[Leica] LUG Digest, Vol 47, Issue 31

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

Large format camera work by amateurs can be a little dry.
But in the long run these people have a level of commitment which of course
exceeds the hand held small camera shooters. The work done by "serious"
amateurs large format shooters are legend.
The bottom line is the happy snappers like to think that the people who are
more serious about it are hurting themselves.
Especially now with digital there is great self righteousness against
crafting an image. Like that's a bad thing.

The irony to me in my work has been that the smaller the camera format the
harder it is to get good prints.
Someone versed in 4x5 technique would be lost trying to print perfect prints
from 35mm. Even medium format.
Sheet film you can develop it in anything and drop it on the floor and tap
dance on it then slap it in the Omega and knock out a  perfect clean print.
A 35mm neg you look at it funny and you've compromised it.


--------------------
Mark William Rabiner
Photography
http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/lugalrabs/
mark at rabinergroup.com
Cars:   http://tinyurl.com/2f7ptxb




> From: Bill and Sue Pearce <bs.pearce at cox.net>
> Reply-To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2011 14:13:19 -0600
> To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> Subject: Re: [Leica] LUG Digest, Vol 47, Issue 31
> 
> In my experience, I have found that it takes a very special unusual person
> to be able to apply that level of technical regidity in a way that does not
> sap the life from art.
> 
>  
> 
> Bill Pearce
> 
>  
> 
>> On Jan 3, 2011, at 19:30, Ken Carney <kcarney1 at cox.net> wrote:
>> 
>>> My first photo seminar was with a Famous West Coast Photographer.  His
> advice
>>> was ditch the 35mm and get a real camera (I think I brought an M3 and a
>>> couple of Summicrons, or maybe a Contax to the class, but definitely
> TriX).
>>> So I bought a nice 4x5 field outfit, a Linhof Technica and lenses, and
> for
>>> good measure an 8x10 rig also.  The focus part was a little tedious.
> Once
>>> you knew the distance to the target, you pulled out a little chart for
> each
>>> lens that showed the range of focus for each stop, based on your desired
>>> circle of confusion.  Then you measured the various zones, which gave you
> the
>>> key to the ISO for that shot and thus the development time for that
>>> particular sheet, based on your densitometer tests.  After, of course,
> you
>>> had consulted your reciprocity failure chart.  Sometimes it happened that
> by
>>> the time I made the exposure everything of interest, including the light,
> had
>>> vanished.  Then the light bulb began to flicker on that something
>>> more...immediate...m
>>  ight be appropriate.  Then, Gracia Dios, along came digital and the
> exposure
>> comp dial.
>>> 
>>> Ken
> 
> 
> 
> 
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