Worst piece of photography/darkroom equipment

[Ole]

And then there was the lens that I hoped would have that smooth classic look, but turned out to be the essence of bad bokeh--

58/2.8 Zeiss Jena Biotar in M42 mount

WOW!

 

[Max Power]

Worst crap for me has been the Kinderman SS tanks and reels that came with my JOBO TBE.

A nightmare to load 35mm onto the reels and take an eternity to fill or empty with chemistry. Underdeveloped where the film touched.

Paterson has spoiled me.

 

[David Brown]

Camera:

Zorki 4. Beautiful condition at the camera show; worked for 24 hours. Never even got film in it.

Darkroom:

Enlarging attachment for the Luna-Pro.

I used to be quite poor (now just barely poor), so I've used some junk in my time, but the above two items are the "winners".

Cheers!

David

 

[eric]

That bokeh is giving me a headache

 

[eric]

Where can I get this type of film dryer? Can it do more than 1 roll?

 

[eric]

Stainless Steel tank and reels? Okay everybody here that has jobo or paterson...if you have ANY SS tanks and reels you want to give up, I'll look around and see what I can trade 'ya fer it.

 

[smieglitz]

I have a contact printing frame purchased about 10 years ago stuck away in a closet. I believe it is a 20x24 Gravity Works print frame with plexi instead of regular glass and long rubber hoses to clamp the split back instead of springs. It is so awkward that I've never used it.

However, it is nowhere near as bad as the Premier contact print frame I once purchased. The frame is mitered and stapled rather than mortised and tenoned and the split back is held together with duct tape instead of a hinge. The spring broke off the back almost immediately. What a piece of junk compared to an old Eastman Contact Frame.

 

[Brian Bullen]

Joking aside, I can't quite understand what you're saying here. Are you saying that the Horseman Woodman is a lousy camera because it broke when you dropped it from a height onto a hard surface? I think all of us have had lucky escapes, but generally you really must expect this to happen, particularly with view cameras designed to be light and portable.
Regards,
David

David, all joking aside, I purchased this camera new in 1999 or 2000. It was my first woodfield and I was very excited. My previous experience with 4x5 was a speed graphic and a couple of different monorails but had never even held a wooden field camera. I researched the Tachihara as an option but it seemed the reviews were not very flattering. My next choice was the Horseman. I wanted to buy new as a treat to myself and with the thought of keeping the camera for a long time. Well when the camera arrived it seemed a little flimsy but assumed that's what you get with a lightweight wood camera. I also noticed some other things with the build quality that seemed a little lacking. Front standard very unsteady even with a lightweight lens. Uneven placement of the centimeter scales, focusing mechanism would sometimes chatter and skip. The locks on the shift and swing didn't really lock.
After using this camera for several years and getting the chance to meet other photographers and compare cameras I realized what a "cheap" camera I purchased.
With respect to my dropping the camera, I admit it was totally my fault. The reason I'm upset? The camera fell no more than 18" from the ground and literally crumpled. It fell from the tripod, lens first, onto a dirt road. Initially I thought the lens might be scratched up and maybe the wood too. When I picked it up I realized the entire base of the front standard had broken off. Luckily it was a clean break and was glued easily. No scratches or marks anywhere else. The lens still looks mint.
After further inspection my eyes could not believe what they saw. The metal pieces holding the rear standard had bent completely out of shape. And now I was completely bent out of shape. It was amazing how warped the pieces had become. I felt as if some invisible car had run over my camera. Well after some working with it(it's easy to work with ) the rear standard is almost straight. Of course the price to fix these problems at horseman could have almost bought a Shen Hao.
That's why this is the worst piece of photo equipment I have ever had. Lame quality, weak camera even before I smashed it to pieces.
Sorry this is so long winded, hope all those other Woodman users are having a great time with theirs>

 

[Peter Schrager]

Pain

Brian-if you really wanted to have pain you should have bought a wisner! I've heard some incredible stories about those.The groundglass literally just falling right out for NO reason. Had a look -see in NYC recently at a new one and there were wood spurs hanging off the back. I noticed that the guy who was selling the camera is on epay right now trying to buy an older wisner. That's because they once had build quality. .
Peter

 

[bjorke]

At age 17 I was duped into buying one of those stupid "wrenches" for opening 35mm film cassettes. $15. Not that it didn't work, after a fashion, but it was useless otherwise. Today I happily use a $1.49 bottle opener for all important tasks.

 

[David H. Bebbington]

That's why this is the worst piece of photo equipment I have ever had. Lame quality, weak camera even before I smashed it to pieces.>

Thanks for the info, Brian, I can certainly understand now why you are irate! I could imagine the root cause of this problem is that Horseman does not make these cameras in-house but sub-contracts them. Most of the problems you describe (apart from the centimeter scale) are due to poor materials which are not apparent to the naked eye but only as the result of torture testing(!). Price also seems not to correlate to quality - among my cameras is a 4x5" Iston, a name which evidently means "made by any one of several companies in China". It was not expensive and required a fiber washer to be placed under every knob before it locked up right, but it is now a nice camera. Others who own cameras bearing this name are apparently not so happy.
Back on the theme of this thread, the worst LF camera I used (at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London) but fortunately did not own was an 8x10" Burke & James, gray painted with red bellows, with a back standard that shook like a jelly on a plate.

Regards,

David

 

[Brian Bullen]

Back on the theme of this thread, the worst LF camera I used (at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London) but fortunately did not own was an 8x10" Burke & James, gray painted with red bellows, with a back standard that shook like a jelly on a plate.

David, that is a great analogy. I've heard some pretty bad stories about the B&J field cameras. I purchased a B&J 8x10 Grover, restored it and it is rock solid. Surprisingly lightweight for a monorail, right around 13 lbs. This is a camera I'd recommend

Peter, I've read a lot of bad stories about Wisner online. Actually there's a complaint on another forum posted today about his bad service. I hope the build quality isn't going downhill because bad service + bad product = unfortunate end

 

[phfitz]

Happy New Years,

Flat out, hands down winner with no contest:

The Zone System

enough said.

 

[Aggie]

Happy New Years,

Flat out, hands down winner with no contest:

The Zone System

enough said.

Zone system works for many people. It is not a piece of photographic equipment so I doubt it will qualify. Is your first name Hans?

 

[MikeK]

Zone system works for many people. It is not a piece of photographic equipment so I doubt it will qualify. Is your first name Hans?

or Michael?

 

[dr bob]

Happy New Years,

Flat out, hands down winner with no contest:

The Zone System

enough said.

HE'S BACK!

 

[dr bob]

Happy New Years,

Flat out, hands down winner with no contest:

The Zone System

enough said.

HE'S (SHE'S?) BACK!

 

[HenceForthWith]

Oh no! Scarpathetic strikes again!

Happy New Years,

Flat out, hands down winner with no contest:

The Zone System

enough said.

 

[phfitz]

Good Morning people and Happy New Year,

1) I'm not back, I only found this site 2 weeks ago
2) You're right, goofing on the Zone System should be a seperate thread.
3) Sorry, but the Zone System has wasted more time, trouble, effort and expense for more people than any single 'thing' in photography. Far too many people who have gone down this road have been played the fool, given up in disgust, sold it all on ebay and taken up golf.

"A casual stroll through the lunatic asylum shows that faith does not prove anything.

-Nietzsche"

I love that quote, it fits beautifully. The Zone System is a religion, it has nothing to do with fact or reality. If it allays your fear of the dark and gives you solace, all well and good. If you choose to believe, no proof is needed. If you do not believe, no proof is possible. I will be generous and consider it '3 blind men with an elephant'.

 

[Jorge]

Ah yeah....you are back...lets see how lont it takes to get you off the site this time.....

 

[Aggie]

Ah yeah....you are back...lets see how lont it takes to get you off the site this time.....

All we have to do is say acutol is not the best developer, and kodak is not the great yellow god. that will have him fuming enough to explode.

Instead of an arrogant quoting an arrent, I quote another philospher. "It is time to take a crap and a nap, in that order!" My mom.

 

[phfitz]

Good evening people,

I still do not know what you are referring to but whatever.

"Instead of an arrogant quoting an arrent, I quote another philospher. "

Arrogant? O.K., next time try the spell check button honey.

'3 blind men with an elephant' a rather accurate description of the Zone System.

In case you have not figured it out, and no one else has in 50 years, there is a fatal flaw to the Zone System since it's inception which actually renders it meaningless. Whether the omission was intentional, a lack of knowledge or a honest mistake I do not know, I have never met A.A.

It's a simple fix that could mean a quantum leap for L.F. photography and printing AND it's hidden in plain sight. Have you found it yet???

Smile

 

[Ed Sukach]

In case you have not figured it out, and no one else has in 50 years, there is a fatal flaw to the Zone System since it's inception which actually renders it meaningless. Whether the omission was intentional, a lack of knowledge or a honest mistake I do not know, I have never met A.A.
It's a simple fix that could mean a quantum leap for L.F. photography and printing AND it's hidden in plain sight. Have you found it yet???

"You - and no one else in 50 years???" Yourself included?

So, tell me, what is this "flaw" that renders the Zone System "meaningless"?

A "Simple fix that could mean a quantum leap..." You set a high criteria for success. Sounds too good to be true .....

BTW -- I would advise you to be careful who you call "honey". There is one person here - nameless -* who has had considerable experience harvesting "mountain oysters" ...

*Aggie

 

[bmac]

Good evening people....It's a simple fix that could mean a quantum leap for L.F. photography and printing AND it's hidden in plain sight. Have you found it yet???

Smile

Is it my ignore button?

 

[Bob F.]

Hang on a sec...now, where did I put that "Please do not feed the Trolls" notice... nope, can't find it... had it here a few days ago... Ah well, give a Troll enough rope...