Tripod head for 4x5 field cam- Recommendations please

[Grafmatic]

Indeed I did. And yes, LF cameras are not the fastest way to work. But if you’re
slow- or your equipment is-you can lose shots, especially under volatile light conditions. From my previous life as a large format photographer, I learned that leveling is one of the potential biggest time sinks. Even with the LF camera, sometimes that extra minute can cause you the shot. After I saw the video linked below, I realized that a leveling base can be a big time saver and the slight weight tradeoff is worth it.

I used to have the Zone VI wooden tripod. Every leveling operation was three leveling operations, repeat go around again maybe repeat as needed, as many times as it takes.I am ditching my Bogan 3047 head which weighs nearly 4 pounds and replacing it with two pieces of gear that combined probably weigh half that. It will still be a light setup. While your points about complexity are valid, I’m going to try it with and without the leveling base. If I don’t like it, eBay here I come.

Here’s a link to a video I discovered, which has the best explanation of how to pick a tripod that I have ever seen. It explains a lot of stuff that didn’t exist in my first life as a large format photographer. The relevant part starts at exactly 15:00 in.

 

[GregY]

Indeed I did. And yes, LF cameras are not the fastest way to work. But if you’re
slow- or your equipment is-you can lose shots, especially under volatile light conditions. From my previous life as a large format photographer, I learned that leveling is one of the potential biggest time sinks. Even with the LF camera, sometimes that extra minute can cause you the shot. After I saw the video linked below, I realized that a leveling base can be a big time saver and the slight weight tradeoff is worth it.

I used to have the Zone VI wooden tripod. Every leveling operation was three leveling operations, repeat go around again maybe repeat as needed, as many times as it takes.I am ditching my Bogan 3047 head which weighs nearly 4 pounds and replacing it with two pieces of gear that combined probably weigh half that. It will still be a light setup. While your points about complexity are valid, I’m going to try it with and without the leveling base. If I don’t like it, eBay here I come.

Here’s a link to a video I discovered, which has the best explanation of how to pick a tripod that I have ever seen. It explains a lot of stuff that didn’t exist in my first life as a large format photographer. The relevant part starts at exactly 15:00 in.

I started photography before the internet & spent more than a decade w 5x7" & 8x10".... sorry, i lost interest in even viewing the video when i saw "flat bed scanning"

 

[Grafmatic]

I started photography before the internet & spent more than a decade w 5x7" & 8x10".... sorry, i lost interest in even viewing the video when i saw "flat bed scanning"

The tripod tutorial was the good part.
I’m interested in the topic because I want the best digital copies of film that I can get. I can’t have a ‘real’ dark room where I am these days. There are times I wonder what it would be like to use an 8 x 10 and adhere to strictly contact printing. No enlarger, just a contact frame and a few trays. That might work, but I’m not sure I’m up to carrying an 8 x 10 except adhering to the Brett Weston rule he adopted in his later years:”Iif it’s more than 100 yards from the road, it’s not photogenic.”

I started 51 years ago when I was 18. Seeing a print come up in the tray under a safelight, process wise, is a whole Nother level of experience compared to watching a print roll out of a digital printer. Right now, I have to have a hybrid workflow. Hopefully I’ll get back in a darkroom some pretty soon.

 

[GregY]

The tripod tutorial was the good part

G, I'm still happy with my Gitzo & Ries...... tutorial times have long passed.....