Konika 750 Infrared on 6x12

[Reinhold]

I'm starting to re-print 6x12 negatives from my archived files.
Here's a Konika 750 infrared photo of an Ojibwe teepee.
It's at the historical North West Company Fur Post (1804). Pine City, MN.
Used a 75mm Super Angulon, a 4x5 Cambo Wide, and a Horseman 6x12 roll film holder.
I love the way K750 Infrared film renders manmade objects in a natural environment...

Reinhold

www.classicBWphoto.com
www.re-inventedPhotoEquip.com

 

[Alan W]

A beauty!

 

[wildbill]

Nice one. I do love that film too. I've got a ton in the freezer.

 

[mooseontheloose]

Beautiful photo! I too, like the way infrared renders manmade objects...

I have a few rolls of Konica in the freezer but have never shot it before. Hopefully I can get a few good images from the few rolls I have.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

In the 90's, I used this film a lot in my RB67, in Japan. I loved it and always looked forward to Konika's annual run. Stocked up on it before it was gone for good. Well, I've used it all up quite a few years ago.

 

[Reinhold]

Here's another Konika 750 shot using the Cambo wide, 75mm Super Angulon.
Aimed close to the sun (lens shaded from directly hitting the glass).

Road at St. Laurent. West of Narbonne. Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Reinhold

 

[mooseontheloose]

Wonderful. I love tree trunks in infrared.

 

[Reinhold]

And another...
Same K750 IR film in a Cambo Wide & 75mm Super Angulon...

This time it's a Medieval carved timber house. in St. Julien (Yonne), France
The shady side of the house. Clear sky overhead. About noon.

Reinhold

 

[Reinhold]

Here's another...

Wheat fields out in the Palouse Country of Eastern Washington (State)
Konika 750 IR film, Cambo/75mm lens, 25a filter

Reinhold

 

[Reinhold]

And another...

Same K750 IR film in a Cambo Wide & 75mm Super Angulon...
Holy Cross Cemetery (1843). Halifax Nova Scotia

Reinhold
www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[mooseontheloose]

These are all really beautiful Reinhold. There's something about the softness of infrared that is very calming.

Can I ask what setting/filters you were using for these images? Was it always the 25a? I know I'll have to test for myself but it would be nice to have a starting point to work from.

 

[Reinhold]

Rachelle,

Most of the time I use a standard red filter (25, 25a, RI, R2, etc).
Occasionally, I use a deeper red (#29) but the opaque IR filters are too severe for me.
I really like the way K750 + a medium red filter lets some of the panchromatic spectrum add to the image.
Shadows have more detail, objects have a "rounding" dimension, images have more "substance".

As others have said, we've lost a truly unique film when Konika K750 disappeared.
Fortunatly I have a freezer full, and it seems immune to long term aging.

Here's another: the medieval city of Pitigliano, Italy during a break in a thunderstorm...

Reinhold
www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[aoresteen]

Yes, I loved this film as well. The bad part was that it did not keep well. Even frozen it would develop high levels of fog only a few years past date. Shame, was a very useful 120 film.

 

[wildbill]

Yes, I loved this film as well. The bad part was that it did not keep well. Even frozen it would develop high levels of fog only a few years past date. Shame, was a very useful 120 film.

As Reinhold said, It keeps very well. The batch I've got expired in 1990 and it prints just fine. Perhaps you're thinking of kodak High speed infrared.

 

[aoresteen]

As Reinhold said, It keeps very well. The batch I've got expired in 1990 and it prints just fine. Perhaps you're thinking of kodak High speed infrared.

No, I am talking about Konica IR 750 120 rolls. Kodak High Speed IR was never available in 120 rolls.

Around 1992 I placed a special order with IIRC Shutan Photo in Chicago for 40 or 50 rolls of Konica IR 750 as it was the ONLY IR film available in 120 size. Konica did a yearly run and if you didn't place an order it was very hard to get.

I got the film and it was as fresh as possible. IIRC it had a 24 month expiration date which would put it to around early 1995. I always kept it in my film freezer and would take out a roll & let it thaw when needed. By the end of 1999 I was seeing quite a bit of fog. In 2001 the fog was so bad that the film was unusable and I threw away the last 20-25 rolls of it that I had. It had been frozen all it's life.

I always exposed Konica IR 750 around ISO 4 with an IR 87 filter; Sometimes I'd use a Hoya R72 at ISO 8 but I preferred the results from the 87 filter. I wish the film was still available. Perhaps there was an issue with the batch I got but others had similar problems using expired Konica 750 120 film in the 90's.

I'm now using Efke 820 in 127 rolls for my IR work. The Efke film has been frozen since fresh and it's still good with no signs of fog.

 

[Reinhold]

Here's some rural mailboxes in Minnesota...
Mid-afternoon, warm day, harsh sidelight, dark shadows. K750, 25a filter.
This photo was done with my Cambo Wide & 75mm SA, like the earlier posts.

For 6x7 infrared work, I use a Mamiya 7 with a #29 gel filter taped over the meter window. Set the speed to about 25, and fire away...
Sometimes I'll use the Mamiya as a light meter in conjuction with the Cambo.

K750 is known for it's rather high base+fog density, so I took a few readings...
This negative's B+F is 0.45, the B+F for the cemetary photo was 0.39.
If you're used to seeing crystal clear B+F negatives, K750s neg's will look unprintable.
That is, until you find out that you can print through high B+F negatives without an anxiety attack.

Back in the late '90s a big article was published that featured K750.
One asset was it's remarkable longevity.
Unfortunatly, I sold all of my old Camera & Darkroom, etc. magazines, so I can't refer to it.
Sorry.

Reinhold
www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[DREW WILEY]

Alas. Another fascinating film no longer made. You could change it in the field, unlike true IR.

 

[europanorama]

Which gel filter make to simulate exposure with 25a-red and IR K750?