My First Experience with Large Format Photography

I swore I would never touch the large format photography, yet before long I got my first large format camera, which was made of wood, specifically teak: the Chamonix-F2 4x5. It’s really a lightweight camera, just around 2kg, which gives it a great advantage for field shooting.

I took it to Thomson Natural Park twice for practicing, but unfortunately, I only managed to fail even after making lengthy preparations, including framing, light metering, focusing and other steps. The major mistake I made the first time was using an unsuitable loupe, which has a 15x magnification that made the focusing process so difficult, resulting in me hardly being able to guarantee the focusing accuracy.

I hesitated to press the shutter that time, and didn’t do so until the sun went down. I had to leave the park before the light faded completely.

As for the second time, I made another mistake that lacked common sense. I used a Rodenstock Grandagon-N 90mm f/4.5 lens, with which the bulb shutter can be fired without being cocked. I struggled to cock and fire the bulb shutter, but I couldn’t get it to work properly no matter how many times I tried. However, I got perfect framing and accurate metering during this time, and I believe it’s a valuable takeaway for me to gain experience with large format photography.

Eventually, I took my first 4x5 film last weekend at the Armenian Church, the small and peaceful place I loved so much. I shot the main body of the church on white&black film, and what’s worth noting, I also practiced technical maneuvers like rise/fall during this shoot, which are specialized features provided by large format cameras.