Square

tjaded · Nov 10, 2006

Just curious how many of you that shoot 2 1/4"x2 1/4" print (and thus compose) square? 99% of the medium format stuff I shoot gets printed square but many people find it odd. I've found that I really like the square format, as well as 4x5 but the 35mm aspect ratio doesn't work well for me. Just curious if anyone else has an opinion on this.

eric · Nov 10, 2006

I paid a lot of those 2 little notches on the left of the print. I print with those notches showing.

David A. Goldfarb · Nov 10, 2006

I usually compose for the square when I'm shooting square.

Blighty · Nov 10, 2006

I usually (not exclusively) print square from square negs, though it does depend on the subject matter. I know what you mean about 35mm. I rarely print the full format as I find it too much like a letterbox.

naturephoto1 · Nov 10, 2006

Whenever possible, I try to use full frame in whatever format camera that I am using. When shooting my Rolleiflex 3.5F 12/24 Planar I try to shoot it square. I have never been as comfortable with the square format however. I generally shoot my 35mm as the 24 X 36 format dimensions, my 6 X 7 as 6 X 7, my 4 X 5 as 4 X 5, etc.

Rich

mario Ag+ · Nov 10, 2006

I print full frame most of the the time, but when I shoot square format (6X6) I think, compose and print square. It's part of the charm of shooting square format for me.

Whiteymorange · Nov 10, 2006

I like the square format and I like 6x9. I guess the sorta/almost/kinda shapes are less interesting for me. I also paint on square canvas a lot - or long rectangles.

In the square, the corners pull against the center with greater urgency. Tension is more easily set up and maintained. The long rectangle makes the viewer read it from side to side. 6x7 has neither of these gong for it.

Having said that, of course, I have to admit that many artists/photographers use other formats with amazing results.... its just tougher for me. My 2 cents

BrianShaw · Nov 10, 2006

I LOVE SQUARE! I like every other format else too... except maybe banquet (but I'll come around some day I suppose).

tjaded · Nov 10, 2006

I can't say that I print FULL frame, I always cut in enough not to have the film edges show, but if it's a square neg it gets printed square...as Mario Ag+ said, "...when I shoot square format (6X6) I think, compose and print square." I remember when I first started shooting medium format (Rolleiflex, followed by Hasselblad) I was shooting "all wrong" and just using the large negs for high resolution. It took me a good year to get to a point where I felt composing square came naturally. Now I feel like I have to struggle a bit to compose in a rectangular format! I wonder what it would have been like if early on in photographic history round or oval had become the true "norm" for printing. Frames sure would cost more!

arigram · Nov 10, 2006

Always square, always full frame, most of the times with the frame showing. I find it much easier to compose in the square than in the rectangle. Its extremely rare that a 6x6 photo of mine will need cropping.

eddym · Nov 10, 2006

I love the square format, and usually compose and print square. The exceptions are usually when I want to crop out some foreground in order to preserve the vertical perspective of buildings, trees, etc. Then the TLR becomes a sort of cheap view camera.

Ranger Bob · Nov 10, 2006

Square. I like it. It's different than most others' photographs, it used to piss off my former photo professor too.

P C Headland · Nov 10, 2006

I'd say more than 90% of my shots off 6x6 cameras stay square.

DWThomas · Nov 11, 2006

So far I go with square -- it's part of what's new and exciting about the camera.

(Perhaps when the novelty wears off . . . )

DaveT

André E.C. · Nov 11, 2006

As stated before, I also think, compose and print square.
Actually, took me some time to learn how to employ the full frame 6x6 area effectively in landscape photography!
It`s a very different way to see, very few things are square format in our rectangular dominant world.

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Cheers

André

Bromo33333 · Nov 11, 2006

You guys are all a bunch of squares!!!
(Oh wait ... so'm I ... )

terri · Nov 11, 2006

André E.C. said:
As stated before, I also think, compose and print square.
Actually, took me some time to learn how to employ the full frame 6x6 area effectively in landscape photography!
It`s a very different way to see, very few things are square format in our rectangular dominant world.

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Cheers

André

Hear, hear. I shoot mainly 645 and 35. On the few occasions I'm shooting square, it generally takes a few frames before I'm feeling comfortable with it. It's a different way to see, so a different approach is needed - for me, anyway. I print full frame the majority of the time, as well.

Gerald Koch · Nov 11, 2006

I very seldom print square with 6x6 format since I often adjust the ratio of the print based on the subject matter. My guiding principle is to remove anything extraneous from the print that would take attention away from the subject. I've always found square prints to be rather ugly and static looking. However, there are a few subjects that look right in square format.

wfe · Nov 11, 2006

I love the square format but I don't believe that it works for everything.

Cheers,
Bill

BrianShaw · Nov 11, 2006

wfe said:
I love the square format but I don't believe that it works for everything.

That's a fact -- compositions that aren't square belong in a rectangle. But what's a rectangle... just an elongated square, right?

Mike Kovacs · Nov 11, 2006

I am a dedicated square format shooter.

I think its wrong though to rigidly constrain yourself to any particular cropping or aspect ratio. Many times I leave the image as a full square, but its not always the best presentation.

sienarot · Nov 12, 2006

I compose inaccordance to the format, in this case square. I never agreed with people people who would say shoot square and crop what you don't need. That's just lazy photography, in my opinion.

ricksplace · Nov 12, 2006

I never really gave this a lot of thought. I shoot mostly square (6X6) and some 6X7. When I shoot 35, I tend to crop to almost square or 6X7 ratio (8X10). I guess that makes me a "square shooter"...

blansky · Nov 12, 2006

I've shot Hasselblad for 30 years as a pro and have cropped every picture I've ever taken and have never once printed square.

Victor never meant for us to print square, he merely designed the camera so it could be set up and shoot horizontal or vertical without turning the camera.

You people are bastardizing his concept and should be ashamed of yourselves.

Since we have two eyes we see rectangular, only one eyed people see square. Probably the ones with the eye in their forehead.

Just and opinion,

Michael

MenacingTourist · Nov 12, 2006

blansky said:
...Probably the ones with the eye in their forehead...Michael

I think this founding father would have made a great photographer

Square

tjaded

eric

David A. Goldfarb

Moderator

Blighty

naturephoto1

mario Ag+

Whiteymorange

BrianShaw

tjaded

arigram

eddym

Ranger Bob

P C Headland

DWThomas

André E.C.

Bromo33333

terri

Gerald Koch

wfe

BrianShaw

Mike Kovacs

sienarot

ricksplace

blansky

MenacingTourist

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