Why i love LF photography...

[paul owen]

Without sounding cliched or corny ... don't you just love that moment, a second or two before you fire the shutter, when you can gaze around at the scene you are about to capture and the world seems at peace?

 

[BradS]

Without sounding cliched or corny ... don't you just love that moment, a second or two before you fire the shutter, when you can gaze around at the scene you are about to capture and the world seems at peace?

I'll have to try that. I'm ususally too busy talking to my self....

"shutter closed, excercise the shutter, shutter closed, speed set, shutter closed, aperature set, shutter closed, cock the shutter, shutter closed, SHUTTER CLOSED...pull the slide, deep breath...fire"

 

[rbarker]

Brad - you forgot the "plunge :confused: plunge, :confused: - Oh, damn, I forgot to close the shutter after all!" part.

 

[BradS]

Brad - you forgot the "plunge :confused: plunge, :confused: - Oh, damn, I forgot to close the shutter after all!" part.

Oh, man...tooo funny! wiping the tears from my eyes now, trying to control the giggles.....Yeah, I don't like to admit that part...

 

[Flotsam]

I always bring my tiny Leitz/Minolta CL Kit with me so when I have the 4x5 set up and locked down and I'm just waiting for the light, or some clouds to drift into place, I run all over shooting 35mm until it is time to come back and snap the shutter

 

[bobfowler]

I don't have the patience for large format very often, but sometimes I like the bigger prints, and then it's worth it. Developing the big sheets with the green light is fun, but it makes me a little nervous, because the film is so expensive. Also, my big prints usually just sit in a box in my room, but I can carry a stack of little square prints in my pocket, and show my friends. I usually end up giving most of them away, but I have the negatives, so I can make more, if I want. I love my little twin lens, and carry it with my everywhere, but I think that someday I'll slow down and do more large format stuff.

I fins that it costs me less per final print to shoot 4X5 or 5X7 than it does 35mm. ith 35, I might go through a roll and only get 1 or 2 images that I really want to print. Shooting large makes me think about what I'm shooting and results in a far better hit to miss ratio.

Now if you look at it in terms of real estate, there isn't a better bargain per square inch of image area than a large format negative!

 

[eric]

I guess I can consider myself pretty lucky. I worked in a still life studio when I was in college and it was ALL 4x5's and 8x10s. Most photogs I freelanced for used medium format. I learned backasswards I guess. Started at LF, a slew of Medium format, and few 35mm. I still use my 35mm, but I prefer medium format. This is the year for LF for me though. I think I have some latent memories on how to use them

I got hired a lot cause I pretty fast loading film onto them and shooting with them. I would gaffer tape the entire tripod/camera unit and use my entire body/hands to steady it while I load the 8x10 with the holder, pull, trigger shutter, push dark slide, flip, repeat, take out holder, repeat with new holder.

 

[arkoshkobash]

contact prints

Make contact prints! 4x5" contacts fit nicely in a pocket

I only make contact prints. My Dad taught me to use the enlarger, but I never really liked it. 4x5 prints seem pretty big to me compared to the little square ones from my twin lens. I print them with borders, and they're like trading cards. A few of my friends do the same thing, and we trade back and forth. I had to make a diorama for a class, so I made an art gallery, and hung my little square prints in it. Everyone liked it so much, that we've held several "shows" there since. It's really amazing how those little prints convey a sense of scale. They really look huge! I sold out my first show @ $1/print. A critical, and commercial success! Now that I've sold out my first show at a "small, local gallery", I'm seeking representation in larger markets. Please direct inquiries to my agent.

 

[Thomas Bertilsson]

I'm new at large format, and only do 4x5 so far. But I appreciate what most people have contributed so far. I love to drag the camera around, along with the heavy tripod, a snot-load of film holders, and light meter, and exposure records... It slows me down, and makes me think about what I'm doing. I was happy with the quality medium format provides, and it's fun shooting with my TLR, but I love the pace I have with the 4x5, and the control it gives in the darkroom.
Basically, not only did it improve my photography drastically, but it also made me like what I'm doing a lot more. It's a win/win situation.

Thanks for bringing the thread up!

- Thom

 

[mark]

I had to make a diorama for a class, so I made an art gallery, and hung my little square prints in it. Everyone liked it so much, that we've held several "shows" there since. It's really amazing how those little prints convey a sense of scale. They really look huge! I sold out my first show @ $1/print. A critical, and commercial success! Now that I've sold out my first show at a "small, local gallery", I'm seeking representation in larger markets. Please direct inquiries to my agent.

 

[MenacingTourist]

That miniature show idea is fantastic! Sounds like it was a lot of fun too.

In college our student art guild held a vending machine show. The cost of entering was to buy space in the vending machine. We bought the food and replaced it with pieces of art that would fit in there. Then we used the vending machine food as snacks at the "opening".

I should note that the vending machine was the kind where it spins around and you open a litte door to get your sandwich or apple or whatever is in there. I bet you could do a miniature photo show the same way.

 

[arkoshkobash]

The mini-shows were fun. Everyone dressed up, but just for fun, and no one took themselves too seriously. It was almost like performance art. The show itself made a kind of statement apart from the work shown. The vending machine idea sounds like fun too, and very much in the same spirit.

 

[BarrieB]

I own and use 35mm, 6X6cm and 4"x5" all with Black and White only. I find there is a place for each BUT I enjoy the L/F when I have the time to do it properly and I have found a suitable subject.
I treat cameras as 'tools' and just as the 'Shifter' is not the best tool for my auto engine, then 35 mm is not the best camera either. My H`blad system gets the most use for general shooting.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

Why I love LF photography...because each sheet of film is exposed and developed to suit the image seen within. Every image on a roll of film is a compromise, unless you have seperate camera bodies for N, +1, +2, -1, -2, and -3.

As soon as I put my pack on and hoist my tripod, my whole relationship with nature changes. I become hyper-aware of light, textures, compositional movement, the weights and masses of objects and the spaces between them. LF allows me to see the world through a level of awareness distinct and clear of the fog of everyday life.

Murray

(added later) Then again, some days I can carry my gear around all day without ever pulling the camera out of the bag...

 

[ChrisC]

The more and more I get out with my 4x5, the more I love it.

With my TLR, I found myself taking 4-8 frames, taking as much time with each to get the most out of every image, then finding myself with 6 frames left to fill, with nothing I wanted to really shoot. This either meant use these 6 shots on something I really didn't want to, leave the film in the camera for a week or two, or rewind early, losing half a roll of 120. All of which I didn't want to do.

When looking for a new camera, the answer was obvious. With LF, I can shoot as much or as little as I want on an outing, take as long as I desire on each shot, and enjoy the total control I have over everything I want to capture on film. My TLR hasn't seen the light of day since I've had my 4x5, and I don't think it will for a while to come.