3:1 aspect

[yaal]

i have been using a Fotoman 617 for quit a while now. it is a solid camera body to which you can attach a large variety of LF lenses. i have been using a schneider super-symmar 80mm f4.5, a schneider apo-symmar 150mm 5.6 and a fuji 300mm f8. for the price i paid for all these i could have purchased a linhof with a single lens. this set up also allows me to use the 617 as an almost macro set up (which the lenses are capable to, according to Schneider) - i only need to add spacers and long screws between the lens cone and the camera body. the fotoman ground glass is magnetic, easy to use and costs only 200$. however, if you intend to do a lot of handheld work - Linhof are the way to go - the fotoman scales and release buttons are simply not built for that.

i have been doing a lot of multigig stitching such as this one, using Nikon DSLRs and long Nikkor lenses. however, although i already own all this portable digital gear and software, and image stitching is part of my daily workflow (even for wedding portraits) i choose to use the heavy and cumbersome 617 for my artwork - the reason is the zen of photography and simply being there for the image and not the technical bureaucracy of stitching. another reason is long exposures - those simply do not work for stitching..

about the 4 images per roll: when you work seriously on panoramic images, you often rent a car, get to the ends of earth at insane hours - all for a single click that happens once in a lifetime - so who cares if its 4 or 12 exposures per 120. besides, when you do this type of work, 2 rolls (8 exposures) is a full day of work. on the other hand if you are doing documentary street photography on 617 - first check if your father's ID states "Rothschild")
about scanners: epson V600 costs about 180$(!!) and neatly scans 617, however, if you want a real scan, get a professional lab to set you up on a an Aztek, or a Scitex-CREO (non of those advanced amateur epsons will get the most of your film)

feel free to contact if you have any questions

yaal

 

[Mike_E]

Outstanding work!