Category Polaroid 4×5 Conversion

Jul 8 2017

Finding Myself In The Old Ways…


It seems that I am addicted to film…

Miss Lue & A Hungry Egret

I still shoot with digital (A7RII) and love the look and capability of it, but FILM is what I go to every time I go out shooting… It is Terrible and exciting at the same time! It is so bad that I am looking for another freezer to store my excess film stock!

This is (again) Stormy Seas in Georgetown, SC

This is (again) Stormy Seas in Georgetown, SC (perhaps the most photographed boat in the Low Country). I have hundreds of images of it but I am pulled to photograph her in B&W film each and every time I am in Georgetown. There is something about her lines and textures that inspire me to document her life, and I have for years. Yes I will visit ANY shrimp boat (or grist mill for that matter) and each and every time I visit I see something different and unique… Yep addicted!

DATA:

The image was taken about 5 days ago on a 6×9 Fuji GW 690 II using medium format Fuji Acros 100 film and a red filter, developed in Perceptol 1:1 and Wet Mount scanned on a Epson 850 pro. The 6×9 format will give me 8 images per roll and I will usually scan 2 or 3 per roll, but I am very critical and selective because the wet scan process takes about 3/4 hour per scan!

The top image is near Stormy Seas in Georgetown, about 2 blocks away at another commercial dock and seafood house.  I have shot this a hundred times on both digital and film, but never have I captured such a pleasing image  as this.  It is to me a more enriching image full of mood, contrasts and tells a story.  I pleases me to no end the tell the story on an old FILM camera of an old boat and failing lifestyle just as the shrimp boat is in the background and the Egret in the foreground telling a different yet the same story!

There is also the consideration that is tied to the process of working in film.  It is slower and much more deliberate, a truer work of love in that you control every single step of the process…

  • Film choice (Kodak Tmax 100, Tmax 400, Fuji Acros 100 or Rollei IR400)
  • Camera and lens choice (Medium or Large Format)
  • Considering the composition and lines.  
  • Getting the exposure dead on (how many of you do that in digital?)
  • Adjusting for contrast and detail in shadows or highlights.
  • Film development and processing for highlights or shadows (another complete immersion of self discovery)
  • Drying (yep at lest 24 hours in a dust free drying cabinet)
  • Choosing the best image for exposure, sharpness, composition, contrasts, lines, dust & hair and so on..)
  • Wet scanning (at least a 1/2 to 3/4 hour project per shot)
  • Cleaning up on the computer by removing dust and hair and adding a bit of contrast)

All in all, the top image took about a week to complete from end to end!  I simply love the process, being immersed in it and becoming one in the creative process.   Yes it is slow but when I am done it is a total representation of MY PERSONAL VISION!

Film is making a HUGE come back in the world of photography!  So much so that you will be shocked when you visit Ebay and look at the prices of old film cameras and systems!   All of the major film makers in the world are increasing their production of films and even Kodak is bringing back discontinued film products!   New film companies like New55, Impossible Project, and FILM FERRANIA have opened up and are making emulsions!

Developing has never been easier, there are many mail order labs out there but you can process your own film in your kitchen with very little effort and investment!  You will need:

  • Dark Tent or changing bag to move your film to a daylight tank.
  • Daylight tank (I reccomend a Stainless Steel tank with steel developing reels by Hewes)
  • Distilled Water
  • Developer ( I recommend Perceptol by Ilford)
  • Stop Bath
  • Fixer
  • Wash
  • Water Rinse
  • Distilled water rinse with wetting agent
  • Clips to dry your film in your bathroom shower
  • A flat bed scanner like Epson 500, 600, 700, 800 or 850)

Total you are looking at about $120 for everything accept the scanner!   There are great videos on Youtube that will take you thru every step in the process!

Tybee Island Light, Kodak Tmax 100 FIlm on a Fuji GW 690 II camera.

The image above of the Tybee Island Lighthouse was taken last month on Kodak Tmax 100 rated at 50 ISO  on the 6×9 format medium format Fuji System.  It was hot and the area full of tourists, even up on the top of the lighthouse itself!  Still the act of creating this image was both fun and fulfilling and I walked away with exactly what I envisioned as I stood there looking at the scene!

I especially love shooting with Medium Format cameras.  They are easier to travel with and the negatives are large enough to give amazing prints.  I do have 3 4×5 large format cameras also that are great fun to you but as you can imagine, they are difficult to travel with.  Once in a great while I will shoot with a 35mm camera, usually smaller rangefinder that were sold in the 60’s and 70’s!

Medium Format:

  • Fuji GF 670 (this is my travel camera in 6×7 format with a 85mm lens that folds up into a thin light camera)
  • Fuji GW 690II (this is a 6×9 format camera with a 90mm lens and a bit larger and better built than the GF camera)
  • Fuji GW 690 III (a newer version of the 690II)

Large Format:

  • Shen Hao 4×5 Cherry Field Camera with 5 lenses and film adapters for also using 120 film.
  • Polaroid 900 converted to 4×5 with a 150mm Fujinon lens.  Think of 4×5 travel camera!
  • Polaroid 110B converted to 4×5 with a 90mm Schneider Angulon lens, again travel!

So, while film does indeed require much more effort over digital, the results simply cannot be compared.   These medium format negatives have a native resolution to create a 71×53 inch print without upsizing it at all!  The amount of detail is simply stunning and more importantly (at least t me) is the fact that the process become a Zen like activity in creation!

I hope that you enjoyed this post but more importantly to me at least that you considered my words on the creative process and taking complete control of it!

 

 

 

 

 

Jan 29 2017

Become the Master of your craft….


Pelican Dock - Type 55 4x5 Film, Wet Scan

Pelican Dock – Type 55 4×5 Film, Wet Scan

 

This is the Pelican Dock on Pawleys Island, SC. It is a 4″ x 5″ FILM image taken  on Polaroid Type 55 film from one of my film workshops.

Polaroid 900 w/ 150mm Fujinon lens converted to 4x5 by Steven Icanberry.

Polaroid 900 w/ 150mm Fujinon lens converted to 4×5 by Steven Icanberry.

I did this with a Polaroid 900 converted to 4×5 format camera and the film was expired (16 years) Type 55 instant 4×5 film that also creates a fragile negative which was scanned Wet Mount on an Epson 850 . This single image costs about $35 to create and process!

But look closely at the image, notice the calm peace of the scene, the amazing clarity and sharpness that is a gift when working with large format film, but more importantly, the edge process markings created when working with this amazing film!

But of greater importance than how I created this image is the why…

We all see amazing scenes as we travel through life, but how many of us actually take the time to really experience and feel on an emotional level what we are actually experiencing as we create our art? I watch so many great photographers skitter from scene to scene like a bee to pollen that it leaves me feeling sad.

Let me ask you, “How can you create art that will appeal to your viewers on an emotional level if you yourself refuse to slow down long enough to feel the emotional impact yourself as you create it?

The key here is to stand before the scene and take it all I. Get a feel for what you desire to share with your viewers before you even pick up your camera! SLOW DOWN, take your time, investigate it from many angles and exposures. Yes this is a single image, in fact the only one I took due to the cost, but I spent a half hour studying the scene, moving around looking for the best impact and knowing that I would get the edge markings and using them to increase overall impact!

This is a hard lesson to learn and harder still to practice. This is one of the the lessons forced upon us who still shoot film as I do. After all, Film = $. We have to slow down and make every shot count so the next logical step is to connect on an emotional level with your subject and thus create art that is charged with mood that will draw your viewer in.

Just because I use FILM as an example here for you do not think that it does not apply to digital!  Yes, once you pay back the investment of your digital equipment with image sales (you do sell your work don’t you?) the cost per image is basically paid only in terms of your time.   But time also has a value and if by slowing down and imparting emotional impact in your image then you will be on the true path of photographic nirvana!

Take your time, explore your scene, feel it’s emotional impact, SLOW Down!

Do not copy the Bee, rather strive to be a master of photography…

Dec 10 2016

Mark Hilliard, ATELIER is the East Coast Representative for Alpenhause Kamera Werke


Polaroid 4×5 conversions

Steven Icanberry’s Alpenhause Kamera Werke Polaroid 110b and 900 camera conversions for 4×5 and select instant films

My Polaroid 110b with 90mm Super Angulon

My Polaroid 110b with 90mm Super Angulon

You have to see these wonderful camera systems! They are as functional as beautiful! If you have one of these Polaroid cameras, or a large format lens in the range of 90mm to 150mm (we have a list of what works and what doesn’t).  Steven can create a CUSTOM conversion just for you!

For your conversion he will:

  • Clean and make any repairs to the rangefinder.
  • Clean and test your lens of choice.
  • Calibrate the rangefinder within the camera to the lens.
  • Modify the frame lines for the lens.
  • Change the camera’s clothes and paint colors to make your camera an original that you can be proud of!
  • He has many options for the systems also.

 

Back view showing the custom machined back.

Back view showing the custom machined back.

I have 2 of his conversions and can tell you that they are amazing camera systems. He has a custom designed machined metal camera back that can hold any standard film holder that is the nicest on the market.

My 900 converted to 4x5 by Alpenhause Kamera Werke

My 900 converted to 4×5 by Alpenhause Kamera Werke

You can call me if you would like to visit and see my conversions from Steven to get a “hands on”.

In the meantime here is a LINK to a post I did on Steven several months ago!

You can visit Stevens web site HERE!