ULF and the Grand Landscape

[wfwhitaker]

You might take a look at Chris McCaw's website, Dead Link Removed, especially the "Personal Portfolio". Not exactly all "grand landscape", but interesting at least because of the format.

 

[Robert Hall]

Aggie,

Thanks for the link. Robert Hall is definitely a very accomplished, very talented and very versatile photographer. There are some beautiful images on his web site. I'd love to see some of his prints in person.

However, I do find it a bit ironic that the lead photo on his web site is a beautifully excecuted photo of some sort of industrial machinery (old generators?) taken inside a building with the caption: "Capturing Grand and Intimate Reflections of the Landscape". And while he does have some "grand landscapes" on his web site, it does not constitute the majority of his work.

Again, I'm not trying to discount his work in any way. It's great stuff. However, most of it is not what I'd personally consider "grand landscape".

Kerry

I was just skimming for ULF threads and would like to reply. (I hope that's ok)

First, since you have now had several months since the thread started, perhaps you could share some of the experiences you have had shooting the larger format. Have you found that it can be taken long distances? Have you had to do anything with you rigging to get the longer hiking distances to work with your gear?

I do shoot a lot of Landscape with the 1220 (after getting back to the darkroom I dont know how much of it could be considered "Grand" lol)

But some of the things I find on the shooting and final images is that the 1220 is so large that it's not the type of thing that one can just kind of sit around with and give it the kind of looking over that one likes to with contact prints. I find that contact prints are a fairly intimate art object that require some physical handling of the image. I have a number of 1220's I would like to see reproduced larger. I find that getting a reproduction of them and putting them on the web makes them much much "lesser" than they are in person. So much so, I find that I am comfortable only posting images that are an easier read on the web site. I have been told, many times, that I tend to shoot the iconic images. I don't have a real problem with that because at the end of the day, I shoot for myself. I like to sell prints, but this has always been an endevor of love for the great outdoors and hopefully in some small way, one of preservation. I see so much of the landscape change here in Utah. (I know this isnt the only place that is changing.)

I sell my images through galleries and at art festivals and fairs. I show the larger prints there. I still find that many people stand within 18" of the print to see the detail. So I guess the tag line is more applicable to my sign on the tent: "Capturing Grand and Intimate Reflections of the Landscape" may make more sense there, blame it on the marketing. :rolleyes:

As for the way I manage my gear I do a few things. First, at my age, I work out as much as possible. If I'm carrying around an extra 25 lbs of table muscle, I can't carry the gear. Second, I carry 2 or at the most 3 film holders with me and then add the film and a changing tent. (not really all that heavy.) I try to research where I am going and make a "best guess" at what lenses I take. Usually only 2, a 355 which is quite wide, and either a 24" or my 30". (one can divide the length by 12 to get an approximate 35mm equiv).

Then to carry the gear, I made a backpack for it.

http://www.roberthall.com/backpack.jpg

I have also bought a frame for it as well. The frame was a god send. This actually carries better than the 8x10.

And finally, I would state that my 810 is still my prefered format. With it I have the 4x10 back and can enlarge either to a 3x enlargment ( I wont go over that due to quality)

I look forward to seeing some of your work in person as well. It's quite beautiful.


Kindest regards,

 

[doughowk]

I'm just getting into ULF: have a 7X17 Korona, couple of filmholders thanks to Sandy King, a surveyors tripod with circular plate to add support for camera, an Ilex 270(?)mm lens and a jogging stroller. In Florida, the stroller is a godsend, and am thinking of acquiring a twin version to better hold a couple of cameras (I also carry a 4X5 in the field). I do like the grand landscapes but have had problems with film banding (Efke 100 ) in sky/highlight areas. Waiting for some other film (J&C 400) before venturing out again. Hopefully, will be putting up panorama examples on my website this Winter (best time to photograph in Florida).

 

[Scott Peters]

Well, I pack my 7 x 17 4 holders, two lenses and meter, filters in a super trekker - 35 pounds. I carry my tripod, with ries head. I can go pretty far....tiring for sure. BUT, some of my best shots are not necessarily far from the car either...sometimes you need to let the camera do the seeing.