FNG Questions...

G-Whiz · May 19, 2007

Okay, I admit it, I'm king of the FNGs!

Now I need your help. Started playing around with 35mm, took an intro to B&W class and thought I was good to go. Bought a couple of enlargers, set up my darkroom and I'm ready to roll-n-roll.

Thinking I can just about do anything, I bought a used Hasselblad 501C with a 4/40 lens. Problem is, I've never used any camera on full manual mode. I use either pre-program, shutter priority or aperture priority; and this 501c has neither!!!

So how do I set the right exposure on this camera? Do I need to purchase a light/spot meter to set the right shutter and aperture setting?

Thanks!

{:rolleyes: And yes, I did pay attention in class, but our teacher was slower than some of the students; she just taught us equivilant exposure using S or A priority.:rolleyes: }

jovo · May 19, 2007

Without a meter, you're limited to using sunny f16, which simply means that you can obtain a reasonable exposure at f16 with the aperture set to the shutter speed closest to the nominal speed of the film when shooting in full sunlight outdoors. So, tri-x 400 would likely be well exposed at 1/500 of a second at f16.

Otherwise, you'll need a hand held meter or the settings of the built-in meter of a camera that has one.

phaedrus · May 20, 2007

Now that you've set up a rather impressive darkroom (so I've gathered from your previous posts. Who's gonna man all those enlargers, I wondered.), I think it's time to go out shooting. Immaterial whether you'll be using the "sunny sixteen" rule or an exposure meter that hopefully you still have budget left for after your shopping spree, it's time to expose some film. Then develop it, make contact sheets and see what you get. There's no better course than practical experience.

jmdavis · May 20, 2007

G-Whiz said:
Okay, I admit it, I'm king of the FNGs!

Now I need your help. Started playing around with 35mm, took an intro to B&W class and thought I was good to go. Bought a couple of enlargers, set up my darkroom and I'm ready to roll-n-roll.

Thinking I can just about do anything, I bought a used Hasselblad 501C with a 4/40 lens. Problem is, I've never used any camera on full manual mode. I use either pre-program, shutter priority or aperture priority; and this 501c has neither!!!

So how do I set the right exposure on this camera? Do I need to purchase a light/spot meter to set the right shutter and aperture setting?

Thanks!

{:rolleyes: And yes, I did pay attention in class, but our teacher was slower than some of the students; she just taught us equivilant exposure using S or A priority.:rolleyes: }

If your 35 has a manual mode, you can use it as a light meter. I did this many times as a student shooting 16mm films in the 1980's. It works. It's not very convenient, but it works.

Set the camera on manual. Set the film speed. Set the shutter speed that you think that you want (for example faster than 60 to stop normal motion or 30 or slower to practice panning)and see what aperature it puts you at.

Mike

k_jupiter · May 20, 2007

Amazing.

Welcome. But to have bought a Hassy with no idea of exposure control.

OK, OK. I'll lay off. You have a couple of problems here. I think you need to get a manual 35mm camera. No Aperture preferred, no Shutter Speed preferred. Burn a bunch of tri-x, some FP4, Maybe a bunch of PanF. Get a feel for what happens when you change aperture, and shutter speed. At 35 exposures a roll instead of 12. See what happens when you expose at one stop above what is read by the meter, what happens at one stop below. See what happens on the film. See how that translates into contrast on a sheet of paper. All at 35mm and probably 5x7 sheets of photo paper.

There is a DIY lab in Hayward. Talk to the people who run it. Go visit keeble and shuate in Palo Alto. Suck up as much info as you can here.

I will tell you, 120 is an expensive way to learn photography.

Especially when you get excited and run a half dozen rolls through your camera paper side in. Don't ask.

The one thing you have going for you is the light here in the bay area. hundreds of days a year without a cloud in the sky. Makes exposure... automatic almost.

tim in san jose

bdial · May 20, 2007

Or else, just buy a small hand-held meter and go for it.

Greg_E · May 20, 2007

I'll secong the just buy a meter vote.

MattKing · May 21, 2007

Actually, with a darkroom already available, learning exposure with a Hassy might be okay after all.

A hand held meter is useful, but paying close attention to your shooting conditions, and the results you obtain thereafter, is more important.

Rule #1 - make notes!

Whatever you use to estimate exposure - sunny 16, 35mm camera meter, or a separate hand held meter (my recommendation) - record your subjective impressions about light levels and contrast and "harshness" of light, along with ISO and (later) development regime. Then observe the results. The difficulty of printing same will inform your exposure calculations.

2) (although maybe this should be #1) work on developing your ability to observe light - how bright, how contrasty, how colourful, how changeable. The more you understand light, the more you you will be able to accurately interpret any meter readings you might make.

All of this sounds complex, but it really isn't. In most cases, manufacturer's recommended ISOs, plus standard exposure and development will lead to negatives that print in a satisfying way. As you carefully gain experience, and apply that experience and your new found judgment to different and slightly out of the ordinary circumstances, your percentage of results that go from making you happy, to making you want to "sing" will increase.

Take the learning as it comes, and your careful attention to the details will pay off.

Have fun in the journey.

Matt

Steve Smith · May 21, 2007

Also, there is a simple exposure guide on the inside of the box for most types of film.

Steve.

bdial · May 21, 2007

In terms of learning, there is a lot to be said for shooting 12 shots instead of 24 or 36, then processing and getting the results.

light leak · May 21, 2007

O.K., I have to ask......what is FNG ?

Mike Kennedy · May 21, 2007

A Vietnam era slang I believe.
"F--king New Guy"

copake_ham · May 21, 2007

k_jupiter said:
Amazing.

....

I will tell you, 120 is an expensive way to learn photography.

Especially when you get excited and run a half dozen rolls through your camera paper side in. Don't ask.....

tim in san jose

Yep, I did this with the first roll I put through my Hassey 503cw!

Here's a query I'm curious to know about,

My 80mm lens only goes to 1/500 @ f22. I had a roll of Porta 400UC in the camera. I use a shoe-mounted Cosina Voightlander light meter on the Hassey eye-level viewfinder.

It was a bright overhead sun - for one shot I got a meter reading calling for faster than 1/500 @ f22. Any idea how to make this shot?

MattKing · May 21, 2007

copake_ham said:
Yep, I did this with the first roll I put through my Hassey 503cw!

Here's a query I'm curious to know about,

My 80mm lens only goes to 1/500 @ f22. I had a roll of Porta 400UC in the camera. I use a shoe-mounted Cosina Voightlander light meter on the Hassey eye-level viewfinder.

It was a bright overhead sun - for one shot I got a meter reading calling for faster than 1/500 @ f22. Any idea how to make this shot?

George:

Try a Neutral Density filter. If you don't have one, a polarizer can serve in a pinch.

My question though is whether you want to set your camera for the indicated exposure. 1/500 @ f/22 is about the maximum that "sunny 16" would ever indicate for that film, unless you had additional artificial light added to sunlight. I expect that your meter was being fooled either by subject matter much more reflective than 14-18% grey, or specular reflections.

Now, you may have intended that a very bright subject be rendered as mid-grey, but usually I want the bright things in my photographs to come out bright.

In addition, one stop or so of overexposure on colour negative film probably wouldn't matter much.

Matt

Sirius Glass · May 21, 2007

copake_ham said:
It was a bright overhead sun - for one shot I got a meter reading calling for faster than 1/500 @ f22. Any idea how to make this shot?

Take the meter reading with less sun light in the center area will usually do the trick.

By the way, as a FNG with the Hassey this weekend after I shot photos at the live steamers in Griffith Park [http://wwwapps.ups.com/ietracking/tracking.cgi?tracknum=1Z910X210318937064] the roll of film dropped out because I had not turned the film holder key back clickwise after putting the film in the A-12 back. Then the frame counter dropped back to "0" and I did not know how to get it back to the right frame number. I ended up trashing the roll.

Steve

k_jupiter · May 21, 2007

Neutral Density filter or... if you are shooting B&W, yellow or red filters. I am not a big fan of red filters, they make things look un-naturally contrasy, but a yellow filter will help you bring in clouds in a natural way as well as give you about a stop less exposure. The prevous poster is correct in that outdoors, your minimum exposure with 400 ASA film shoulb be 1/400 @ f16. (1/200 @ f22). Either you were shooting into the sun or perhaps your 35mm meter is off.

tim in san jose

light leak · May 21, 2007

Mike Kennedy said:
A Vietnam era slang I believe.
"F--king New Guy"

Ah, I get it. In hindsight, it seems so obvious.

Thanks,
Jonathan

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