New, but not new

[jordanka16]

I've been a member for a long time, just reading, but decided it was time to start actually posting, lol.

I've been shooting film since I was in high school (way back in 2006) when I took a photography class that was manual cameras and B&W film and I've loved it ever since. I eventually moved to medium format, and had my own darkroom in my house, which was heaven.

I moved a few years ago and lost the dark room so I took a break, sold off my big medium format cameras, and just stuck with smaller stuff. I've gotten the bug again and decided to make the move to large format. I got a Crown Graphic and a Toyo field 45A and am so far loving the contemplative type of shooting they afford. I do still miss my RB67 though and will probably replace it, I did a lot of hiking and shooting landscapes with it back in the day.

For now with no darkroom I'm going to be scanning and printing digitally, and because of this I plan to shoot more color, although the price of color sheet film is really ouch. Previously I shot about 95% B&W, most of that Ilford films.

 

[SchwinnParamount]

Welcome back! And thanks for posting ... finally.
It's pretty much normal to come and go these days. When I first started posting in APUG (Photrio) a long time ago, digital was crappy and looked down on by all of us. Today digital is not crappy but is still looked down on by all of us. When working in digital, I don't post much. When working in my beloved film format, I post.

 

[jordanka16]

I don't really look down on digital, I just enjoy the process of working with film, it's part of the enjoyment to me. Working with a physical medium, developing, and working in the darkroom previously. Film also has a certain look (particularly in B&W) that I think digital fails to capture. If I was a pro making a living I'm sure I would feel different, but I'm just a hobbyist so I can stick with my slow methods.

 

[koraks]

Today digital is not crappy but is still looked down on by all of us.

Certainly not. There's just a considerable fraction here that's very vocal about their preference for film, making it seem like there is no diversity here in this sense. This is not accurate, however. Plenty of are fine with digital and/or enjoy it actively.

@jordanka16, welcome to Photrio and thanks for joining! I hear you on enjoying the film-based process - the tactile nature of the medium greatly contributes to the experience.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I've been a member for a long time, just reading, but decided it was time to start actually posting, lol.

I've been shooting film since I was in high school (way back in 2006) when I took a photography class that was manual cameras and B&W film and I've loved it ever since. I eventually moved to medium format, and had my own darkroom in my house, which was heaven.

I moved a few years ago and lost the dark room so I took a break, sold off my big medium format cameras, and just stuck with smaller stuff. I've gotten the bug again and decided to make the move to large format. I got a Crown Graphic and a Toyo field 45A and am so far loving the contemplative type of shooting they afford. I do still miss my RB67 though and will probably replace it, I did a lot of hiking and shooting landscapes with it back in the day.

For now with no darkroom I'm going to be scanning and printing digitally, and because of this I plan to shoot more color, although the price of color sheet film is really ouch. Previously I shot about 95% B&W, most of that Ilford films.

Welcome to APUG Photrio!!​

 

[xkaes]

Welcome to the FORUM. What took you so long?

I too spent a lot of time backpacking with an RB67 Pro S, and loved being able to switch films readily -- unlike my 35mm cameras. But then I discovered that a 4x5 field camera allowed that too -- and the camera and lenses weighed a lot less -- and gave me negatives four times the size. I had to get a bigger enlarger, but that was no big deal.

Should you get the urge for another RB67, you would be surprised how inexpensive they are nowadays -- especially the older models. And there is still plenty of 120 film to choose from.

 

[jordanka16]

Welcome to the FORUM. What took you so long?

I too spent a lot of time backpacking with an RB67 Pro S, and loved being able to switch films readily -- unlike my 35mm cameras. But then I discovered that a 4x5 field camera allowed that too -- and the camera and lenses weighed a lot less -- and gave me negatives four times the size. I had to get a bigger enlarger, but that was no big deal.

Should you get the urge for another RB67, you would be surprised how inexpensive they are nowadays -- especially the older models. And there is still plenty of 120 film to choose from.

Not sure what took so long, I have spent a lot of time reading, I guess I just finally decided it was time to join the conversation.

Yeah, I figured I'm using a tripod anyway, so a slightly heavier camera doesn't matter too much, and the bigger negatives and being able to switch film was a huge benefit. Moving to 4x5 gives even bigger negatives, plus opens up the ability to process each photo differently, and gives all the view camera movements. It just seemed like a natural progression.

I absolutely will get another RB67 though, sometimes it's nice to be able to make more pictures in a row. I've looked at other cameras but I keep coming back to it, I like the 6x7 size, and I can't stand shooting in square format, and don't really want to go smaller to 6x4.5. The only other option I thought of was a Pentax 67, but they're more expensive, and you can't switch film so I come back to the RB. Plus mine was rugged as can be and took great pictures. I had the Pro S version and will probably get another, I can't see much of a benefit to going to the RZ67.

 

[jordanka16]

Well, it happened faster than I thought, but I got a good deal on an RB67. I got a Pro-SD this time, at the very least it's newer so less likely to have light seal issues/other problems. My plan is to shoot more color film in general, and to practice with this before shooting 4x5 color. Are there any good books for color photography specifically? Probably just negative film, I ordered some Ektar 100.