Hello from Devon, and a newbie question

Hi, All,

Lots of good questions and things to think about! I'm not sure how to answer them all. I did just hit the buzzer to buy what looks like a very nice Tachihara for a good price at an auction, so I've got a camera sorted. Next will come one or two lenses and the necessary bits to start shooting with it and see how I get on. I think to start with, I'll be finding plenty of things to shoot here in the Exeter area - small landscapes, old buildings, etc. - without having to lug it too far afield.

In the past, with medium format, I've sent the film out to develop / print / scan, and then I've tweaked it as needed in PS. I'll probably do that to begin with rather than trying to learn processing straight off.

I do need a printer. My old printer was an HP 8570, which I loved - my 20-year-old A3+ prints are still like new - but even though I know where to source one, the inks are getting hard to find and are all past their sell-by dates, and there's no WIndows 11 driver for it. Any thoughts about Canon vs Epson?

Anyway, it's the start of a journey...

Joanna
 
Film processing is so easy. and really inexpensive. I was about 10 when I processed my first films, give it ago.

A year or so . . . . . . . . later, it's still second nature. And that has included Ferrania reversal. Pavelle prints, Cibachrome, E3.and of course E6, then C41. and RA4 prints.

It's like cooking, simple.

Ian
 
Home processing 4x5 is almost essential , not sure if you checked the costs of commercial processing , plus when starting out there are enough gotchas/learning incidents to make it potentially expensive , one way to get around that and get some technique learned would be to get a roll film back for the Tachihara , it will give you the option of colour as well as more range of film stock in a package that you will be familiar with and get you more engaged whilst you gather the 4x5 bits , as per Ian above processing at home for B&W is actually easier than for roll film once you have a daylight tank setup , the loading unloading of the film holders needs to be done whether they go into a box to send off or into a tank to develop , then its not unlike making cocktails.
 
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I’ve been very pleased with a succession of Epson printers. However, I had a friend who liked to print on “non-standard” papers, like Japanese hand-made stuff and she found the Canon could cope better with these. Otherwise I didn’t see any difference in print quality.
 
I’ve only used Epson with genuine inks. No problems if you don’t let it sit for months on end but paper quality can vary. Some of the Ilford branded paper has yellowed with age. Not to be confused with Harman.
 
When I started out my biggest investments were my large format daylight developing tanks. One HP Combi and a Paterson Orbital. Both excellent buys.
In reality I have found I don't use that much film. Mostly paper (and even glass, although the results tend to experimental ).

Paper negatives are great - less costly so less intimidating and they scan really, really well.

I'm sure you will have fun. I believe there may be a community darkroom in Exeter, as well as one in Totnes. Maybe folks there to share your LF journey.
 
AnalogueWendy said:
When I started out my biggest investments were my large format daylight developing tanks. One HP Combi and a Paterson Orbital. Both excellent buys.
In reality I have found I don't use that much film. Mostly paper (and even glass, although the results tend to experimental ).

Paper negatives are great - less costly so less intimidating and they scan really, really well.

I'm sure you will have fun. I believe there may be a community darkroom in Exeter, as well as one in Totnes. Maybe folks there to share your LF journey.
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Thank you for the tip about a community darkroom in Exeter - I just found it online!
 
My first 5x4 was a MPP Micro Technical, and if you can find a good one they are a great starter 5x4. I have a Graflex Pacemaker Speed Graphic now as my only 'dedicated 5x4 because I shoot everything tripod based in 5x4 with a reducing back on 5x7 which is my preferred format these days. I wouldn't recommend a Speed Graphic as a starter large format as many online experts do as the movements are so very limited - and movements are the trump card of large format. If I was starting again in LF I'd either pick up another MPP or buy a lighter weight monorail and accept that they are more difficult to carry about.
Like you, I don't have a darkroom (I used to be a pro and always sent out films to be developed) These days I ALWAYS develop myself ... it really is so easy and will save you the cost of a better camera in no time. I am now developing 5x4 and 5x7 colour at home too - it's far more challenging to think about than to do! I was lucky to be given a Epson V700 scanner - I had been using an ancient Epson 4990 ... and scanned for very large prints from 5x4 and 5x7 ... I paid £100 for it! Here's the video I made about it. PS the old scanner worked fine in Windows 11 :)

You can do a lot in large format with ingenuity rather than raw technology, that's why it's such huge fun ... enjoy it!
 
I'm still using a 4990 for 10x8" and contact sheets of 35mm/120. Good scanner for that purpose. I borrowed a V700 once and the results were the same as the 4990.
 
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