Life on the Edge

Colorado CJ · Joined: 29 Jul 2012 Posts: 210 Location: Northern Colorado

Just a photo I took this morning with my 4x5 large format camera. This one was taken about 10 minutes from home, in "The Narrows" area of the Big Thompson Canyon.

The rock walls are full of crystalline structures, so they really shine when the light hits them right.

I'm starting to get the hang of the large format camera. It is VERY different than shooting with a digital camera and even much different than other film cameras. I used front tilt and rise on this shot since I had to shoot upwards and needed to change the perspective to get the rock walls upright again instead of looking like they were "falling away". This image would be impossible to get to look this way without using a camera that has movements. The perspective would just be too off.

Anyway. this was taken with a Zone VI 4x5 large format camera on Fomapan 200 film. Shot using a Nikkor SW 180mm F5.6 lens through a red 25A filter. Processed in HC-110 (dilution H) for 9 minutes.

Life on the Edge by Colorado CJ, on Flickr

SonicScot · Posted: Mon Aug 18, 2014 12:59 pm Post subject:

Very dramatic image Cool

Colorado CJ · Joined: 29 Jul 2012 Posts: 210 Location: Northern Colorado

Thanks Gary. I'm very happy with the way this one turned out.

I had a go with making a wet print of the photo I shot Sunday. This is a direct scan from an 8"x10" wet print I made today. I used a #4 contrast filter and exposed the paper for 55 seconds. I then burned the sky in for 20 seconds to get definition in the sky.

Printed on some cheap variable contrast RC paper and developed in Illford Multigrade developer. I then brewed some strong coffee and stained the print for 20 minutes in the coffee solution to get somewhat of a sepia tone.

I think I got pretty close to the directly scanned negative. I am EXTREMELY new to wet printing though, so I have a huge amount to learn.

Wet-Print-of-Negative by Colorado CJ, on Flickr

SonicScot · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2014 9:10 am Post subject:

skida · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2014 9:34 am Post subject:

RSalles · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2014 4:29 pm Post subject:

Haha, young generation! (tough newbies, but had'nt the courage to write that)

Laughing

Andrew,

What I usually did - times when I printed at the labo - it's make a test strip with medium contrast paper in the very deep areas (zones I and II) putting the piece of photo paper in that area - just a strip to make a test - and covering with black paper card in sequences of 1-2 seconds, as this:
base exposure - say 2-5 seconds, depends of the base plus fog density of the film - and displace the black card 1/2 inch another 2-5 seconds exposure, move the card again more 1/2 inch, and so until the area is visibly overexposed. This way I could set the correct exposure time for that area.

The same with highly dense areas - highlights - of the negative. After that it was a question of dodge and burning. I had a dozen of wires measuring maybe 15 inches with little black forms cuted and glued at the end of the wire to dodge procedures if the ares to dodge were smaller then the areas to burn.

It's important to wash and dry the tests exposure sheets if you want consistent results at the beginning because the paper after dried comes a little darker then wet. With more experience you can figure out what will be the amount of darkening of dry paper and adjust accordingly.

Contrary of with negatives, but often forgotten - is that little exposure amounts will be more sensible to dark areas of the printing paper then high dense areas: 1 sec more in the shadows will make a huge difference, much more then 1 sec in highlights.

Keep working, the results will come, better and better,

Cheers,

Renato

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4748 Location: Cheshire, England

Great results, congratulations. Now here is someone not afraid of dabbling with the 'wet process', no dithering by the pool - just diving right in!

RSalles has good advice, but not knowing what his zones are, I'd do my test strip over an area with a good combo of light and dark.

Nikos · Expire: 2015-01-02

Hello, Ansel Wink

kds315* · Expire: 2021-03-09

Wow, very well done!!