Large-format cameras, or view cameras, are different from the small hand-held cameras that most photographers use. First, the image is usually recorded on sheet film rather than on digital sensors or roll film. There is no mirror inside the camera, as with most 35mm and medium-format cameras; the photographer sees the image projected directly from the lens, upside down and backwards on a ground glass. Getting used to the increased time and effort needed to use large-format cameras takes some time, but the results are worth it.
Equipment
View cameras are available in several sizes or formats. The smallest and most manageable is the 4x5 camera, which is fairly light and small. Larger formats include 5x7, 8x10, and 11x14. Except for the hand-held Graflex press camera, all are made to be used on a sturdy tripod. Most large-format photographers carry a couple of lenses to use with their cameras: for the 4x5 format, these would be a normal lens of 150mm and a wide-angle lens of 90mm, for example. Other necessary equipment includes film holders to fit the camera, a dark cloth to put over your head while viewing through the ground glass, a loupe to focus the image on the ground glass and a light meter to determine the aperture and shutter speed for each image.
Basic Photographing Process
Photographing with a large-format camera takes more time than it does with a hand held camera. An experienced photographer can set up the camera and make a photograph in about 10 minutes. First, mount the camera on the tripod. Unfolded it and mount the lens on the front standard of the camera. Attach a cable release to the shutter. Open the shutter to its widest aperture. Step behind the camera to view the scene through the camera, using the dark cloth over your head and the back standard of the camera to shield the glass from glare. Moves the front standard forward and back until the image is in focus. Close the shutter. Place the film holder in its place in the back standard. Determine a light reading, shutter speed and aperture. Pull the dark slide from the film holder and trigger the shutter, exposing the film. Replace the dark slide in the film holder; remove it from the camera.
View Camera Movements
One advantage of the large-format camera is that its front and back are attached to each other by bellows, so that the front standard and the back standard can move independently of each other. The front standard can rise or fall. The rise is probably the most commonly used view camera movement; it allows the architectural photographer to preserve the parallel lines of even a tall building in the image. The front standard can also be tilted forward to allow for sharper focus when photographing a scene with short objects in the foreground and tall objects in the distance, such as wildflowers near the camera and a mountain in the distance. The front standard also "swings," or moves at an angle to the back standard, keeping perfect focus on, for example, a picket fence that goes from the near right to the far left in the scene. The back standard also tilts and swings on the field version of the view camera. The monorail-type large-format camera has rise and fall for the back standard as well.
Other Advantages
The large-format camera is big and heavy, and photographers must also carry lenses and film holders. Why go to all this trouble? One reason is the large negative. The bigger the negative is relative to the final size of the print, the better the image quality. In addition, the photographer can customize the development time of each negative to fit the requirements of the enlarging paper. Some photographers also think that the slower pace of the large-format process --- the time needed to set the camera and view the image through the glass --- results in a more contemplative, enjoyable experience that leads to better images. Because the image is upside down and backwards forces the photographer must consider its formal qualities in the abstract, rather than being distracted by the subject matter itself.
Large-format cameras, or view cameras, are different from the small hand-held cameras that most photographers use. First, the image is usually recorded on sheet film rather than on digital sensors or roll film. There is no mirror inside the camera, as with most 35mm and medium-format cameras; the photographer sees the image projected directly from the lens, upside down and backwards on a ground glass. Getting used to the increased time and effort needed to use large-format cameras takes some time, but the results are worth it.
Equipment
View cameras are available in several sizes or formats. The smallest and most manageable is the 4x5 camera, which is fairly light and small. Larger formats include 5x7, 8x10, and 11x14. Except for the hand-held Graflex press camera, all are made to be used on a sturdy tripod. Most large-format photographers carry a couple of lenses to use with their cameras: for the 4x5 format, these would be a normal lens of 150mm and a wide-angle lens of 90mm, for example. Other necessary equipment includes film holders to fit the camera, a dark cloth to put over your head while viewing through the ground glass, a loupe to focus the image on the ground glass and a light meter to determine the aperture and shutter speed for each image.
Basic Photographing Process
Photographing with a large-format camera takes more time than it does with a hand held camera. An experienced photographer can set up the camera and make a photograph in about 10 minutes. First, mount the camera on the tripod. Unfolded it and mount the lens on the front standard of the camera. Attach a cable release to the shutter. Open the shutter to its widest aperture. Step behind the camera to view the scene through the camera, using the dark cloth over your head and the back standard of the camera to shield the glass from glare. Moves the front standard forward and back until the image is in focus. Close the shutter. Place the film holder in its place in the back standard. Determine a light reading, shutter speed and aperture. Pull the dark slide from the film holder and trigger the shutter, exposing the film. Replace the dark slide in the film holder; remove it from the camera.
View Camera Movements
One advantage of the large-format camera is that its front and back are attached to each other by bellows, so that the front standard and the back standard can move independently of each other. The front standard can rise or fall. The rise is probably the most commonly used view camera movement; it allows the architectural photographer to preserve the parallel lines of even a tall building in the image. The front standard can also be tilted forward to allow for sharper focus when photographing a scene with short objects in the foreground and tall objects in the distance, such as wildflowers near the camera and a mountain in the distance. The front standard also "swings," or moves at an angle to the back standard, keeping perfect focus on, for example, a picket fence that goes from the near right to the far left in the scene. The back standard also tilts and swings on the field version of the view camera. The monorail-type large-format camera has rise and fall for the back standard as well.
Other Advantages
The large-format camera is big and heavy, and photographers must also carry lenses and film holders. Why go to all this trouble? One reason is the large negative. The bigger the negative is relative to the final size of the print, the better the image quality. In addition, the photographer can customize the development time of each negative to fit the requirements of the enlarging paper. Some photographers also think that the slower pace of the large-format process --- the time needed to set the camera and view the image through the glass --- results in a more contemplative, enjoyable experience that leads to better images. Because the image is upside down and backwards forces the photographer must consider its formal qualities in the abstract, rather than being distracted by the subject matter itself.
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Photomark: Arizona's Professional Camera and Photographic
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