLR's. Obviously Leica is most known for rangefinders. Might this be the reason why M's were more popular? This makes the most sense to me as being the reason for the M's popularity over the SL.

Your points of being oversized in body and glass is valid, but not really when compared to a DSLR. As far as accuracy the SL really nails the focus. If you are looking for a camera without an anti-alias filter in Nikon I can only think of the D800E.

We can fight some more later. Lets limit the arguing to DSLR and SL.

Cal
 
Calzone said:
Pro-Mone,

Do you think a decade from now Nikon and Canon will be making DSLR's.

What I am suggesting is that a decade from now mirrorless will be the replacement.

In my case it already happened with the SL.

I think if anything the M10 borrows a lot from the SL. More than you think. Many also make the mistake of think of the SL as a replacement for a M which it is not. The SL is designed to compete with DSLR's. Obviously Leica is most known for rangefinders. Might this be the reason why M's were more popular? This makes the most sense to me as being the reason for the M's popularity over the SL.

Your points of being oversized in body and glass is valid, but not really when compared to a DSLR. As far as accuracy the SL really nails the focus. If you are looking for a camera without an anti-alias filter in Nikon I can only think of the D800E.

We can fight some more later. Lets limit the arguing to DSLR and SL.

Cal
Click to expand...

In a decade the only things left will be smartphones, video cameras and retro cameras. And yes until technology catches up and bridges the advantages I give for DSLR's Nikon and Canon will keep making DSLR's

Nearly all the newer nikons lack a AA filter. D810, D850, D500.....
I'm sure the SL nails AF. I mean my 15 year old D70 nailed AF. What matters is does it do so consistently in low light and a moving target. Talk to Jeff when you meet him at the meetup and he'll give you enough examples
 
stompyq said:
In a decade the only things left will be smartphones, video cameras and retro cameras. And yes until technology catches up and bridges the advantages I give for DSLR's Nikon and Canon will keep making DSLR's

Nearly all the newer nikons lack a AA filter. D810, D850, D500.....
I'm sure the SL nails AF. I mean my 15 year old D70 nailed AF. What matters is does it do so consistently in low light and a moving target. Talk to Jeff when you meet him at the meetup and he'll give you enough examples
Click to expand...

Well, I finally got to use the Nikon D850 in an extremely low lit situation... On stage with changing lights and movement. Quite impressive. The camera handled it well.. Not to say the SL couldn't, But I'd surely have more misses.
 
charleschu said:
I am living in Brooklyn, I am interested to learn more about the gathering?
Click to expand...

It's at Loreley's

7 Rivington Street
(between Bowery and Chrystie)
New York, NY 10002
Lower East Side

Easy to get to for you are coming from brooklyn. Come over on the 4th and you can meet the the group.
 
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