Before the Ones and Zeros

Posted by Henry (Boston, United States) on 30 April 2008 in Art & Design and Portfolio.

I built that 4x5 a few years ago. As much as digital photography and Photoshop have opened up new horizons, it's still pretty damn fun to shoot a large format using film!

To learn more about Henry Krauzyk or to view or purchase his work, visit his website at: http://www.krauzyk.com

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Comments (8)

pLusOne from Cheonan, South Korea

i have know idea how you carry those bi~g camera @.@

30 Apr 2008 2:00am

Ruben Latre from Terrassa, Spain

Sometimes I think digital photography is a big mistake, we are heading to the wrong direction... I've seen printed magazines and books and the pictures doesn't have the same vibrancy, film has some sort of a 3D deepness that it's impossible to see in digital... it's a shame. Really niece piece of camera Henry!! I love the large format, the only problem is that I don't know how to use it !! that's why sometimes I think digital photography is great invention 'cause it makes things so simple and easy for everyone... paradoxes of life!!

30 Apr 2008 2:27am

@Ruben Latre: Hello Ruben, I do feel similarly. Film is much "warmer" than digital. I think it is the same with photographs, movies and music. I also agree though that digital has opened the media to the masses. You no longer have to be a photographer and a chemist to control the outcome of your work. It is kind of what Picasso did for art in general. The scope of photography as an art form has been broadened. Currently, things are going in many directions and all manner of things are being done (sometimes to death) but that is okay, sooner or later the cliché is separated from the genuine. In the meantime though there are great new things to be tried and seen.

Observing from Chester, United Kingdom

It's a fact, the more complicated a piece of equipment is the easier it becomes to use. Digital cameras will do everything for you except press the shutter. But with this type of image tool the photographer is not only an artist, but also a craftsman, he has to know what he's doing.

30 Apr 2008 3:16am

@Observing: That is a keen observation (Observing). I was originally going to title this photo "When Craft Was King", because I feel similarly. I opted instead for the tamer "Before the Ones and Zeros". I agree that in the days of film one had to be a craftsman and a photographer. Yet as someone who shoots film and digital I do realize that in the end, the name of the game is "vision". You use what you've got to get what you want and in the end it is all about the shot and not the road taken to get it. Like you though, I wholly agree that there's a lot of beauty in the steel, wood, leather and smoke of non-digital craftsmanship! It's got a different energy. I do like the irony that it took a digital photo of a handmade film camera to make us think about it, no? Paradox!

Margie from Auckland, New Zealand

This is seriously cool. Great angle, and I love that you included the old National Geographic magazines.

30 Apr 2008 3:53am

@Margie: Thank you for your comment. I added the magazines to kind of "date" the image and perhaps add a little romance to it. Though I think your liking the magazines is a little biased because I know you've flipped through them in my den!

Condemna from Barcelona, Spain

wow! It looks wonderful... I'm myself serioulsy considering a 4x5 view camera with all the movements to control perspectives and depth of field... but this one you built is really beautiful!

30 Apr 2008 5:08am

@Condemna: Thank you for your comment! I HIGHLY recommend large format photography. There's surely and investment and a learning curve but it sure is a lot of fun! I built my camera because at the time it was cheaper than buying a 4x5. With the explosion of digital photography however, I have seen some great bargains on 4x5's lately. Thank you again.

Rob from Velveetaville, United States

Henry, very nice body of work. I haven't used my 4X5 in years but I remember, when using it 2 things would happen. One, focusing on ground glass with my head under the hood, I would start to really feel and therefore see the image I was about to take. I couldn't just squeeze off a dozen images in a matter of seconds, load them in photoshop and work away but rather I would really have to make sure I had everything just right before I squeezed the shutter. Two, slowing down to maker sure I had it all together would make me think more of what I was trying to show in the end. It made me push myself to clean up my image and to focus my mind on the subject. I ended up take less images because I would realize that something wasn't working.

I have been putting off busting out my old wood camera because I wanted to scan my images and didn't have a good scanner. I think I need to just start shooting some 4X5 chromes so I can "re-focus" the mind. Maybe it will help me zero in on what it is that I really want to say with my work.

Cheers,

Rob

30 Apr 2008 10:00am

@Rob: Thank you for your comments Rob. You're absolutely right about slowing down and studying your shot and triple checking your mechanical settings. You're also right about taking the time to assure yourself of an optimum negative. Dodging and burning were much more critical and time-consuming in a real darkroom than it is in Photoshop. I love the ease and low expense of digital surely, but I do miss the satisfaction and mystery of film.