RE: [Digital BW] Rolleiflex to be liquidated / Elliot
2015-03-14 by Jim Bechtel
Hi Elliot, Admittedly it's a tad different but then again not really. I was really slow to move off of film for 35mm. I was told stubborn. But I started drum scanning my 35mm long ago and just really got comfortable with that work flow.. So I was in part a digital head but maybe didn't go all the way at first.. I was drum scanning for a long time prior to getting my first digital which for me was a D1X .. Anyway I have 2 drum scanners here a Howtek Hi resolve that Aztek has upgraded to their spec and also a Heidelberg Tango plus a Heidelberg Nexscan 4200 LF flatbed.. Anyway I still use my 4x5 all the time in the studio with a BL back for art repro.. so there not going anywhere.. and I have a few clients that still want a 4x5 or an 8x10 of their art work.. I make it a point to haul the "beasts" out at least 3 or 4 times a year.. it's hard to explain.. almost like a religion in a way.. I behave totally different shooting a 4x5 or the 8x10 .. I think nothing of using a D4 or a D800 as a Gatling gun but when shooting the larger formats .well it's like watching paint dry sometimes. And everything that know or think I know lives in that one shutter release. It's kinda hard to explain.. Pushing the shutter at the wrong time on an 8x10 is what I call a $150.00 mistake.. So this discipline honestly helps keep me in line and in tune and makes sure that I pay attention.. Cameras to me are just tools that are supposed to do what I want. Many are letting their skills and their brains go to sleep with the new digitals. I have been unable to let that happen for me. So Film.. I have a Jobo ATL 2300 here that when warranted I fire it up.. but it has become a convenience for me to send it out if I don't have enough work to justify it.. I have been working with an outfit in Bozeman ( F11 our pro shop here) and it gets sent to a processor in Washington state.. ( I'll get the name of them for you) .. They have never botched for me and if I have any special needs they always deal with them.. It has honestly worked quite well. As far as your insights regarding Platinum printing .. right on.. That is absolutely something I'm trying to really work into here. My deal is I want to do big not small but 2015 will hopefully allow me to come out of the closet on this.. To go a step further in my craziness.. I am totally stuck on the concept of writing a digital file however it was acquired back to film. There are still government standards and specs that require a piece of film as a deliverable. They will not accept digital.. So a film recorder might be kinda nice.. J.. (are you reading this John? Might be a good nitch..) jimbo
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From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2015 9:30 AM To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Digital BW] Rolleiflex to be liquidated That's an interesting way to work Jimbo. I admit to reprising your experience with 35mm film cameras and film..too many and too much! I too work almost exclusively via the digital route. I have kept my 4x5 kit but wonder if I will ever use it again. I recently sold virtually all of my Jobo equipment except for a tempering box. I thought that I could till develop any 4x5 negatives by inspection ( I had become reasonably proficient at DBI ) and my 35mm film using the tempering box. However, now I wonder if such efforts are still worthwhile. My 8x10 is gone but I still have the "best negatives". I have had a few of the negatives scanned and printed by the analog route. I am in the midst of comparing such prints with digital ink jet prints made from the same scans. If more immediate relevance perhaps is a comparison of a few of my "native" digital files ( from the Monchrome and the Leica Vario ) printed using the Cone inks and profiles with prints of the same files via the analog route. One might embrace "digital" as a way to broaden various analog options. For example, as some skilled photographers are doing, one might use either native digital files or scanned analog files and create a larger negative to be used for Platinum printing. Might you tell us who develops your film? Also, do you own a drum scanner, or have the negatives scanned elsewhere? Elliot From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2015 9:30 AM To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Digital BW] Rolleiflex to be liquidated Yup I agree , but it's a sign of the times with everything that is going on with digital. Sadly we'll likely see more of it as time goes on.. So a share for those of us that are stubborn ..well, or think they are. I'll admit to not shooting 35mm film anymore but still have one heck of a stable of 35mm camera's and literally hundreds of rolls of transparency and B&W film.. Like David I have a Pentax 6x7 also have a couple of 4x5's and 8x10's. Plus a zoom back for the 4x5. These I still shoot. And I think I have enough film to last easily the rest of my life.. I have for many years used a process of shooting film , drum scanning & print.. Sadly I never got much into the dark room side of it like so many did.. when I discovered drum scanning that was the way I choose to go so abandoned the print side of my old dark room. I do have a film processer so I can develop my own but generally it's easier for me to ship it out for developing to a lab as my volumes are low.. Anyway for the past couple of years I've been doing something a bit off the wall and it has honestly helped me justify keeping that side of it going.. So I'd like to share that. I have only been doing it with 4x5 so far.. The only images I am doing this with are images that are worth doing it with so for me some of my best.. I scan the film or transparency and when I'm satisfied with the file and the print I sign the film with a Sharpie. I've been doing the prints a bit on the larger side, and attaching the film to the back of the framed art work and it goes with the sale. I can still make another print if needed with the file but am only doing a smaller version. I have only done three of these so far and I'm hoping to get to maybe three or four of these a year.. assuming I get the right images and still have the guts to continue something that many would likely consider pretty stupid. For me this is justifying keeping this gear and has added a totally different market that I think will make it work for me. It has really changed pretty much everything in how I look at it. jimbo From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] Sent: Friday, March 13, 2015 10:03 PM To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Digital BW] Rolleiflex to be liquidated It's a real shame to see this happen. I was more of a Pentax 6x7 fan, but all medium format cameras are/were great. The longevity problem created by the digital switch is difficult to confront, too. You could buy a Rollei and shoot with it the rest of your life. If things went really bad, you might need to replace it once. The bellows on your view camera might need to be replaced a couple of times. And your enlarger might need realignment and an occasional new bulb. As long as you could get film, your old box that holds film was good to go. Now, your digital camera is obsolete in a couple of years and quits working in just a few more. With analog, when a new film came out, you could buy a roll and get improved images for a couple of dollars. Now, if a new sensor comes out, its of no use to you unless you buy a whole new camera. And certain manufacturers don't have a problem making your lenses obsolete at the same time. (Isn't that right, Sony?!) Though I went 100% digital six years ago, I hate to see this stuff go. David Kachel ___________________ Artist-Photographer Fine B&W Photographs WEBSITE: www.davidkachel.com BLOG: thetransparentphotographer.com EMAIL: david@... 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