I know this guy... Wedding?

This situation is hypothetical, at least at this point.

I know this guy, kind of like a friend. We can call him "David". David and his wife are retired. David's wife used to work with a lady that we will call D***ne. D***ne and David's wife have been out of touch for a while. Today David's wife sent a text message to D***ne and got a long message in return. Apparently D***ne has had a lot of health problems. David's wife found out that D***ne and her boyfriend are planning on tying the knot in about two weeks and David and his wife are now invited to the wedding. This has been a long "engagement" (at least 30 years). The wedding will be at the home of D***ne's family where they have been living for several years.
David is a camera nut. There is more photo crap layng around the house than a well equipped camera store. David has this old Graflex RB Super D in 3 1/4 x 4 1/4. Of course the camera has a Graflex back and a Kodak Ektar 152mm lens. Well lets be honest, David actually has two of these cameras. One of the Ektars is in good shape. The other Ektar was a lot more "weathered". This second lens cleaned up pretty well, but the front element of this one looks like it had fungus. The good lens we can call #1 and the one that has fungus etching we will call #2. It just so happens that David thinks that it would be OK to commemorate this Occasion by taking a few photos with this Graflex. Freestyle has some HP5+ in this size that is short date, so a couple of boxes are on the way. David has a few 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 Graflex style (not Graphic) film holders. David also has an old Graflex "23" rollfilm holder that has the required 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 Graflex back. A roll of Portra 160 could provide a little color for the event. David also has the ability to cut 4x5 sheet film down to the correct size for his camera. It would be theoretically possible to process the C-41 film in sheet sizes, but David is strictly a Black & White guy and has never processed color film at home.

Ok, here are some thechnical details. The wedding is scheduled for 2:00 PM. It will take place outdoors. Hmmm, middle of the day, August will probably mean some contrasty light. David is thinking about how to use some fill flash with his Graflex. The Graflex Super D's have a focal plane shutter. David also has a Graflite and a stash of Sylvania 2A focal plane bulbs. No problem for the HP5+. If he uses the Portra, There would be mixed lighting, ie. sunlight and clear flashbulbs. Using a #80C filter on the lens would affect the Portra and result in a blue color cast. David may have a widget stashed away in storage tha looks a little like a shower cap and is supposed to slide over a Bulb flash head. Or there is one available on the famous auction site. Sunny f16 tells us that at ISO 400, f16 and 1/400 would work out. Or with Portra 160, f11 and 1/320 sec is OK. These #2A flashbulbs are the size of a baseball and I am pretty sure that they would light up the far side of town. It would seem that the guide number for tungstrn film at 1/400 sec. would be about 90. At 10 feet, that would mean between f8 and f11. The old time press photographers were known to place a White linnen handkerchief over the flash bulb to obtain a more diffused light. The hanky trick would mean the loss of a stop or a stop and a half for the fill light. Hmmm, that might work out better. Set exposure for the daylight and the covered flash would give a better lighting ratio.

I am reminded of the Rule of the seven P's. Proper Prior Planning Prevents P*ss Poor Product. Maybe a test run is in order.

Dave

Please convey my congratulations to 'David' - and I hope that the emotional impact of the day renders the whole business with the Graflex irrelevant.

We got married last year and asked my wife's cousin to do the photos. We asked her, so she got to choose how she shot it - which was Nikon digital. In all honesty, I would have been OK with the wedding guests taking snaps with their phones and send the nicer ones to us - which of course some did anyway. My wife insisted on proper photos and an album. That's OK. It was an opportunity to give the job to said cousin, who was/is inching her way into something of a photo career. Anyway, we had a great wedding day. Absolutely gorgeous. Yes, the rain poured down pretty much all day long and some distracted dumbass wrecked my parents' car (they were/are OK!) The point is, I'm sure I'll remember that day until my memory gives way to the mist of neural degeneration of old age. And I don't need to (or probably even want to) go through the album for that. I'm really happy I didn't fuss about photos that day.

There's another reason I'm glad we didn't fuss about photos on our wedding day. There was zero pressure as a result in this area. The photographer had a great day because she knew that whatever she'd produce would be OK. Everyone cooperated with her but at the same time, there was no obligation of getting this or that shot exactly right. There were no lengthy posing sessions for the wedding guests - who all had a swell time because, well, no pressure; they could just be themselves. And my wife and I had a great day, too, because we were among the people we care about and those people were having a good time - so we did, too.

mopar_guy said:

Rule of the seven P's.

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Goes well with KISS.

Tell David and D***ne to just have a great day with their loved ones. That's what counts. Graflex and Ilford can't top that.

koraks said:

Please convey my congratulations to 'David' - and I hope that the emotional impact of the day renders the whole business with the Graflex irrelevant.

We got married last year and asked my wife's cousin to do the photos. We asked her, so she got to choose how she shot it - which was Nikon digital. In all honesty, I would have been OK with the wedding guests taking snaps with their phones and send the nicer ones to us - which of course some did anyway. My wife insisted on proper photos and an album. That's OK. It was an opportunity to give the job to said cousin, who was/is inching her way into something of a photo career. Anyway, we had a great wedding day. Absolutely gorgeous. Yes, the rain poured down pretty much all day long and some distracted dumbass wrecked my parents' car (they were/are OK!) The point is, I'm sure I'll remember that day until my memory gives way to the mist of neural degeneration of old age. And I don't need to (or probably even want to) go through the album for that. I'm really happy I didn't fuss about photos that day.

There's another reason I'm glad we didn't fuss about photos on our wedding day. There was zero pressure as a result in this area. The photographer had a great day because she knew that whatever she'd produce would be OK. Everyone cooperated with her but at the same time, there was no obligation of getting this or that shot exactly right. There were no lengthy posing sessions for the wedding guests - who all had a swell time because, well, no pressure; they could just be themselves. And my wife and I had a great day, too, because we were among the people we care about and those people were having a good time - so we did, too.


Goes well with KISS.

Tell David and D***ne to just have a great day with their loved ones. That's what counts. Graflex and Ilford can't top that.

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For clarity's sake, David is not getting married to D***ne. D***ne is an old co-worker of David's wife.

Sorry about that; well. Best wishes to D***ne in terms of her health, I hope her wedding day with her prince charming will be memorable!

I now understand that David apparently is planning on attending the wedding (which isn't his own) and to shoot photos with the Graflex. I hope David has checked diligently whether D***ne and her boyfriend are looking for a camera nut to do an eccentric photo shoot on their special day.

If I were David, I'd save the Ilford for another occasion. And both Graflexes, for that matter.

David should seriously consider offering such a notion to the bride and groom as an engagement session. On the wedding day the focus should be on the bride and groom, not on the photographer. If going forth with the plan as presented, David should wear a white dress to fully distract attention from the bride.

And, yes, tests should be done to nail down fill flash, and by the sounds of it… flash bulb photography too.

The excellent advice is appreciated and taken to heart. Thank you.

koraks said:

- and I hope that the emotional impact of the day renders the whole business with the Graflex irrelevant.

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Isn't that the same words used on a postcard to Sugar Ray before his fight with Jake LaMotta when Sugar Ray being knocked out of the ring by LaMotta was captured on a similar "Speed" camera

pentaxuser

On sunny days near noon, I've found it's better to shoot the portraits under the shade of trees than try to fight with harsh light.

We got married in 2022. The one guest and witness - my mother - took photos of us with her DSLR. Your Graflex requires a slower approach that will probably result in less pictures, maybe that's okay, depends on what is desired.

Now I haven’t shot with flash bulbs since the dash cube on my Instamatic, but what is the flash sync speed for a focal plane shutter and flash bulbs? Is the flash duration so long that it’s irrelevant?
I’ve had a Graflex flash gun and bulbs since 1967 but I’ve never fired them off.