5 ms·

Getting started with large format film photography

80 points by azalemeth 5y ago

aaaaaaaaaaab 5y ago
Ah, I see you also went down the rabbit hole from yesterday’s yaw-free view camera post :]
- buildbot 5y ago
  I somehow missed this, would you mind linking it?
  - ag56 5y ago
    I guess: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28306355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28306355
null_object 5y ago
One other thing not mentioned in the article: new large format cameras are being produced all over the world right now (so no need to hunt down ‘antique’ models if you don’t want to have the hassle of maintaining older equipment). These include Chroma cameras in the UK, Arca Swiss in France, Chamonix from China and very many more. The experience of shooting large format is massively immersive: I take way longer over each image than the writer in the article, easily stretching to a half hour until I finally take a single image. It’s rare that I have more than 3 or 4 images at the end of a whole day - but the whole experience is really satisfying and meditative: my partner likens it to a day’s fishing
- anfractuosity 5y ago
  Arca Swiss, isn't related to Alpa Swiss is it? - https://www.alpa.swiss/ https://www.alpa.swiss/ I think I recall hearing they use extremely fine metal shims that you add to get the image focus spot on. It definitely sounds a fascinating hobby. I've been looking at some of the cheap plastic belowless large format cameras, I'm not sure how good they'd be though? Do you develop the film yourself btw? I assume sending off dark slides might be expensive?
  - i_am_proteus 5y ago
    The focusing mechanisms on the bellowless tend to be dodgy or nonexistent, and the good ones cost as much as a bellows camera. Ultimately, the lenses for these cameras are still not that cheap, so the overall savings on a low-quality body may not be worth it.
  - throw0101a 5y ago
    > Arca Swiss, isn't related to Alpa Swiss is it? * https://www.arca-shop.de/en/ https://www.arca-shop.de/en/
  - michrassena 5y ago
    Rather than buy some all-in-one 3D-printed camera, if you live in the United States, Graflex press cameras are relatively cheap and abundant. Expect to pay $200 with a 135mm lens, maybe a little more with a few film holders. These cameras don't do everything that a view camera like the Arca Swiss will do (few movements -- you can't twist them like a pretzel). But it's enough to dip your toes in and see if you even like the process before making a big investment. (edit: just make sure you don't buy the 3.25" x 4.25" model, you'll have a really hard time finding film)
  - buildbot 5y ago
    Both Alpa and Arca exist as separate companies :)
- Wistar 5y ago
  From my father, I inherited several large format cameras, a stunningly beautiful cherry wood and brass (maybe rosewood?) Wista 4x5 field camera, a camera on a rail (Linhof?) that looks very technical and a couple others, maybe even an 8x10 in the collection. Also a couple dozen lenses, mostly Rodenstock but there's some Nikkor and a couple Fujinon. I haven't thought much about them but maybe I should.
  - ekianjo 5y ago
    if you have no use for them please dont let them fade away in some storage space :)
    - xdennis 5y ago
      Given that his name is Wistar (the name of some Wista lenses) I assume he does put them to good use.
      - Wistar 5y ago
        Pure coincidence.
    - Wistar 5y ago
      Alas, that is exactly what has happened. They are in these rubberized, humidity-protective bags within hard cases but they are languishing in my garage storage area.
glup 5y ago
I took up large format film two years ago and I’ve found it to be extremely rewarding. Film has a different response to light than digital sensors, the size of the negative lets you do things you can’t with digital, and then there are camera movements (tilt and shift). Developing film and printing are also very fun, and feel a lot more like cooking.
codpiece 5y ago
I would like to do more of this, I have camera and processing equipment, but it's extremely hard to dispose of the chemistry. Some of the ingredients are highly toxic to fish. Lots of discussions on waste disposal on forums, but unless your town recycles chemistry or you have a college with a film lab nearby, your (my) options are limited.
- i_am_proteus 5y ago
  Pour the used chemistry into cat litter and let it dry out, then dispose of the litter in a plastic trash bag.
  - buildbot 5y ago
    Is this recommended? It sounds like a much better alternative than “it’s not too much silver halide down the drain”
    - i_am_proteus 5y ago
      It's recommended by me, at least.
- woodruffw 5y ago
  I haven't tried it myself, but caffenol[1] might be an alternative if you're shooting B&W. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffenol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffenol
  - jrockway 5y ago
    The environmental risk is from unexposed silver halide that you rinse off the film in the fixing step. The developer isn't really the harmful chemical; though do read the MSDS for the developer you use and follow its instructions. (I wouldn't want to absorb it through my skin, breathe too much of the vapor, drink it, etc. True of the chemicals I use to clean my bathroom, too. Risk can be mitigated through proper safety measures!) People reuse fixer, or at least I do, but there is a point where it's exhausted and needs to be discarded. My understanding is that the environmental risk from hobbyist developing is exceedingly low and dispose of it accordingly. If I were deeply concerned, I'd just let the liquid evaporate and store the solids in a plastic bag in a drawer. (That seems to be the NileRed approach to metal waste. When you're tired of the bag, you pay for professional service to take it away.)
frosted-flakes 5y ago
I saw a fascinating video on YouTube a few years ago by Tim Hunkin (of Secret Life of Machines), where he uses his home-made Cibachrome camera to shoot ultra-large format film. By ultra-large, I mean poster-sized, and the camera is made out of old road signs. He develops the film positive right in the camera, and within a few minutes he has a very large photograph. Cibachrome was last produced in 2011, and this was Tim's sendoff. https://youtu.be/5AOlPuTQt-M https://youtu.be/5AOlPuTQt-M Here's the Wikipedia article about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilfochrome https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilfochrome
dghughes 5y ago
I have a Mamiya 645J and a Yashica Mat 124G and some old accordion type cameras more for show. I haven't used any of them in at least 20 years. I developed my own film too but only black and white not colour it's so much harder to get into. I would feel so self-conscious now if I took them out they are so obviously a camera compared to stealthy cameras on phones. There's so much knowledge need to take a great picture the composition, light levels, shutter speed, focus. It sounds simple but even with everything perfect I could never get a good picture.
- JKCalhoun 5y ago
  I got into medium format a few years ago — picked up a Mamiya, Yashica, a few others off eBay (probably like my Bronica the best). Developed B&W film first (no prints, I scan using a flatbed scanner). After watching a few YouTube videos, went ahead and developer a few rolls of color film. It went fine — although there are rather strict temperatures you have to maintain. I am still smitten by the B&W photos and a few candid portraits I managed of friends and family. I may stick with B&W. Since I am mainly photographing friends and family I suppose I am not self-conscious. To be sure though I think when I am out in public there is a curiosity about the camera. Not in a bad way. I have heard others say that the twin-reflex (like your Yashica) are in some ways more discreet than a smart phone since you generally shoot from the waist...
dreamcompiler 5y ago
I used to do this many years ago with Polaroid types 105 and 55 film. It's 4x5 film and it works in almost any 4x5 camera. It develops instantly and you get both a B&W print and a high-quality B&W negative from a single exposure. No darkroom needed. It was awesome. No idea if it's still available but I hope it is. Might be time to revisit that hobby.
- i_am_proteus 5y ago
  Polaroid and Fuji discontinued their large and medium format instant films, but a new shop, One Instant, is producing some Type 100, at ten euros an exposure.[0] There was a shop producing some large format peel apart, New55, but production wasn't economical (even at something like $17/shot retail) so they shut down.[1] [0]https://the.supersense.com/collections/packfilm https://the.supersense.com/collections/packfilm [1]https://new55project.blogspot.com/ https://new55project.blogspot.com/

80 points by azalemeth 5y ago

aaaaaaaaaaab 5y ago

Ah, I see you also went down the rabbit hole from yesterday’s yaw-free view camera post :]

buildbot 5y ago
I somehow missed this, would you mind linking it?
- ag56 5y ago
  I guess: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28306355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28306355

null_object 5y ago

One other thing not mentioned in the article: new large format cameras are being produced all over the world right now (so no need to hunt down ‘antique’ models if you don’t want to have the hassle of maintaining older equipment). These include Chroma cameras in the UK, Arca Swiss in France, Chamonix from China and very many more. The experience of shooting large format is massively immersive: I take way longer over each image than the writer in the article, easily stretching to a half hour until I finally take a single image. It’s rare that I have more than 3 or 4 images at the end of a whole day - but the whole experience is really satisfying and meditative: my partner likens it to a day’s fishing

anfractuosity 5y ago
Arca Swiss, isn't related to Alpa Swiss is it? - https://www.alpa.swiss/ https://www.alpa.swiss/ I think I recall hearing they use extremely fine metal shims that you add to get the image focus spot on. It definitely sounds a fascinating hobby. I've been looking at some of the cheap plastic belowless large format cameras, I'm not sure how good they'd be though? Do you develop the film yourself btw? I assume sending off dark slides might be expensive?
- i_am_proteus 5y ago
  The focusing mechanisms on the bellowless tend to be dodgy or nonexistent, and the good ones cost as much as a bellows camera. Ultimately, the lenses for these cameras are still not that cheap, so the overall savings on a low-quality body may not be worth it.
- throw0101a 5y ago
  > Arca Swiss, isn't related to Alpa Swiss is it? * https://www.arca-shop.de/en/ https://www.arca-shop.de/en/
- michrassena 5y ago
  Rather than buy some all-in-one 3D-printed camera, if you live in the United States, Graflex press cameras are relatively cheap and abundant. Expect to pay $200 with a 135mm lens, maybe a little more with a few film holders. These cameras don't do everything that a view camera like the Arca Swiss will do (few movements -- you can't twist them like a pretzel). But it's enough to dip your toes in and see if you even like the process before making a big investment. (edit: just make sure you don't buy the 3.25" x 4.25" model, you'll have a really hard time finding film)
- buildbot 5y ago
  Both Alpa and Arca exist as separate companies :)
Wistar 5y ago
From my father, I inherited several large format cameras, a stunningly beautiful cherry wood and brass (maybe rosewood?) Wista 4x5 field camera, a camera on a rail (Linhof?) that looks very technical and a couple others, maybe even an 8x10 in the collection. Also a couple dozen lenses, mostly Rodenstock but there's some Nikkor and a couple Fujinon. I haven't thought much about them but maybe I should.
- ekianjo 5y ago
  if you have no use for them please dont let them fade away in some storage space :)
  - xdennis 5y ago
    Given that his name is Wistar (the name of some Wista lenses) I assume he does put them to good use.
    - Wistar 5y ago
      Pure coincidence.
  - Wistar 5y ago
    Alas, that is exactly what has happened. They are in these rubberized, humidity-protective bags within hard cases but they are languishing in my garage storage area.

glup 5y ago

I took up large format film two years ago and I’ve found it to be extremely rewarding. Film has a different response to light than digital sensors, the size of the negative lets you do things you can’t with digital, and then there are camera movements (tilt and shift). Developing film and printing are also very fun, and feel a lot more like cooking.

codpiece 5y ago

I would like to do more of this, I have camera and processing equipment, but it's extremely hard to dispose of the chemistry. Some of the ingredients are highly toxic to fish. Lots of discussions on waste disposal on forums, but unless your town recycles chemistry or you have a college with a film lab nearby, your (my) options are limited.

i_am_proteus 5y ago
Pour the used chemistry into cat litter and let it dry out, then dispose of the litter in a plastic trash bag.
- buildbot 5y ago
  Is this recommended? It sounds like a much better alternative than “it’s not too much silver halide down the drain”
  - i_am_proteus 5y ago
    It's recommended by me, at least.
woodruffw 5y ago
I haven't tried it myself, but caffenol[1] might be an alternative if you're shooting B&W. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffenol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffenol
- jrockway 5y ago
  The environmental risk is from unexposed silver halide that you rinse off the film in the fixing step. The developer isn't really the harmful chemical; though do read the MSDS for the developer you use and follow its instructions. (I wouldn't want to absorb it through my skin, breathe too much of the vapor, drink it, etc. True of the chemicals I use to clean my bathroom, too. Risk can be mitigated through proper safety measures!) People reuse fixer, or at least I do, but there is a point where it's exhausted and needs to be discarded. My understanding is that the environmental risk from hobbyist developing is exceedingly low and dispose of it accordingly. If I were deeply concerned, I'd just let the liquid evaporate and store the solids in a plastic bag in a drawer. (That seems to be the NileRed approach to metal waste. When you're tired of the bag, you pay for professional service to take it away.)

frosted-flakes 5y ago

I saw a fascinating video on YouTube a few years ago by Tim Hunkin (of Secret Life of Machines), where he uses his home-made Cibachrome camera to shoot ultra-large format film. By ultra-large, I mean poster-sized, and the camera is made out of old road signs. He develops the film positive right in the camera, and within a few minutes he has a very large photograph. Cibachrome was last produced in 2011, and this was Tim's sendoff. https://youtu.be/5AOlPuTQt-M https://youtu.be/5AOlPuTQt-M Here's the Wikipedia article about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilfochrome https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilfochrome

dghughes 5y ago

I have a Mamiya 645J and a Yashica Mat 124G and some old accordion type cameras more for show. I haven't used any of them in at least 20 years. I developed my own film too but only black and white not colour it's so much harder to get into. I would feel so self-conscious now if I took them out they are so obviously a camera compared to stealthy cameras on phones. There's so much knowledge need to take a great picture the composition, light levels, shutter speed, focus. It sounds simple but even with everything perfect I could never get a good picture.

JKCalhoun 5y ago
I got into medium format a few years ago — picked up a Mamiya, Yashica, a few others off eBay (probably like my Bronica the best). Developed B&W film first (no prints, I scan using a flatbed scanner). After watching a few YouTube videos, went ahead and developer a few rolls of color film. It went fine — although there are rather strict temperatures you have to maintain. I am still smitten by the B&W photos and a few candid portraits I managed of friends and family. I may stick with B&W. Since I am mainly photographing friends and family I suppose I am not self-conscious. To be sure though I think when I am out in public there is a curiosity about the camera. Not in a bad way. I have heard others say that the twin-reflex (like your Yashica) are in some ways more discreet than a smart phone since you generally shoot from the waist...

dreamcompiler 5y ago

I used to do this many years ago with Polaroid types 105 and 55 film. It's 4x5 film and it works in almost any 4x5 camera. It develops instantly and you get both a B&W print and a high-quality B&W negative from a single exposure. No darkroom needed. It was awesome. No idea if it's still available but I hope it is. Might be time to revisit that hobby.

i_am_proteus 5y ago
Polaroid and Fuji discontinued their large and medium format instant films, but a new shop, One Instant, is producing some Type 100, at ten euros an exposure.[0] There was a shop producing some large format peel apart, New55, but production wasn't economical (even at something like $17/shot retail) so they shut down.[1] [0]https://the.supersense.com/collections/packfilm https://the.supersense.com/collections/packfilm [1]https://new55project.blogspot.com/ https://new55project.blogspot.com/