[rollei_list] Re: OT: Getting into 4x5 for the first time...

  • From: "Jeffrey L. Bromberger" <jeffrey@xxxxxxxx>
  • To: <rollei_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2008 12:08:24 -0400

Bob wrote:
> the whole essence of large format is one shot at a time - setting up,
> lighting, exposing one shot, development for the one shot, etc. -- not
> the mass processing of roll film much less the batch processing of
> digital!

Here's where I get frustrated.

There's lots of amazing reasons to shoot LF.  My personal fave is the fact that 
a perfectly exposed 4x5 chrome in Provia 400F is downright amazing to look at.

What really burns me is that I shoot (primarily) club and arena musicians, and 
getting them to stand still for this sort of photography is next to impossible. 
 I can picture this scene: "Hey, Mr. Musician, stop dancing around, playing 
your guitar, and wait for me to get this exposure off!!!"  :-)

Sure, the slow mentality is great when you have geological time frames to work 
in.  Or when you're capturing a building, bottle of Coke, pair of shoes, etc.  
What I need to train myself in is the "Weegee" sort of surety so that I can 
just pop a shot and know that what's on the film is exactly what I saw.

Does anybody here shoot 4x5 in a non-controlled environment?  Any aspiring 
press photogs out there that can share their tips on this aspect?

Obligatory Rollei point - I tend to shoot my 6008 system only indoors, too.  
It's too cumbersome for doing concert work.  I lean heavily on large (fast) 
telephoto lenses to get the shots I want and MF lenses would be too cumbersome 
to carry/use. Call it a small version of my view camera, only with a dedicated 
roll back and a waist level finder!

j
---
Jeffrey L. Bromberger
jeffrey@xxxxxxxx 

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