lf-photo.org.uk

NPS fans, read it and weep....

http://www.michaelsebastian.com/blog/?p=2081

Damn Fuji....

They seem to be dumping everything they can, don't they...

It would be good to get a definitive position for the UK market.
http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPa ... age=873759
From this it appears, for example, that Pro160s is discontinued only in 135.
I'd just stocked up on 160S in 120, 4x5 and 10x8.

I'm glad that I signed up for a collodion workshop.

Marizu

That sounds a little more hopeful, at least. Time will tell who's right, I guess.

joolsb wrote:NPS fans, read it and weep....

http://www.michaelsebastian.com/blog/?p=2081

I get the feeling that we'll be left with Velvia and Provia and nothing else soon - good job Kodak have a good attitude toward film..

My freezer cannot hold much more.... (3 out of 4 drawers filled with film) just awaiting the last (May) delivery of QL Velvia 50 x 6 boxes, another box each of Pro160S & Provia, and 2 x 20 sheet boxes of 5x4 sheet film Acros (from MACO, in Germany)

Yes, getting sadder by the day. I have reached a bit of a difficult decision after the ql demise and have started bailing out of LF to digital. Just two difficult to replace lenses and camera left and will work with D3X & T/S lenses for a while. If I can get what I want out of that then the rest can go !

davejt3 wrote:Yes, getting sadder by the day. I have reached a bit of a difficult decision after the ql demise and have started bailing out of LF to digital. Just two difficult to replace lenses and camera left and will work with D3X & T/S lenses for a while. If I can get what I want out of that then the rest can go !

You could always add a digital back to your LF camera or go for an Orbix....

davejt3 wrote:Yes, getting sadder by the day. I have reached a bit of a difficult decision after the ql demise and have started bailing out of LF to digital. Just two difficult to replace lenses and camera left and will work with D3X & T/S lenses for a while. If I can get what I want out of that then the rest can go !

I'd think carefully about this as I really think your large format work is very good and a lot better than the digital I've seen (which, I should add, is by no means bad). The quality of colour and your attention to detail are really worth the effort. A fairly definitive list of film changes is on Japan Exposures.. If I were going to ditch large format, I would have a look at using a hassie with a tilt shift mount..

http://www.japanexposures.com/2010/02/2 ... lm-lineup/

The good news is that 20 sheet boxes mean at least a reasonable future for the sheet films that are staying. 160 may be on it's way out but I think most people feel Portra is a better choice and the possibilities with Ektar are quite exciting..

Tim

Thks Tim, I agree - I havent really given the digi a proper go with the same discipline as LF (largely handheld and at higher isos) and early signs on the D3X files are that they are superb. The 5x4 crop is well executed with shading and still 20.4mp, the viewfinder is excellent, focus of the t/s lenses is easy. I am just going to park the rest of the kit at the back of a cupboard for a while. It might be that a change to a small camera is the answer as I really only use the 110mm with any regularity. As a scenic snapper I could get away with an RSW and the 110mm lens. I wont do anything too precipitous because the scope for a long and expensive lament is high. The arca is a superb system camera, the best I have ever used / owned and its resale value low.... The D3X is bought and paid for with a cupboard clear out without touching anything I used very much except for my 200mm nikkor.

As a scenic snapper I could get away with an RSW and the 110mm lens.

If you're looking to buy, I have an RSW in excellent nick which I could be tempted into selling....

It is tempting to become despondant, but I don't think we should give up hope now. For me it is about the enjoyment of taking photos, and I enjoy LF more than my digital camera. Much more. And I think I take better pictures with it as well. Probably due to slowing down and taking more care, but also due to the upside down image that is impossible to reproduce digitally. If LF users turn digital, there definitely won't be any film to use any more....

Jenny, your right, it is the being there and the taking of pictures that is the joy. Its a question of whether the current process gets in the way of that enjoyment and whether a 'new' process would be any better or just another set of compromises.

Think about it. Digital is more about compromise than LF....

I share Jenny's view. I had been using a digital camera for both wildlife and landscape photography and reverted to using film again for landscapes and architecture. I have never stopped using film for photomicrography (with my OM1 and its lock up mirror & a clear screen) or for documentary work. I did a large series of architectural images for my workplace which my employer has the rights to and I gave up my copyright to them, in digital format. My next series will be in 5x4 on film as the camera movements result in perspectivly correct images and on LF film they have much greater visual impact. One of my digital images was used to make a very large poster, but it would have looked much better had the original been taken using 5x4 Velvia 100. My landscape images from Spitsbergen taken last year are more impressive that their digital equivalents with the added advantage of being able to have sharpness in both fore- and background. The DoF using stopdown on the digital camera is much less impressive.

I'd keep the LF outfit.