Thoughtfactory’s large format notebook

a minor blog about the trials, tribulations and explorations of large format, analogue photography in Australia

Posts for Tag: Hindmarsh Estuary

small steps

I have finally undertaken  some small steps towards making  the necessary shift to what the photographic industry  calls   digital medium format photography. 

One  reason that  started me to make  this shift  is the  trouble I have recently been experiencing  using  the 5x7  large format with  colour negative film:  eg., bellows yaw on the Cambo  SC-3; the  poor quality  commercial lab film processing of colour negative sheet film;   Newton rings from scanning 5x7 negatives  on  a flat bed Epson scanner;  and then the  difficulties with  the subsequent colour correction in Lightroom.  These  ongoing problems over a couple of years  led me to  more or less give up using both the 5x7  format and the Cambo SC-3 (circa 1960s).   Time to cut my loses I thought. 

Below  is an  early image of the wetlands in the Hindmarsh Estuary in Victor Harbor on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia using the  5x7 Cambo monorail.  It was exposed on colour film (Kodak Portra 160 ASA),   but  then converted  to black and white as an experiment to see if it was possible for me to make a return to b+w. Yep was my response. It looks okay.  

Though some  of the above issues have been resolved -- eg., those with the  pro-lab and then using a hand made 5x7 film holder for scanning -- the encountered  difficulties  with the work flow convinced me to start making some small steps to  shift from using large format colour negative exclusively,  and to begin to start  using  black and white sheet film. I have  more control  over the work flow process as a result.