Technical - Black and White photography

Classical Cameras

The cameras pictured above, are not the secret to producing fine photographs, although it does help a little at times, to have the right lens in your hands. I must be honest though, and say that my fascination with these beautiful objects, is as much as a possessor, or collector, of fine instruments, as much as the images they capture.
One cannot fail to appreciate the joy in using, as well as owning, these beautiful classic cameras.

Most of my earlier photographs were taken with 35 mm SLR cameras; a Minolta SRT 100, (in the 80's), followed by a Nikon 801s, (in the 1990's.)

I moved into medium format, in1998, with the purchase of a Mamiya RB67, c1970
.........I have since acquired:
Rolleiflex 6002, c1986 with Distagon 50/4, Rollei 80/2.8
Rolleiflex SL66, c1970 with Distagon 50/4, Planer 80/2.8, Sonnar 150/4
Rolleiflex 3.5E, c1958 with Xenotar 75/3.5, (5 element.)
Rolleicord IV, c.1953 with Xenar 75/3.5
Rolleicord III, c.1951 with Xenar 75/3.5

Linhof Baby Technika, c1954, 6.5 x9 format, with 6x7 Rollex back, (new).

Fujica GS645w, c1983, with 45mm f5.6

Carl Zeiss Super Ikonta 531, Xenar, c1948
Carl Zeiss Super Ikonta III, Tessar, c1955
Carl Zeiss Ikonta M, 524/16, Tessar, c1954
Carl Zeiss Ikonta M, 524/16, Novar, c1954
Carl Zeiss Nettar, c1952
Agfa Isolette 11, c1957

Here are my current 35mm cameras:
Leica M6 TTL, (Chrome), c.2001, with 0.58 Finder.
Leica CL, c1973.
Leica IIIg, c1957
Leica IIIc, c1946
Leica II, (Black Paint), c1935
Leica Standard, c1938
Leica LTM lenses:
Summicron 35/2 asph c1999,
Cron 50/2 collapsable c1955,
Red Scale Elmar 50/3.5 c1954,
Nickel Elmar 50/3.5, c.1935, (original lens on my Black Paint Leica II.)
(and VC lenses: 28/3.5, 35/2.5 pancake, and 90/4.)

Nikon F, c1965
Nikon F, c1972
Nikon F2, c1974

Exakta Varex IIa, c1958
Agfa Ambi-Silette, c1957, with 35mm, 50mm, 90mm lens,

-------------------------------

"I have since traded my Mamiya RB for a Linhof Technika 6x9"

Now isn't this a thing of beauty?

(See Linhof item at bottom of page, and this link to the Baby Linhof cut-film procedure)

----------------------

Until the end of 1998, all my post film image reproduction work was digital, (scanning and printing), but I have now set up a permanent darkroom with an Omega C760XL Dichroic head enlarger, (it is a joy),:

I have focused my efforts into this wet repro system. I have a 50mm El-Nikkor lens for my 35mm negatives, and a Schneider Componon-S 100mm for the 6x7 negatives. I selected a Dichroic colour head, not a condenser system, to give a softer diffused light source, plus the ability to fine tune VC (Variable contrast) papers. I find this Dichroic head system works very well.

I have recently added an Agfa Varioscope 60 enlarger. This is designed to take upto 6.5 x 9cm size negatives, (perfect for my baby Linhof), with a well designed glass carrier, (sliding mask type), it handles roll and cut-film easily.
The enlarger is similar in design to the Leitz Alphamat type, with a parallel arm construction, is really beautifully made, with substantial construction. A twin condenser style, giving excellent sharpness, with the obvious trade-off of highlighting any imperfections in the negative, or dust within the carrier. As well as coping with my Linhof negative size I also wanted to experience the "Condenser" option, and am pleased I did.

My 3rd enlarger, (early 2006):
A Durst M805, ....not that I needed another enlarger, but I acquired this fabulous machine, for only the equiv of US$160, when a local Studio went fully digital, (excellent condition, still a current model retails at US$2400.)
It has a beautifully made negative carrier (6x9 capacity), and I've since acquired the top, (Anti-Newton), and bottom, (plain), glasses from Durst in Italy. Although I find I only use the top glass only.
(Glass carriers being essential for 120 film, due to "curly film" focus errors.)

--------------------

Film and Technique
When taking landscape photographs, I am almost always striving for max depth of field, and other than moving to a camera with movements*, I am pushing towards small apertures and improved depth of field, (unfortunately image quality can suffer if you use too small an aperture, because of lens diffraction, (although prime lenses will be less prone than zoom lens, due to fewer elements within the lens).
I mostly use 100asa film, (Ilford Delta100) for 35mm, with Agfa APX100 for MF cut-film Linhof work, and Ilford Delta 400, (or Agfa APX100), for medium format 120 roll film.
Agfa 100 is the most beautiful of these film emulsions, but I find grain size issue's with 35mm film size enlargements, precludes the use except in MF format.

Note: With the demise of Agfa as a paper and film supplier, I now mostly use Ilford products.
ie. Delta 100, (all my 35mm work,) and Delta 400 or HP5 for medium format, with Fuji Neopan 400 another excellent film, (equivalent to HP5.)

I have produced a lot of 35mm work with Iford XP2, a C41 colour process film. Other than not being able to easily process XP2 myself, I love the film, which is very tolerant, has a good tone range and retains excellent shadow detail, and is almost grainless. (It is a dye colour emulsion, and as such will not be as archivally sound as "real" B&W film)
The depth of field issues can becomes really difficult to live with in medium format, where the larger lens sizes give dramatically less depth of field than 35mm, hence reverting to a 400asa film, and I primarily shoot wide angle, i.e. 50mm lens with my 6x6cm Pentacon. This Carl Zeiss lens is outstanding quality, with very good DOF at small apertures.

(*My baby Linhof, with movements, will help to improve some of these depth of field issues, allowing me to apply the Scheimpflug rule. Ref. View camera Focus. This rule allows a major portion of the image to be in focus, while still using largish apertures, via the lens front tilt facility.)

--------------------

Linhof Technika 6x9

After operating the baby Linhof for a few months, with a good deal of testing and evaluation, I can begin to understand better, some of the advantages of "Field camera" photography.
I had initially expected to be using a roll-film back, and not going down the cut-film route, but the opposite has applied, and all my work has involved double dark slides and pieces of cut-film. But, there-in lies a problem since I have been unable to source "cut-film" in the required 6.5 x 9cm size, (this is one of the few disadvantages of the geographical isolation of New Zealand).
So, I set about converting 4"x5" cut-film into two usable pieces for the 6.5cm x 9cm Linhof Double Dark Slides. I find the system works well, so as an aid to anybody suffering the same "non availability" issue as myself, I have put together a short tutorial on the technique required to split the larger pieces of film, see "Linhof Cut-Film".
I develop this film in an old Patterson tank, originally designed for up to 120 roll film, but since the cut film is very slightly wider, >1mm, I needed to pack-out the gap between the spirals. I am able to fit up to six pieces of 6.5 x 9cm within the spiral.

-------------