Hello all you happy campers

[Grafmatic]

My name is David and am getting back into large format film photography after a long hiatus. While I enjoy taking pictures with my iPhone and generally agree that "The best camera is the one you have with you", I miss the... intentionality that th these cameras impose (and reward).. There are photos that can be made with each that cannot be made with the other. And the costs involved made me really look at the image in a way that the I'll-fix-it-in-post approach doesn'tt (as much, anyway). So I have ordered an Intrepid 4x5 and am using the 8 weeks' wait for delivery to shop for a lens or two,

I am not a spring chicken which is why I'm going with a very lightweight camera (and everything else). I'm reminded of Brett Weston's saying that "If it's more than 100 feet from the road, it's not photogenic." So I guess it'll be a lot of street scenes and roadsides for me.Not entirely though

At this point I don't anticipate setting up a wet-process darkroom. I have access to a rental one if that changes.

By the way, I'm on the lookout for optics and tripod, the main used purchases I need to make. Any tips on dealers and such is welcome. I'm sure there's some sort of market here but haven;t checked it out yet.Plenty of glass on eBay but literally none are on my continent; I have seen lenses with flaws like speckling and in one case noticeable impact damage being described as 'XLNT+++++" and so on. Kind of concerning dealing with someone far away in case something goes sideways.

Anyway, hello.

 

[loccdor]

Welcome back to photography. I too had a long hiatus. I didn't realize how bored I was!

I've had good experiences with Roberts Camera on eBay. 30 day return policy and based in USA. Prices are reasonable.

Large Format Lenses

 

[Sirius Glass]

Welcome to Photrio!

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Welcome back to photography, and welcome to Photrio!

 

[Daniela]

Welcome!

 

[koraks]

Welcome back to photography, and welcome to Photrio!

Well said; welcome aboard @Grafmatic !

 

[Grafmatic]

Thanks for the replies, BOY HOWDY do I have a bunch of questions... Tripods... Filters... I guess I should start a separate thread with these questions all in one place.

 

[BrianShaw]

Welcome to LF and Photrio. You asked for advice in where to buy equipment yet state that none is available on your continent. Where are you located? Your profile shows Alelphi Md, which once was in the United States is North America. There is plenty of LF gear available in North America.

 

[Grafmatic]

Welcome to LF and Photrio. You asked for advice in where to buy equipment yet state that none is available on your continent. Where are you located? Your profile shows Alelphi Md, which once was in the United States is North America. There is plenty of LF gear available in North America.

If I said that, it was very much a mistake and I apologize. What I meant to say was that, when I went lens shopping on eBay, virtually 100% of the search results were from one country: Japan, which I didn't mind other than being concerned about dealing with a seller on the other side of the world if something went sideways. Other search results were not as helpful as I had hoped. I did ultimately locate resources on my continent where I located a suitable item.. Sorry about the confusion.

 

[BrianShaw]

Ahhh, I seem have misunderstood. Sorry.There are a lot of lenses offered by Japanese sellers; that’s for sure. What are you looking for: vintage lenses, 1980’s-era plasmats, or modern lenses? And what focal lengths, generally speaking? Collectively we surely can help you achieve your photography goals, especially with a bit more insight in what you desire to accomplish. LF is a real gas!

 

[Grafmatic]

Ahhh, I seem have misunderstood. Sorry.There are a lot of lenses offered by Japanese sellers; that’s for sure. What are you looking for: vintage lenses, 1980’s-era plasmats, or modern lenses? And what focal lengths, generally speaking? Collectively we surely can help you achieve your photography goals, especially with a bit more insight in what you desire to accomplish. LF is a real gas!

Well, what I ended up with for my first lens was a 180mm Nikkor-W which I guess would probably be considered a 1980's Plasmat (Asking). All glass will be secondhand for $ reasons. Eventually I plan to obtain a 120mm f/8 Fuji and a 90mm f/8 Ilex, both of which are Super Angulon clones AFAIK. (I owned the Ilex 'back in the day' and it gave good results and appears to sell for about half the price of a 'real' SA.) Been away so long that the main resource at the time were the Shutterbug classifieds,

I have an Intrepid 4x5 on order which will arrive in ~8 weeks so I've got some time to research and shop. The camera body will be the only brand new item. Subject matter which grabs me is mainly 'streetscapes' landscapes, and 'still lifes' for want of a better description.

 

[mshchem]

Welcome to Photrio !!!