Oh no! I'm now the owner of a Crown Graphic!

[mooseontheloose]

:o

For better or for worse, I just won my auction and it looks like I have a pretty clean crown headed my way. Now I need 4x5 film holders, film(!), and time to figure how to use it, since it's been a few years since I've used a view camera and it was only a few times at that.

For the moment I guess I'll be doing tray processing when photographing close to home but what do you do with your film on extended trips? Put them in a black bag inside a box? How do you keep track of them, or do you basically have different boxes for different films and/or speeds that you use?

Oy! I feel like I've jumped into something a bit over my head but I'm pretty excited as well -- I've been wanting a press camera for ages but have been unlucky in trying to find something decent within my price range. I still think I paid too much, but I'd rather have the camera now than long for it for another year waiting for the right deal to come up.

[Paul Goutiere]

:o
I still think I paid too much, but I'd rather have the camera now than long for it for another year waiting for the right deal to come up.

How can you pay too much for a Crown Graphic? Sorry, but I don't understand the concept.

Of course you didn't pay too much, it is a marvelous camera. Versatile, lightweight (relatively), rugged (very), handholdable, quite easy to use.

I would take a film changing bag and lots of film holders. Many use Tri X, (or just one film) exclusively, so if you do just empty the exposed film holders into a spare film box marked "exposed" when you have a chance, reload and keep working.
In a few days or working with the camera you'll have it figured out.

Best of luck.

[Pinholemaster]

Have fun. Great camera. Nothing is over one's head if you know how to swim.

[John Kasaian]

Great camera! It isn't rocket science. Enjoy the journey

[David A. Goldfarb]

The film comes in a bag or wrapping in a three-part lightproof box. The bag isn't necessary for it to be lightproof. It just keeps the film clean and the humidity stable until you open it. You want to have an extra empty box to hold the exposed sheets. You can ask a lab that processes sheet film if they have some or just ask here, and someone probably has some spares.

If you process all the film the same way, you only need one box. If you use the zone system or use different developers for different purposes, you can either use multiple boxes or what I do is use a divider system. I've got several sheets of cardboard with tabs on the side that I can feel in the dark, and one tab on the top edge of the top sheet, so I'm sure I've got the stack oriented correctly, and I can sort my sheets that way for -2, -1, N, +1, and +2. If I fill up the box, that means I'm emptying other boxes, so I can split the stack when the box fills up.

[BrianShaw]

Good for you... have fun!

I started out with a Super Graphic in the 1980's and still like using it.

[Phillip P. Dimor]

Great cameras! There are tons of tutorials on that largeformatphotography.info site. Like opening the box of film, loading holders, the general process of shooting and developing tips..

If it doesn't work out you'll most definitely be able to sell the camera for at least what you paid for it. The resale value on clean crowns and speeds is pretty good.

[mooseontheloose]

You guys make me laugh (another reason why I love APUG). Although if it wasn't for APUG I probably wouldn't have bought the camera. There goes the new bike I was going to buy.

I've got so many other lonely cameras waiting to be used. Last photographic expedition I took five with me while the others (about 10) wimpered and whined at home. What are they going to do when the big beautiful Crown arrives? I know I should sell a few to cover the costs of the new Graphic, but they're my babies -- even if some of them haven't aged gracefully, I'd hate to lose any one of them.

And now you want me to go to some other forum? You guys are a bad influence on me.

[brian d]

Also check out http://www.graflex.org/
Great camera

[EASmithV]

If it is anything like my pacemaker, you are going to love it.