Re: Manual photography versus digital

Gene Palmiter wrote:
My thinking is this.... I am about to snap the shutter on a 4x5 camera for the first time. I have spend weeks learning about the camera. I have operated dry a couple of dozen times. I know how to use a spot meter. I've searched long and hard for just the right place to photograph. My notebook page notes the settings. I have carefully focused after deciding which aperture to use for DOF....I am ready so Now I shoot a few frames.

Does anything like this happen with digital? Do we take notes when the camera records the information? Do we meter or just let the camera do what it thinks best? Do we pre-visualize? Or do we just press a button and see how it looks?


Depends on what I'm shooting.

When I shoot digital, I do let the camera record the data instead of jotting in the notebook. I also bracket a lot more when I'm shooting digital; often +/-1/3, +/-2/3 & +/-1-1/3.

Having 134 frames per "roll" (and 6 "rolls" in my pocket) gives me that luxury.

Chromes I usually bracket +/-2/3 or +/-1/2 (depending on camera controls & how many frames on the roll).

B&W I usually shoot the metered setting and +1/2 & +1

I do spend time pre-visualizing. With film, I'll pull a Polaroid to verify I've got what I want.

Digital, decide what you want, shoot it and then look at the display & histogram to see if you got it. If not, shoot again. If you can.

It's not always possible.

Went to shoot a building implosion this morning. Scouted the area yesterday; talked to the project manager to find out what they expected it to do & what their timetable was. Found my location yesterday & was set up an hour ahead of time this morning.

They were behind schedule & I got the sun in the frame. If they'd gone off on schedule, the sun would have been behind another building.

As it was I just barely managed to relocate & re-frame when they set it off ... without sounding the 2 minute & 1 minute warning sirens they told me they were using to sync with the city.

Caught me shifting position to get the sun out, but it delayed coming down just long enough between the bang & the collapse for me to get set & hit the trigger ...

Instead of a sequence of 5+ good shots I planned for, I only got 3.

But I know I **DID GET** those 3. Plus some additional of an orange-red sun beginning to fade in as the cloud of dust dissipated.

And I'm not having to rush back to try to get it processed while I hold my breath 'til I find out whether I got anything or not. That's digital.

So, since the work was all done by 7:30 am, I detoured by way of a state park on the way home to shoot a roll of MF B&W and one of chrome on a tree I'd found growing out of a rock (fantastic exposed root formations).

I had plenty of time to get the shots set up so they matched my pre-visualization. And got a bonus of mossy icicles coming down the side of the cliff that I hadn't anticipated.

Incident meter, spot meter & shoot some digital, just in case.

And having the digital (and the polaroid) to pre-check my exposures, I'm more confident my film images WILL be what I want them to be.
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