I once told him he ought to commercialize the idea, but he was never interested. >.He swore it was great, even citing the advantage of easier focussing and less chance of flare due to the shading effect of the thing. He also used tent pegs with guy-lines to keep the whole thing upright. >Basically, he set-up a kind of open-faced tent by sticking four poles into the ground and surrounding three sides AND THE TOP with some cloth (I don't remember >what kind it was or how it was attached). >A long time ago a friend of mine did something like this, even though he was only shooting 'little' 4x5 (therefore, I don't know how much of a difference it made). Originally Posted by Christopher Nisperos One suggestion I found interesting was from Christopher Nisperos in a related thread from 2006 : (No-one has suggested shooting LF underwater yet, to help dampen vibrations, but maybe that would just lead to problems of camera movement from tidal surge and so on.):)Īnyone got other - even better? - methods that have worked for them? * Include the word "Wind" in the title of the print. * pull down lightly on front of camera bed * shoot into wind when possible, rather than to side * meter in case velcro'd onto top of standards before shooting * bubble level on rear standard to show vibration * lightmeter case / darkcloth / sweatshirt / small prop to support sag in bellows * long rubber bands between standards, & between standards and tripod * auxiliary extension lens support arm (Bogen / Kirk etc) * lightly touch camera with fingertips to damp vibration * press down tripod (weights / bungee / stake in ground) * shield camera with tarp / reflector / body / vehicle / land features * home-made wind baffle (thin poles, tent pegs, guy-lines, cloth?) I've summarised the main ideas I've seen suggested so far as: Thanks everybody for the great suggestions, and thanks for the link to previous comments on this issue too, Kirk. Īppease the wind gods by appropriate sacrifice (a friend once watched his KB Canham carwheel off the top of one of the cliffs at Canyon de Chelley.as this person said with a texas twang, "I watched my Canham disappear into the depths of the Can-yon, and it was not aero-dy-nam-ic (he lengthed the word for emphasis)" Instead of sacrificing your gear to the wind gods, take such a friend with you. TMY instead of TMX for those windy days.ĭon't for a moment leave your camera on a windy day, as it will tip over when you are out of reach. For my wood cameras I built a little adjustable prop out of mount board pieces. Arca's have a nice plastic bellows prop (contact Rod Klukas as he sells these non-arca accessories). Prop up the bellows midway between standards, particularly if you have extended the bellows for a very long lens (I regularly use 1200T nikor and 1100xxlFineArt on my Arca 8x10(latter requires double bellows and the use of a meter long rail, plus two tripods.). get the umbrella close to the camera and hold it against the wind. Cheap and works wonders in all but gale force winds. Umbrella to spill wind around the camera - get one of the really large golf umbrellas. This forms a secondary support triangle to stabilize the lens standard.ĪWB Enterprises wind stabilizer kit - works very well and is quick to setup. Kirk extension arm from a tripod leg to underneath the front standard. Keep repeating the mantra "the wind is my enemy" What tips, techniques and gizmos have you discovered that help the camera sit really still, when the breeze keeps breezing?. It would have the advantage of being filled (and emptied) on-site, rather than having to haul all the mass up and down the hills. Maybe adding mass right at the lens standard and at the rear standard would dampen vibration from any wind movement of the bellows? On top of the lens standard perhaps?Ī small cloth bag filled with lead shot was one solution sometimes used in a studio situation for that purpose, so I've been thinking about a ZipLock filled with sand/gravel (inside a zippered cloth bag, since sand+lenses=:eek: ). I already use a monopod/bipod sometimes for additional stability under the lens position, when at full extension. The wind stabiliser kit that someone devised for wooden 8x10 field cameras is another possibility, but seems cumbersome to set up and adjust, and is another pound or two to carry. Particularly when shooting with longer lenses - 480mm & 600mm - wind affects the extended bellows. in a small bag or pack) from the tripod centre post, or sometimes substitute a bungee there with a foot-loop to step on before exposing. I push the tripod feet down to solid ground, hang some weight (rocks, other equipment etc. Light weight also translates into a greater possibility of unsharp negs from wind-induced shake however. I've taken some steps to make my 8x10 setup as easily portable as possible over distance in the field.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |