MEDIUM FORMAT
Dennis O’Connor (Area 3+)
I have to declare an interest in darkroom printing. When I started photography I was given an old well-used Nikon 35mm camera. As my interest progressed I invested in more modern Nikon 35mm equipment. That would have been fine, except, I was also reading photographic magazines, and you know what they can do to you.
One article in particular aroused my curiousity. It was talking about ‘Medium Format’ and its advantages over 35mm! In particular it mentioned a low-cost medium format camera called a ‘Lubitel 166’. Well it was so convincing I had to give it a try. With the quality of the lense excepted, the camera cost about ú20, I started using it to see the results. I was not disappointed with the resulting prints, considering the cost of the camera.
I started to look for a better model. But quality medium format cameras are EXPENSIVE. I did find a reasonably priced second-hand Russian camera a ‘Pentacon Six’ fitted with an 80mm Carl Zeis lense. This gave me the improved quality/sharpness I wanted. It served me well for two years. But there was a problem, it weighed a ton! And the shutter made a sound like gunfire when it was operated.
Time to look round again. I considered a Bronica, until I noticed the price of the lenses! I then found a second hand Mamiya 645 in excellant condition so my ‘Credit Card’ went into ‘intensive care’. It was a nice camera to use, and it gave me some very sharp images, but, there was something missing. Anyway it got used less and less in favour of my 35mm and digital cameras. I eventually sold it to a Mamiya enthuisast.
Whilst this was going-on I had developed (excuse the pun) an allergy to one of the colour developing chemicals I was using in my darkroom. I got really bad. If I went anywhere near my colour developing chemicals my eyes would swell-up like a boxer who has been on the receiving end for ten rounds, and the irritation was incredible. Due to this I started producing my colour prints ‘digitally’ (no they are not as good as darkroom produced ones, I don’t care what photographic magazines say).
Around Easter-time this year I came across another ‘Lubitel’, which was a coincidence since I still had a few rolls of HP5 120 format in the freezer. I thought “the camera costs less than the film I have left” so I will give it a go. As soon as I saw the 6x6cm negatives I new what was wrong with the Mamiya 645, the negatives were similar in format to my 35mm.
That was it I looked around and luckilly I found a very reasonably priced Mamiya 300 Twin Lense Reflex. It gives me beautiful negatives. Just what I wanted for my holiday in Southern Ireland. As you know the weather was glorious this summer, and armed with my new friend I photographed seascapes, landscapes and anything that came into view, and once again I was really enjoying my photography. I had purchased with the camera body three lenses. 55mm, 80mm and 180mm. So with this choice I could take a range of shots of the same location, after all you can change a lense on this body in about 15 seconds. At this point anyone who is familiar with this camera will probably have realised what I discovered when I got home and processed the films (about 12 of them).I had forgotten that the shutter is mounted In The Lense! Consequently. Every time I changed the lense the film got exposed (there is no dark slide in the body), It’s funny (peculiar not HA Ha) how you realise the logic of what happened when it is too late. No one mentioned that I should have used a ‘changing bag to change the lenses’!
I did get one or two negatives. Wasn’t it just as well that I took my Fuji digital camera and took ‘back-up’ pictures of each location (my wife does not appreciate a monochrome print and wants colour). So digital can save the day. I have standarised on the ‘Creeley’s Ultima’ 2 bath chemistry for my monochrome negatives. If you have not done so yet, give it a try - its good.Well I hope this article gives rise to a few good laughs. I have to see the funny side of it.
Does anyone know of a reasonably priced Bronica SQA or the bits I can make a kit from?
Incidentally. I really enjoyed the article on lense focal lengths. It did not occur to me until I read that article, how the background can be influenced by changes in focal length.I am writing this at the beginning of September. So I will close by wishing all CRC members a Very Happy Christmas.