In last week’s Film Friday post, I talked about how using the camera movements of large format to shift the plane of focus to minimize apparent depth of field was the large format equivalent of HDR. I thought I’d post another example where I went way over the top with the effect and which grates on me now the same way that an HDR tone-mapped nightmare digital image would.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you exhibit A of a photographer using his new monorail camera to make an image that seemed like a good idea at the time. I recall that this was also the era when I basically shot everything wide open or as close to it as possible. So one can imagine the delight when I saw this pop up on the ground glass.
Like I said, I think this is the same kind of trap that digital photographers face when they discover HDR. High dynamic range tools certainly have a place in a photographers arsenal. There are photos that I’ve taken that wouldn’t have been possible without HDR. But I’ll be honest and say that I have some garish, over-the-top, dreadful examples of HDR tonemapping, too.
It’s the same with tilts and swings on a large format camera. I think the tendency for new large format photographers is to overuse camera movements when they first get into large format.
In that post, I also mentioned my dislike of my Crown Graphic camera at the time. I think the biggest part of that dislike was the distinctly limited movements available on a press camera (plus a lens with such limited coverage that I wouldn’t have been able to utilize many movements even if I had them). In retrospect, I’ve really come to appreciate what wonderful things press cameras of the era are. They’re comparatively small and light ways to get a 4×5 negative. They come with viewfinders and rangefinders to allow for making images without taking the time to get under the focusing cloth. The limited movements are a great way to learn when and when not to use them. And they’re tough and resilient.
Indeed, the more I thought about that old Crown Graphic that I was far too eager to get rid of, the more I missed it. To the point that I recently picked up a Tower Press Camera (a Sears branded clone of the Busch Pressman D — another top press camera of the era). The rangefinder is a bit off, so I need to dig up the instructions on how to set it, but I look forward to seeing what I can do with the camera and the 127mm Kodak Ektar that came with it (a lens that was actually made for 3¼x4¼ press cameras but can cover 4×5 with essentially no movements).
In the end, I guess it’s just proof that every skill or knowledge of a subject comes with a sophomoric phase. That wonderful moment when one thinks they know a lot but later learn that they knew almost nothing. Alas, only hindsight can really teach us about those moments!