How Large Format Cameras are Made

I Still Shoot Film posted an excellent video from YouTube showing the construction of a large format camera. These are the type of cameras that serious photographers use to get the best resolution possible when it comes to shooting products, landscapes and studio portraits.

I posted the video below, but you should check out I Still Shoot Film's website as they have awesome pictures made by people who, obviously, only use film and don't edit or post produce with a computer when it's scanned.

Best Tool for Correct Exposure

Soon, I'm going to start using one of the most important tools in the field for a photographer, The light meter. It's used to tell you how to make the correct exposure for whatever scene you are shooting. It comes in several shapes and forms and has been included in most, if not all, 35mm cameras since the 70s and several medium format cameras from the 60s and 70s.

An older version of Matrix Metering

The main types of meters used this day are spot, incident, center weighted and matrix. Several current DSLRs include spot, center and matrix, and most common and inexpensive meters have incident and center weighted. Each type has their own use and the right time when they should be used and hopefully I can explain these uses well.

This one has all 3 meter types

The most common metering, these days are center weighted and matrix metering. They come on all current DSLRs and are fairly simple to use. Center weighted is used when you are in manual focusing mode.It takes a reading of the light reflected off of the object that is in the center square of the viewfinder and judges the aperature and shutter speed needed to make the correct exposure. Matrix metering is the same but it uses one of the several boxes around the viewfinder, set by either the photographer or selected automatically and judges the exposure of the picture based on that box. Its very useful if you want to zone in on your subject as opposed to the other way where its the object in the center. Sometimes the center weighted gives either over or underexposed shots for the whole frame instead of just certain objects.

Incident meters are useful in the studio or if you are trying to go for a certain look in the field. These meters judge light based on the light hitting the actual subject as opposed to the light reflected off of the subject as with the two previous. In order to find the exposure in the studio, you want to plug the flash sync cable from your power pack into the flash (PC Sync) terminal on your meter and hit the exposure button. From my experience, this is a much easier way to set the exposure because it can see the flash easier than the reflected meter. Out in the field, you can use the incident meter if you are trying to get some different types of lighting effects. a great example would be like a sun shaft or if you are trying to get a certain type of lighting in a portrait or even a building.

Standard reflective and incident meter

The last type of meter is the spot meter. This is probably for the more advanced photographer. Many people use these meters for Large Format landscape photography or any type of subject that has more drastic light shifts. The field of view of the spot meter is very narrow. You basically have to meter several spots and kind of take the average so you can get an all around reading of your subject. I think its mainly used with landscapes. You would use it with the advanced type of metering system called the Zone System, which you can read about *here*.

Spot Meter made by Pentax

There are some other tips and tricks that you just pick up over time. Many photographers can just eyeball a situation and can tell right away which exposure to use. some other tricks are the sunny 16 rule and using the 18% grey card. The sunny 16 rule is to set the shutter speed to whichever is closest to the ISO number and set the aperture to f16 if the sky is perfectly sunny and you should get a decent exposure. The 18% grey card is to meter the card so you can expose for the whites and blacks without going way over or underexposed for either color.

If you are looking to hit the next level with your photography, buying a meter is the way to go. It is one of the many ways to slow you down and to think about what you are shooting as opposed to a pay and spray method that people use way too much these days.

If anybody has any questions, as always, drop a comment and I'll get back to you with an answer. Also, check out my most recent set of pictures I took on my short trip to Las Vegas.

Large Format, The Way of the Future

Well, at least it is for me! While I am getting together information on my next post on developing a website, I would like to jump in my next venture after my portfolio class is finished, View cameras and large format photography.

Last week in my Intermediate class, my teacher introduced us to probably the most flexible, time consuming, and incredibly customizable area on the shooting side of photography. I never imagined being able to make an entire object be in focus just by tilting the front of the camera. Nor did I think it was possible to adjust the composition without having to move the entire camera. Its incredibly mind blowing after spending the last few months with my twin lens trying to get the subject just in the right area. Moving this way, moving that way. trying to get it just right.

There aren't too many downsides to large format that I can see. The main ones are the cost of film, using a ground glass to focus, the weight, and the cost. Well, the cost of film is debatable. Some, like Ken Rockwell, say that shooting large format is actually cheaper than shooting 35mm, since you shoot less and you get more. (I tried looking for the article where he said that, but I found a good Film vs. Digital one instead. He has a section where he compared the cost of shooting digital to the cost of shooting film.)

I think, I'm going to jump in the easy way. I just started looking on eBay at Graflex Crown Graphics and Speed Graphics for an inexpensive way to get into the format, even though they are somewhat more of a middle ground between 35mm and View cameras. With the Graphics, they are only able to tilt and turn on the front by the lens instead of being able to do it on the front and back And they both come with a Rangefinder, a ground glass, and a wire sports finder frame for multiple ways of focusing and setting up the shots.

If anybody has any comments on the Crown Graphics or view cameras in general, leave a comment below