First outing with the 8x10

Today I went out for the first time with the 8x10' camera. It's a Phillips Explorer II. I bought it back in September from Dutch photographer Hans Bol. However, the last couple of months have been very busy. I didn't find the necessary time and leisure to really start working with this demanding new format.

It was a fine day today with clear skies and temperatures just above freezing point. I left at 2 pm and drove south towards the Brabant Wallon. However when I was setting up the camera in Roux -Mirroir, I found out that I forgot the Schneider G-Claron 240mm f9 lens on my desk (not a very promising start, I must admit). I drove back and picked up the lens. By then it was already 3pm and I had to hurry to avoid the light becoming too dim. So, I went to a small nature reserve nearby - De Doode Beemde - and looked for a suitable spot.

I had 3 cassettes, each of which was loaded with 2 sheets of Adox 100 asa film. That meant 6 sheets in all, of which I managed to expose only 2. For the first exposure, I selected a high-contrast scene with the river Dijle meandering between dusky banks in harsh backlight. It was difficult to meter but I didn't take a repeat exposure. I moved the camera further down the path and turned the lens away from the setting sun so as to have a more evenly lighted scene.

I could have gone into town for my first experiments with this camera. But the idea was to go to a quiet spot where I would be able to work inconspicuously. The prospect of having to deal with curious bystanders whilst being not completely comfortable with the large format routine didn't appeal to me. So, whilst I was hiding under the dark cloth to focus the camera for the second exposure, I was surprised to hear a fairly sizable group of walkers heading in my direction. Luckily they seemed to be moving on the other side of the river. Suddenly everyone fell silent. When I moved from under the dark cloth I caught 8 or 9 of them standing on the other bank, transfixed, staring at me and the camera in speechless amazement. A rather funny situation, the irony of which wasn't lost on me.

By 4 pm the sun disappeared behind the trees and I decided to call it a day. In the next couple of days I will expose the remaining four sheets. The purpose is just to become more familiar with the camera and to collect some material to experiment with tray development in the darkroom. To be continued.

Just a word of explanation about the picture accompanying this posting. It is a picture of myself, taken at the end of August by Hans Bol with the Phillips camera and the 240mm G-Claron lens. Hans contactprinted it on Azo paper.