Talking different camera's
Adelaide photographer David Haddy - Cameras… what gear have you used and are different cameras used for different assignments?
...So many! Over 40 years we’ve also transitioned from film to digital (a renewed interest in film appearing again) and with technology changing so has the way we process through to the finished result, though I’d have to say the main procedures haven’t changed.
We still decide on the equipment best suited to the job or shoot, capture images using them, review what we’ve taken, select the images to work further on and then refine-edit-enhance to create the finished results. That workflow was the same with film as it is in the digital era.
For weddings and portraits I used to mainly use medium format cameras - Bronica, then Hasselblads mostly. The larger film area meant higher quality when it came to enlarging the image from negative up to wall art and wedding album prints.
With those came our mat boxes on the front - to drop in filters fo effects done in camera etc, accessories like film backs, different viewfinders, grips etc.
I’ve played with 5x7” view cameras (the ones on tripods with a hood over your head - best explanation for those who aren’t sure) by linhoff and graflex, shot for others when commissioned by other studios on Pentax 6x7 film cameras and in recent digital times Leica S2’s also.
Some older personal camera that have all had film through them at times include original Kodak box cameras circa 1914-ish, my twin lens rollieflex, and a few "play" cameras from the 1950's/60's.
My 35mm gear has mostly been Nikon for years. From film days with little FM’s & FE’s, to F100 (had about 6 rolls of film through that one then went digital early on). Digital Nikons have been nearly all the “100’s” - D100, D200…. D810. They’ve come a long way from about 6mp to the 36mp cameras now in most daily use.
Stage and theatre photography has certainly benefitted with the last 10-20 years of camera development. Gone are the grainy 3200ISO film days (the fastest useful to use) and now most recent pro cameras can shoot almost in the dark with good image results. Still need to catch those peak action moments though
It’s more what you are comfortable with sometimes - you know it backwards and the camera become an extension of mind, eye and imagination to record what you want. Fingers just go where they’re supposed to!
The hasselblads have come out again… itching to get film back in them if only for personal fun use. Such nice cameras and so well made.
Whatever brands, format, style of cameras used they become very well loved when professionally using them almost every day to be that “capture” stage in the process of delivering final work.
David