EquipTech

Equipment and Technique

My primary and preferred camera and format is the Phillips 4x5. This is a sturdy, lightweight and well designed camera handmade by Dick Phillips. Apparently these have become difficult to get in the last couple of years. I have a 90mm Nikkor (about 24mm in 35mm format), 150mm Fuji (about 40mm in 35mm format) and a 300mm Nikkor (about 80mm in 35mm format). The 90mm Nikkor is my favorite of the three. My other cameras include a 1967 Pentax Spotmatic with 28mm, 55mm and 135mm lenses. I bought it new and it is the first quality camera I ever had. I still occasionally use it, but it has mostly been retired to a copy stand camera. I also have a Contax G1 35mm rangefinder with 35mm and 45mm lenses. This is a beautiful little camera with incredible Zeiss optics and auto focusing when you need it. I occasionally use my girlfriends Contax 645. This medium format camera is second to none with amazing lenses and ease of use. I especially like the 80mm Zeiss lens (about a 50mm lens in 35mm).

I shoot black and white film almost exclusively. My primary films are Tri-X in 35mm and medium format and T-max 100 and Tri-X in 4x5 sheet film. I occasionally shoot Ilford 3200 as well in both 35mm and medium format. All film is developed in my own lab and I follow the Zone System very closely while utilizing 4x5 sheet film. Primary film developers are Rodinal for 4x5 film and HC 110 for 35mm and medium format film. I use Ilford DDX for Ilford 3200 film. Printing is done with a Saunders 4500 enlarger with a variable contrast head. Test prints and prints for friends are made primarily on Kodak Resin Coated (RC) variable contrast paper. My fine art prints are created on Forte Polygrade fiber paper and developed in Kodak Dektol. For me, darkroom printing technique is where it all happens when attempting to produce black and white art. I utilize many tricks including split filtration, contrast masks, burning and dodging, flashing, negative intensification, spot bleaching and selenium toning. I take very meticulous notes on how I got to the print I am pleased with so that I can duplicate it when necessary in a future darkroom printing session.

When I have a print just the way I want it (this could take many darkroom sessions) it is ready to be mounted on mat. The size of the print is usually determined by the size I feel it looks best at. This is a pretty subtle and subjective process. Most of my people photographs are printed on 8x10 or 11x14 paper while the rest of my subjects end up on 16x20 paper. Prints are dry mounted on 4-ply bright white archival mat. Eight by ten prints are mounted on 14x18 mat, 11x14 prints are mounted on 16x20 mat and 16x20 prints are mounted on 24x28 inch mat. All photographs are offered in "Limited Editions" of 15. Photographs are signed, dated, numbered and titled on the back of the mat. Prints will be signed and numbered on the front of the mat along the bottom edge of the photograph if requested.