New to LF photography ~ any help appreciated!

[Jodie Chapman]

Hi there,

I am a photographer who has just taken the plunge and bought myself a large format camera from the 1890s. The camera is very old and therefore does not come with a manual, but I am pretty sure it is a 4x5 camera. It comes with an amazing lens that stops down to 5.6 - the guy I bought it from (trustworthy dealer) said it is an incredible lens that is worth hundreds of pounds in itself. The camera also comes with an original oak tripod.

I am totally new to this field of photography. I am a pro photographer who does mainly weddings and portraits. All my pro work is digital, but I use a 1950s Rolleiflex, Nikon f90X, polaroid sx-70 etc for personal work, so am aware of the workings of a camera. LF is totally new to me however. I would be looking to use it for personal work.

I am looking to get myself booked on a course in Kent/London so that I can learn it a little better, but I was wondering if anyone had any tips/advice out there on what else I can do to get to know this craft? I'm well aware it will be a steep learning curve, but that makes it all the more exciting for me and I am well up for the challenge.

Thanks so much everyone.

Going to try and post a few images of the camera to see if that helps...

[Andrew Plume]

Hi Jodie

welcome to the forum, we're a decent bunch on here..........................

can't quite read the writing on the barrel of the lens, can you post what it say's please?

f5.6 is the widest aperture, the smallest will probably be f50 or possibly 64

did the camera come with any film holders, which will probbaly have been the old style 'book holders' rather than the modern kind?

can you post a photo of the back as well, please?

I've a decent collection of LF manuals and allied books etc - if you'd care to send me a pm, I'll let you know exactly what I have (which hopefully will help), instead of clogging up the forum with a lengthy post


andrew

[Jodie Chapman]

Hi Andrew, thanks so much for taking the time to reply.

I've now been informed that the camera is either 5x7 or 8x5, what used to be called half plate. I was then told I would get a more accurate measurement if I measured the back of the camera, which comes out at 6.5 x 4.7 inches. Does that sound right? The dealer also mentioned another option is to mount a universal back on the camera and use it at 5x4, which will allow me to use "normal DD slides and cut film". Sound right?

I've attached a few more images, showing the reverse of the camera, close-up of the writing on the camera and the film holder provided.

The writing on the lens reads: "No 54565 Ross & (Ectra Rapid) London, 8x5 Universal Symmetrical" and it ranges from f/5.6 through to f/64. I've been told it's an excellent lens. The camera doesn't come with a proper shutter, so I've been told that as well as selecting f-stop, I have to control the exposure by removing the lens cap and replacing it after a certain time.

Like I said, I am totally new to this field of photography. I understand exposure etc, but I don't even know what film/sheet film etc I would use to take pictures with this. Any help anyone can give me or point me in the direction of would be very gratefully received!!! Sorry if I sound like a hopeless novice ~ I really want to learn all about this but am clueless as to where to start.

Once again, thank you so much!

[Paul Arthur]

Hi Jodie

Really pleased to see you on here - I've kept an eye on what you've been up to over the last 18 months and I'm really pleased that I'm not the only digital reliant pro that appreciates large old-fashioned film cameras! Really like your work too, by the way. I'm friends with Tamara Kuzminski, who I believe you know from your time up in Cumbria? Incidentally she has also moved over to the dark slide for her landscape work.

Anyway, moving on...

It looks to me as if you'd have difficulty attaching an international back without actually disassembling the camera and drilling holes, although that last picture is interesting - It looks to me like it's the place where you would put a glass plate though, and if so I think you'd struggle to get film in there. I suppose you could mount a sheet of film on something in that space, provided it mounted the film in the right place.

The measurements you gave suggest that it's a half plate camera, so you could in theory attach a 5x4 or even 5x7 DDS to it with space to spare, although this would of course reply on you bodging something together to make it fit. You'd also need to be very careful to make sure that the film would be in the same place as the focussing screen. Having had a google around I don't think it's that easy to convert a half plate camera the age of yours to a 5x7:

http://photo.net/large-format-photography-forum/003Eim

If you do manage it you'll need to note that you'll have to use very small apertures if you don't have a shutter as you'll probably need exposures of several seconds. You'll also need to use low iso film, and you'll need to be careful of the reciprocity failure associated with the long exposures.

Hope this has been helpful at all, although I'm sorry that as far as I know there isn't an easy solution to let you make images straight away.

Paul

[Andrew Plume]

It looks to me as if you'd have difficulty attaching an international back without actually disassembling the camera and drilling holes, although that last picture is interesting - It looks to me like it's the place where you would put a glass plate though, and if so I think you'd struggle to get film in there. I suppose you could mount a sheet of film on something in that space, provided it mounted the film in the right place.

The measurements you gave suggest that it's a half plate camera, so you could in theory attach a 5x4 or even 5x7 DDS to it with space to spare, although this would of course reply on you bodging something together to make it fit. You'd also need to be very careful to make sure that the film would be in the same place as the focussing screen. Having had a google around I don't think it's that easy to convert a half plate camera the age of yours to a 5x7:

Hi Paul

you've pretty well confirmed what I thought when i read the above and I've said the same to Jodie in a pm

andrew

[Jodie Chapman]

Hi Paul,

Thanks so much for your reply and small world! So pleased you like my work and how funny you know Tamara ~ we spoke on the phone just yesterday!

Thanks for your advice. I know I haven't done myself any favours by buying something so niche, but I'm determined to make it work somehow! It will just require some more research and learning on my part. Thanks so much for taking the time to reply, and also thanks to Andrew for all his help.

[Charles Twist]

I am not sure what Andrew had to say (obviously) and I am still myself learning about these old systems, so you might want to ignore some of this. However... The camera looks lovely and I would be loath to drill it. Would it be possible to insert a glass plate in the holder? Would it then also be possible to use double-sided tape to stick some modern film on it? By placing the tape on the glass where the edges & corners of the sheet would be, it ought to be possible to load film in the dark with some accuracy. Alternative processes do exist for rigid surfaces, such as wet plate collodion, but that's a totally different ball-game. I am not sure what type of picture you'd want to achieve: how sharp, how soft.
What Paul says about the exposure times is right, but there are other ways than the aperture, eg using a heavy ND filter. I say this because the lenses of that vintage are really very good at smaller apertures, and exhibit more "character" at larger apertures, mainly a softening at the edges, which might be desirable.
The other thing is the lack of multi-coating which makes flare and glare real problems. Watch out for stray light and consider a hood.
It's a great project and I feel you're in at the deep end. I wish you well. Good luck!
Charles

[Jodie Chapman]

Hi Charles,

Thanks so much for your reply. I'm going to get some 3mm glass cut to try and keep the film in place. I've been told it's an old dry plate camera so I'll have to get the glass to keep the film in place. Wet plate collodion is a route I want to travel in the future, but I think I might have to get another camera so as not to ruin this one!

Thanks so much.

[IanG]

Missed this thread earlier. Great camera BTW.

Jodie, I've just made an adapter to fit a roll film back to my British Quarter plate camera. I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to make an adapter to take modern 5x4 film holders that would slip in like the book-form plate holders.

The alternative would be to make a whole new back, easiest would be using a Pacemaker Crown/Speed Graphic back, that's how the previous owner of my main 10x8 Agfa Ansco made a reducing back so he could use Polaroid for test exposures. Having restored a much earlier Speed Graphic someone with reasonable wood working skills could easily make a complete back.

If you can find a Thornton Pickard shutter, preferably one with a few shutter speeds instead of T & I, then you'd have greater control, also you could make a spare lens board and use a modern lens as well

Ian