Toyo Time!

This (Toyo Field Camera WCC #9) is going to be my companion for a little while. I’m comfortable with handling it and setting it up, but it will take a little while before I get past those “D’OH!” points, like forgetting to take the dark slide out before pressing the shutter release.

Our first assignment is to make a portrait. We practiced on our fellow students—my partner was a new-to-me fellow named Neal. He was pretty photogenic, lucky for me, too bad he got me in return. However, since he’s really new to photography, I paid for my lack of photo poise with knowledge about how to set up lights.

A fair trade!

Now begins the wait… … … we’re not going to be developing this film for two weeks!

So far, I’ve discovered that large format is even more meditative than working with medium format cameras. I suppose with practice I could get very quick at setting it up, but focusing, setting the aperture and shutter speed, and loading the film all require a certain amount of attention and intention.

Thank you, Mr Bean. You explained that quite well.