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New to polaroid

 
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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Thu Jun 14, 2001 9:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just got a 545 back for my Crown & I've been shooting Tmax for a while, but I'm new to the polaroid world. Are there any suggestions anyone can make for using polaroid films? Some of the data sheets say that the positives need coating & the negatives need clearing with a sodium sulphite solution. Is there any special equipment I'm gonna need to carry or can it all be done out in the field? I'm going on a trip to the high country in Colorado in a month and I'd like to be able to use both polaroid and standard B&W. Thanks.
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Patrick



Joined: 11 Jun 2001
Posts: 2
Location: New York City

PostPosted: Thu Jun 14, 2001 11:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Philip,
Polaroid negatives (such as those from 55 film) can be held for a while in water. Then when you finish for the day you can clear them.
I have only done this once, but I carried a small 4x5 developing tank filled with water along with me to put the negatives in until I got home. Obviously, it added considerable weight and I was just walking in the park in New York, not in the high country of Colorado so this might be too much to carry if you're hiking.
The print coater is no problem to carry in its own little container, but the coated prints might give you some trouble unless you have a safe place to carry a fairly wet print.
And Polaroids create a lot of chemically waste paper; bring a bag to put all the trash in (says the guy in New York to the guy in Washington!).
Good luck and have fun!
--Patrick
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Les



Joined: 09 May 2001
Posts: 2682
Location: Detroit, MI

PostPosted: Fri Jun 15, 2001 12:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The older Type 52 and 55p/n need to be coated but you can wait a couple of days before you see the shadows start to bronze. The newer Type 54 does not need to be coated.

As for the negative on 55 P/N most people conclude you can get either a good neg or a good positive but not both at the same time.

Why do you want to use P/N on a back packing trip anyway? You can't realy use the negative in the wilderness.

If you want instant prints for your records, use either 52 or 54. If you want to compare the Polaroid neg to a conventional neg, then I suggest you find a less remote location, or shoot the Polaroid, but DON'T PROCESS IT. You can do this by shooting and closing the dark envelope, as normal. Then press the bent metal lever that disengages the hook on the bottom so you can release both the film and the dark envelope and pull the assembly out, mark on it Exposed. and pack in carefully. Once back home, load the exposed holder as normal move the Process/Load lever to PRocess and pull.

For down and dirty jobs, I've gotten away with rinsing the neg in stop bath, but it really needs a clearing agent with I THINK is sodium sulfite.
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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Fri Jun 15, 2001 1:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks guys, maybe I'll stick to sheet film since I'm already pretty accoustomed to it. The storage of the negs isn't really a problem, & I'd rather not be carrying a lot of old photo trash with. I'll look for the type 52 & 54 for my experimenting with the pola back. Mostly the trip is going to be a lot of high country 'wheeling, but there are going to be a lot of long hikes. Thanks again & wish me luck!
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Kim



Joined: 10 May 2001
Posts: 44
Location: upstate NY

PostPosted: Sat Jun 16, 2001 2:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I remembered...I cant figure out how I forgot..that I actually had on my shelf, unlooked at for years, Ansel Adamms book on Polaroid Land Photography

It is an excellent resource on all types of polaroid films and film backs and guides on exposures. And now that I have my Graphic I have a real use for this book!

Kim Hartshorn
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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Sun Jun 24, 2001 1:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Now if I want to shoot P/N film or just type 52 or 57, how do I coat the prints?
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Les



Joined: 09 May 2001
Posts: 2682
Location: Detroit, MI

PostPosted: Sun Jun 24, 2001 3:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Type 52 comes with a coater--a grey tube with a laquer soaked piece of felt inside. It's best if you can lay the print on something smooth and flat--a stone, a table, an assistant's bare back if there isn't too much hair. Then swab this 2 in. wide piece of felt accross the print a couple of times (it's not quite wide enough for one pass) and let it dry. Put the applicator back in it's tube on it will dry out quickly.

It's not a big deal and instructions come with the box. It can be a bit messy and certainly smelly although I always liked the smell of laquer.

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"In order to invent, you need a good imagination and a lot of junk" Thomas Edison
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Henry



Joined: 09 May 2001
Posts: 1636
Location: Allentown, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Sun Jun 24, 2001 2:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Les,

Guess I'll have to ask my assistant to shave her back.
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Les



Joined: 09 May 2001
Posts: 2682
Location: Detroit, MI

PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2001 2:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote



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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Tue Jun 26, 2001 9:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Okay, now that I've figured out all of the odds & ends and have gotten a few decent exposures out of the polaroids, I'm frustrated because of the film itself. On the image, there seem to be little streaks here & there that originate near or on the highlights of the image. Is it my error that's causing this? The rollers on the 545 are clean & smooth and I'm pulling the film out after exposure at the most even rate I can. Has anyone else had this problem? I know it's not my lens because the light streaks move with each exposure. I've also had good success with regular negative film and no aberrations like this have ever shown up. Could it be development time? It was about 70 degrees inside where I developed the film. Also, are there any recommendations on a clean, easy way to remove the sticky, red film of chemistry left over on the positive after the whole thing is done? Thanks guys.
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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Tue Jun 26, 2001 9:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Okay, now that I've figured out all of the odds & ends and have gotten a few decent exposures out of the polaroids, I'm frustrated because of the film itself. I'm using Type 52 Polapan. On the image, there seem to be little streaks here & there that originate near or on the highlights of the image. Is it my error that's causing this? The rollers on the 545 are clean & smooth and I'm pulling the film out after exposure at the most even rate I can. Has anyone else had this problem? I know it's not my lens because the light streaks move with each exposure. I've also had good success with regular negative film and no aberrations like this have ever shown up. Could it be development time? It was about 70 degrees inside where I developed the film. Also, are there any recommendations on a clean, easy way to remove the sticky, red film of chemistry left over on the positive after the whole thing is done? Thanks guys.
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LelandRay



Joined: 24 May 2001
Posts: 115
Location: Mississippi

PostPosted: Tue Jun 26, 2001 12:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hmmmmm. I don't notice any sticky red film on my Polapan. Could it be that your back is out of alignment in some way, which would account for the streaking?

Picture below is Polapan exposed and processed normally (ASA 400, 1/200th @ f22, I think). I'm still trying to figure out if print density of Polaroid increases or decreases with more exposure.



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Kim



Joined: 10 May 2001
Posts: 44
Location: upstate NY

PostPosted: Tue Jun 26, 2001 3:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

film density decreases with increased exposure...or i should say print density decreases.

too much exposure results in an image that looks over exposed...one way to test this is to take a shot without remembering to remove the darkslide the image is black black!

Kim
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Les



Joined: 09 May 2001
Posts: 2682
Location: Detroit, MI

PostPosted: Tue Jun 26, 2001 7:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Print contrast is increased (to an extent) with increased development times.

a couple of tricks they taught us with type 52
at RIT is to make a filter pack. This consisted of a No 8 wratten yellow and an ND guaged to the type of neg/chrome you are using.

Since I shoot a lot of Tmax 100 and 100 Ektachrome the ND filter was 0.6 (2 stops) by using this with the Polaroid I could adjust lighting/exposure until it was just right, then remove the filter pack and shoot real film.

while I never used this rule of thumb, some professors used the idea of reading the highlights of the polaroid with reflected light, and the shadows with transmitted light (back light) I suspect this idea was to compensate for the shorter density range of the Polaroid print over B&W film

Regarding the Red Goo. I'm not sure if it helps but there is a thin brown masking paper around the print. When you tear open the dark envelope, you can see it stick out right next to the print corner.

If you separate the print from masking paper you might have less goo on the print.

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Good judgement comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgement

[ This Message was edited by: Les on 2001-06-26 13:02 ]
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Philip



Joined: 22 May 2001
Posts: 11
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PostPosted: Wed Jun 27, 2001 5:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ok, I got the red goo problem solved, it's just leftover developer that likes to stick to the print. I have to remove it quickly or the area where it's stuck to has a slightly different look to it. Now about the lines that originate from the highlights. The white lines are actually a part of the image like a ray or a streak starting at the highlights. I was thinking that it could be my lens? It's an uncoated 6 3/8" Optar without flash sync. I took the portraits on T setting, having the subject stit for a moment, open the shutter, pop the flash & close the shutter. A friend of mine (actually my executive officer) mentioned that I should put a heavier diffuser on the flash to try to limit the harshness of the light. That would kind of make sense since the lines only fell on the brighter side of the face where the un-diffused flash fell. I checked the rollers & they look fine to me, though I have little experience here. The lever moves smooth & the rollers match up evenly. Any more ideas? Thanks again.
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