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I just wish that I had a dad who gave me a 4x5. but my dad's not interested in my photography at all  . I try to show him what I'm up to, but no luck.
my advice(I'm 21 btw) : let him find his own voice. On another note, there is a book I highly recommend that EVERYONE read. its called "How to win friends and influence people" by Dale Carnegie. its an old book, but it teaches the proper way of getting people to look at YOUR way of things. I'm reading it the 2nd time through as I write this.
its in every bookstore pretty much. great read, written in the 1920's I think, but the info is still as pertinent today as back then.
but let your son find his vision. I understand that you're a loving, caring father; geez, you bought him a 4x5! that's true love in my opinion  !
are you going to show him how to print next, you might see something you like.
best of luck!
-Dan
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 Originally Posted by SchwinnParamount  At what point should I step in and gently direct him to the "right" way to use a LF camera? The boy is using it right.
He's using the adjustments the camera is capable of in order to produce the image he wants.
Really want to try to argue with your 21-year-old offspring that the "better" and "proper" thing to do with photography is produce the images you want? Good luck. He'll slice you to ribbons.
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He invited you along, that is a tribute to the trust he places in you. It also means he will ask for help if he needs it.
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Why don't you take your camera along and take some shots of the same stuff. Develope and take a look at you individual interpretations. Might be fun. Let him do his thing. You do yours. Be happy he enjoys something you enjoy. It will keep you connected.
Technological society has succeeded in multiplying the opportunities for pleasure, but it has great difficulty in generating joy. Pope Paul VI
So, I think the "greats" were true to their visions, once their visions no longer sucked. Ralph Barker 12/2004
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I have worked on many photo projects with my daughter. (who will be 21 on Tuesday) She has a great eye for design, and in her way she is far more exacting than I am... but sometimes she does stuff that makes me crazy. For about a year, she worked beside me in the darkroom and invariably printed every shot about two stops too dark. Went through a lot of paper that year, but eventually her prints started showing some really interesting tones that I would never have discovered from the same negatives. For my part, I am just happy to have someone who loves me unconditionally and who shares my passion for photography.
Tom, on Point Pelee, Canada
Ansel Adams had the Zone System... I'm working on the points system. First I points it here, and then I points it there... http://tom-overton-images.weebly.com
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Make sure he's paying for the film.
* Just because your eyes are closed, doesn't mean the lights in the darkroom are off. *
* When the film you put in the camera is worth more than the camera you put the film in... *
* When I started using 8x10, it amazed me how many shots were close to the car. *
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Originally Posted by SchwinnParamount Ok,
I bought my 21 year old son a 4x5 monorail, lens/lensboard, tripod, film holders, and 50 sheets of Tri-X. He has access to my library of photography related books including several dedicated to large format photography. He even read a couple of them.
His first day of shooting, he invited me along. I watched as he made these torturous and entirely unnecessary camera movements where his subject required almost no movements. I'd look at his ground glass and bite my toungue rather than point out that if he just backed off on the rear swing, moderated the front rise... etc, he'd have a tack sharp image.
Yes, he recognizes that the images he made are "twisted". He likes that. Imagine a cone shaped building whose image on a 4x5 negative is mostly out of focus except for a narrow horizontal band in the middle that is tack sharp. I've held my opinion in, knowing he is exploring his own vision.
At what point should I step in and gently direct him to the "right" way to use a LF camera? Leave him alone. Its HIS vision, and his time to learn and explore. In no way should you force the lad to be a ractalinear, anal retentive robot clone.
Rick
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I go with leave him alone, he is right and you are wrong maybe! who knows but I do know as long as he is getting what he is after time will refine his own work and he will find his own way to the perfect photography.
Unless he says "Dad, I want to take photos like you", don't say a thing.
Paul
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Every body has pretty much beat the Hell out of you Dad. I am almost 70 now and I wish my Dad had taken and interest in what I was doing or I wish he had had an interest other than work that I could have shared with him. Have fun together. You have a relationship that many of us do not.
You mention a library of books that you and he have shared. I enjoyed an Andrea Modica workshop several years ago. If I understood her well, she felt it was a guy thing to be rigid about how a view camera worked. In her case an 8x10. She said that all that movement potential gave her freedom of expression that she didn’t see in the work of many men.
These are some of the books I purchased from her.
"Contact Sheet", Light Work, 2001
"Human Being", Nazraeli Press, 2001
"Minor League", Smithsonian Series, 1993
"Real Indians", Melcher Media, 2003
"Treadwell", ChronicleBooks, 1996
I would also recommend “Barbara” which frankly was more emotional than I could take, but had vast camera movements that really conveyed what she felt.
Good luck enjoying your son.
John Powers
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i am with mark i had a great time with my late father at a local art college doing hot glass work, he did what he wanted (gritty grainy mosaic things) i did what i wanted ( boxes out of gravity formed sections) and we had a great time. he died suddenly about 18 months ago i treasure the time we spent mucking about making things, why spoil it arguing about matters of vision and style
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