Taking Pictures With View Cameras
Left Image:
Omega 45E, Caltar
210mm f-6.8 lens, Fuji Velvia 50, Bogen tripod and pan/tilt head.
Multi-spot metering with Minolta Auto Meter IIIF and 5 degree spot attachment, 1/30 sec at
f-22.
First thing you need to do before shooting is load your
films. You need a few sheet film holders. These hold two sheets of films. Keep the film
holders clean from dust as they can show in your pictures. Films must be loaded in total
darkness or by using a changing bag. You also need a lens board. Lens boards are available
predrilled for most lenses. Attach the lens and set the camera on your tripod. Check the
composition on the ground glass. The image is seen upside-down and reversed. It takes some
time to get used to composing with a view camera, but this slower process forces you pay
more attention to details resulting in much better photographs. It is a good idea to check
the scene you want to photograph before setting up your equipment. Look around and find a
good spot, choose a lens, and set up your camera. Decide how you want to compose your
shot. Rotate the ground glass from horizontal to vertical and check the scene. Focus on
your subject by using a loupe and adjust necessary camera movements. This is the area that
view cameras have a great advantage over other formats. Rise/fall/shift movements, move
the lens' image circle relative to the picture frame and are used to control perspective.
Tilt/swing movements control focus and depth-of-field. Swing and tilts are used to create
razor sharp images. With a 35mm camera you need to use a very small aperture to bring both
the foreground and the background into sharp focus. Very small apertures also reduce
overall sharpness due to diffraction. By tilting the front you can make the image sharp
without having to stop the lens down to the smallest aperture. By shifting the camera back
and the lensboard side to side or up and down, you can position your subject on the ground
glass without having to move the camera. This avoids distortion caused by 35mm cameras by
pointing the camera up to include the top of a tall object such as trees or buildings.
My good old Omega 45E
Play around with your camera and learn how each different movement effects your pictures.
It seems confusing at first, but you'll master all of them in no time. Once you have set
up your shot, insert the filmholder; close the lens; take a reading and set the f-stop and
the shutter speed on the lens; pull the dark slide; trip the shutter using a cable
release. Insert the dark slide back into the holder after taking the picture. Although
this is a slow process compared to and medium formats, the final result is much more
impressive and sharper. View cameras are also good teachers. They force you to slow down
and think how to compose your shots and become better photographers.
View Camera Technique, Seventh Edition
Now in its seventh edition, View
Camera Technique is a unique, comprehensive book that presents clearly
and precisely the features, operations and applications of view cameras.
It details camera movements, image formation, exposure control, and
information concerning lenses and accessories. Diagrams, comparison
charts, and more than 500 photographs and illustrations by distinguished
professional photographers provide the reader with the tools necessary
to analyze a picture situation, set up and manipulate the camera, and
portray the subject to meet the expectations of the professional
photographer.
This text has been completely revised and updated to include over 100
brand-name view cameras, and offers comparison tables to assist readers
in choosing cameras, lenses, and view-camera digital backs. This latest
edition offers expanded coverage of the newest technology, including
electronic features that simplify the use of view cameras for
conventional photography and digital view cameras that eliminate the
need for film and make it possible to modify the digital images with
image-processing computer software programs
Over 500 photographs and line drawings
Expanded coverage of the newest technology
Updated comparison tables for 111 brand-name view cameras and
accessories including over 50 specific features