...was a success!
Last month I picked up an old Wista 4x5 camera and a couple of lenses at a junk shop, and ever since I picked it up, I was wondering what kind of pictures I could take with it. I cleaned up the camera, replaced the light seals, bought some film holders, a loupe, and spent many hours reading about large format photography and film processing.
Yesterday morning I finally got out and took a few pictures at a nearby farm. It was a beautiful day to be out; sunny, warm, and many flowers about. A couple of old farmers turned up while I was setting up my camera, and they asked me several questions about how everything worked. I explained as best I could (as I don't know very much about it yet), but they seemed impressed.
As I didn't have a light meter, I used my Nikon D300 to take readings. I had brought only 3 film holders with me, so I ended up shooting 6 photographs. I would have brought more gear, but I moved to Japan last year, and I haven't yet bought a car. I have to carry my gear everywhere in a backpack, and the farm I was photographing lies on a hilltop (2 miles of steep climbing) in the foothills which overlook my city.
Anyway, when I got home, I set up my "darkroom", which consists of 4 plastic trays, a thermometer, and an egg timer. I set up the trays in my bathtub, as my Japanese apartment is very small, and has no other place where I can work.
Fortunately for me, my apartment was at exactly 20 degrees c yesterday, and the water from my tap was the same temperature, setting up the trays and chemicals was simple, and easier than I expected. I turned off the lights and went to work.
The instructions on the Ilford box (Perceptol) said that gloves were required to protect one's hands. Unfortunately, I couldn't really feel the film well with the gloves, and shuffling the sheets properly was not possible. I took off the gloves and found the going much easier. Japanese bathtubs are kind of deep, so I had to reach down pretty far to get my hands into the trays.
I kept shuffling the film in the dark, and was beginning to wonder if my egg timer was broken when the alarm finally went off. I transferred the film to the stop bath (water), and so on.
When I turned on the lights, I was actually surprised to find that the negatives had clear images on them. So far so good. I rinsed them and hung them on a clothes rack under the shower.
This morning I took a closer look at them with my loupe, and I was surprised at how well they turned out. I won't know for certain until I scan them, or get prints made, but for the moment I am very happy with the results.
I'm already planning where I'll take my camera next...
Last month I picked up an old Wista 4x5 camera and a couple of lenses at a junk shop, and ever since I picked it up, I was wondering what kind of pictures I could take with it. I cleaned up the camera, replaced the light seals, bought some film holders, a loupe, and spent many hours reading about large format photography and film processing.
Yesterday morning I finally got out and took a few pictures at a nearby farm. It was a beautiful day to be out; sunny, warm, and many flowers about. A couple of old farmers turned up while I was setting up my camera, and they asked me several questions about how everything worked. I explained as best I could (as I don't know very much about it yet), but they seemed impressed.
As I didn't have a light meter, I used my Nikon D300 to take readings. I had brought only 3 film holders with me, so I ended up shooting 6 photographs. I would have brought more gear, but I moved to Japan last year, and I haven't yet bought a car. I have to carry my gear everywhere in a backpack, and the farm I was photographing lies on a hilltop (2 miles of steep climbing) in the foothills which overlook my city.
Anyway, when I got home, I set up my "darkroom", which consists of 4 plastic trays, a thermometer, and an egg timer. I set up the trays in my bathtub, as my Japanese apartment is very small, and has no other place where I can work.
Fortunately for me, my apartment was at exactly 20 degrees c yesterday, and the water from my tap was the same temperature, setting up the trays and chemicals was simple, and easier than I expected. I turned off the lights and went to work.
The instructions on the Ilford box (Perceptol) said that gloves were required to protect one's hands. Unfortunately, I couldn't really feel the film well with the gloves, and shuffling the sheets properly was not possible. I took off the gloves and found the going much easier. Japanese bathtubs are kind of deep, so I had to reach down pretty far to get my hands into the trays.
I kept shuffling the film in the dark, and was beginning to wonder if my egg timer was broken when the alarm finally went off. I transferred the film to the stop bath (water), and so on.
When I turned on the lights, I was actually surprised to find that the negatives had clear images on them. So far so good. I rinsed them and hung them on a clothes rack under the shower.
This morning I took a closer look at them with my loupe, and I was surprised at how well they turned out. I won't know for certain until I scan them, or get prints made, but for the moment I am very happy with the results.
I'm already planning where I'll take my camera next...
