Film Is Not Dead » Blog

I’ve spent some time on Flickr and YouTube learning how to use the Crown Graphic. I made a list of questions I had and set out to answer them. I get long-winded so I will answer each question in a separate post.

1. How do I use the camera?

2. What kind of film do I need?

3. How do I develop the film?

4. Can I develop the film with the same equipment I use for my medium format film?

The first question turned out to be the easiest to figure out. There are three basic elements to the camera. The front element (where the lens is), the bellows, and the rear element (view screen). The shutter speed, f-stop (aperture), and shutter release are all on the lens. The bellows must be light tight. The best way to test this is to put a flashlight inside the bellows. If you see light leaking out then the bellows need to be fixed. From what I’ve found the corners are usually the first place of wear and tear. The rear element has the ground glass and it is also where you slide the film holder in.

The first thing you’ll want to do is set the f-stop to 5.6. Then move the black triangle shaped switch to the open position. This will allow the most light into the lens and project an image on the ground glass.

Point the camera at your subject, pop open the back and look through the “live” view finder. Most pro’s pay big bucks for this feature. The image will be upside down. I dont find this to be hard to get used to. If anything I find that it helps in composition since you really have to pay attention to what you see.

You will definitely want to have a loupe with you. Place the loupe right on the ground glass and you will be able to adjust the focus. The focus knobs are on the front just under the lens.

And here is the image seen through the loupe.

Once you are satisfied with your subject then close the viewing hood and close the shutter. Remember to move the shutter back to the closed position! If you do not do this then you will expose your negative. Dont forget. Close that shutter!

Shutter in down position

Now its time to put your film holder in. At this point I always double check that the tripod knobs are tight. The last thing you want is to open the film back, slide in the film holder, and have the camera move because you didnt lock it down. Pry open the back and slide the film holder in place. I made the mistake once of not inserting the film holder all the way. Double check that you do! It was very frustrating trying to figure out what went wrong.

Your almost there! Now its just a matter of removing the film guide and then taking the picture. Notice how the film guide below has a white tab on one side and its black on the other. When I first put film in I insert the guides with the white tabs facing out. This lets me know that the film has not been exposed. Once the film has been exposed I slide the film guide with the black side facing out. Some people do it the other way around. Black means not exposed. White means exposed. Whatever you pick just stay consistent.

Let me go back to something I mentioned earlier. Once you remove the film guide your film is ‘exposed’. There is now nothing between the film and the subject (source of light) except for the shutter blades. This is why its very important to close the shutter blades after you have focused and composed your subject. If you skipped that step then your negative would get exposed as soon as you slide the film guide out.

After all this work we are finally ready to take the picture. The cable release allows you to take a picture without disturbing the camera. There are many kinds of cable releases available. Some are made of cloth, metal, plastic, and they range in length. If you plan on doing long exposures make sure you get a cable release that allows you to lock the shutter in place. This way you dont have to stand there holding it open.

At this point you will also want to meter your subject. I have a spot meter and an incident meter. I could go on explaining what they do but this is getting long enough. I could also talk about getting a proper exposure but there are entire books on just that topic. If you have a question send me an email.

And the last step is to slide the film guide back in. Make sure to turn it around and leave the black side facing out.

If you put two negatives in then you can turn the film back around and take a second shot. I hope I was clear with the whole process. It has been a lot of fun to learn how this camera works. I have yet to play with all the possible settings. Right now I’m just happy if the shot turns out. If you are shooting with a similar camera I would love to see your pictures.