How to spend a few hours

[ddb]

I found this link and have spent hours looking at all the great photographs there. These photographers were probably shooting Speed Graphics with 4x5 slide film. Look at the perfect exposures - no digital manipulation, no dodging or burning - just spot on exposures. Also, look at the bottom of the page for more links.

Captured: America in Color from 1939-1943 – Plog Photo Blog

 

[DDG]

Good Lord, talk about "high dynamic range". Some...many of these pictures are astounding. Thank you.

 

[mauve]

Impressive.

 

[silverbullet]

Good Lord, talk about "high dynamic range". Some...many of these pictures are astounding. Thank you.

You want to shoot in 4x5?

Just watch ebay, get an old Pola and this amazing conversion and off you go -

forget the Mickey Mouse sensor of a m4/3.......

Home

 

[Streetshooter]

I used to use small format cameras like 4x5 but the IQ didn't compare to my 8 x 10 or 11x14 Deardorffs....

 

[feppe]

Plenty of people shoot large format film even today, and manage to get perfect exposures right out of the camera. I know it's an alien concept these days for many, but still..

Also, here color photos from 40 years earlier.

 

[deirdre]

I used to use small format cameras like 4x5 but the IQ didn't compare to my 8 x 10 or 11x14 Deardorffs....

A photo friend's boss shoots in 16 x 20.

I can't imagine having a camera I'd need a trailer for.

 

[ddb]

My goodness! What do you suppose a sheet of 16 x 20 film and the processing cost?

 

[deirdre]

My goodness! What do you suppose a sheet of 16 x 20 film and the processing cost?

$84 for 10 sheets.

He does his own processing, apparently, but it's still not cheap. On the other hand, think of the contact prints you could make!

 

[feppe]

A photo friend's boss shoots in 16 x 20.

I can't imagine having a camera I'd need a trailer for.

Trailer, you were saying?

 

[Krang]

YouTube - Polaroid_20x24 NY Phil Bekker I've allways found these polaroids very tempting…

 

[Tecpatl4]

. Look at the perfect exposures - no digital manipulation, no dodging or burning - just spot on exposures. Also, look at the bottom of the page for more links.

Think about it a different way. They were using fixed lens cameras, and although they had more options, they probably would only have 10 or 15 combinations of shutter speed and apature that they would routinely use, especially outdoors.There was no white balance, art modes, or lenses to worry about, so really there was very little to learn. Under those conditions it doesn't take long to be able to make almost perfect exposures just by estimating. My dad used to do it all the time. After 15 years as a police photographer he hardly ever used a meter.