Square

[tjaded]

Just curious how many of you that shoot 2 1/4"x2 1/4" print (and thus compose) square? 99% of the medium format stuff I shoot gets printed square but many people find it odd. I've found that I really like the square format, as well as 4x5 but the 35mm aspect ratio doesn't work well for me. Just curious if anyone else has an opinion on this.

[eric]

I paid a lot of those 2 little notches on the left of the print. I print with those notches showing.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I usually compose for the square when I'm shooting square.

[Blighty]

I usually (not exclusively) print square from square negs, though it does depend on the subject matter. I know what you mean about 35mm. I rarely print the full format as I find it too much like a letterbox.

[naturephoto1]

Whenever possible, I try to use full frame in whatever format camera that I am using. When shooting my Rolleiflex 3.5F 12/24 Planar I try to shoot it square. I have never been as comfortable with the square format however. I generally shoot my 35mm as the 24 X 36 format dimensions, my 6 X 7 as 6 X 7, my 4 X 5 as 4 X 5, etc.

Rich

[mario Ag+]

I print full frame most of the the time, but when I shoot square format (6X6) I think, compose and print square. It's part of the charm of shooting square format for me.

[Whiteymorange]

I like the square format and I like 6x9. I guess the sorta/almost/kinda shapes are less interesting for me. I also paint on square canvas a lot - or long rectangles.

In the square, the corners pull against the center with greater urgency. Tension is more easily set up and maintained. The long rectangle makes the viewer read it from side to side. 6x7 has neither of these gong for it.

Having said that, of course, I have to admit that many artists/photographers use other formats with amazing results.... its just tougher for me. My 2 cents

[BrianShaw]

I LOVE SQUARE! I like every other format else too... except maybe banquet (but I'll come around some day I suppose).

[tjaded]

I can't say that I print FULL frame, I always cut in enough not to have the film edges show, but if it's a square neg it gets printed square...as Mario Ag+ said, "...when I shoot square format (6X6) I think, compose and print square." I remember when I first started shooting medium format (Rolleiflex, followed by Hasselblad) I was shooting "all wrong" and just using the large negs for high resolution. It took me a good year to get to a point where I felt composing square came naturally. Now I feel like I have to struggle a bit to compose in a rectangular format! I wonder what it would have been like if early on in photographic history round or oval had become the true "norm" for printing. Frames sure would cost more!

[arigram]

Always square, always full frame, most of the times with the frame showing. I find it much easier to compose in the square than in the rectangle. Its extremely rare that a 6x6 photo of mine will need cropping.