Working with a Large Format Camera

This introductory class will open up an entirely new frontier for the film photographer. Everyone will get hands-on time and instruction with a 4” x 5” view camera. The session will begin with inspirational imagery from the pantheon of large format photographers. We’ll move into explaining and exploring the mechanics of these wonderful machines. Then, we’ll have an opportunity to shoot (weather permitting) some photographs in the streets nearby. By the end of the session, everyone will have a solid understanding of the following: camera movements, film back loading, ground glass focusing, and exposure.

What you’ll learn and do:

• How to compose on an upside-down and flipped ground glass

• What the various movements of the camera can achieve

• Tilts, Swings, Rises, Falls, Shifts

• How to take a manual exposure reading, and set proper aperture and shutter speeds using leaf shutter lenses

• Proper tripod use and cable release methods

• Loading a 2-sided film back with film

This is a workshop geared toward students who are already very familiar with 35mm and/or Medium Format cameras and are ready to explore larger formats.

The Halide Project will supply 4x5 paper negs (for in-class development). Halide will also provide tripods and 4x5 monorail cameras for the session. If students have their own 4x5 camera, they are welcome to bring it in.

Workshop Withdrawal Policy

We recommend choosing workshops with care after reading our withdrawal policy. If you have questions about any of our workshops, please contact dale@thehalideproject.org 

Instructor bio:
Rick Wright initially trained as an oil painter at Princeton (BA) and Columbia University  (MFA), before embracing photography with studies at The ICP in New York. While there,  he studied with: Nan Goldin, Susan Meiselas, Danny Lyon, and John Loengard. He  currently practices architectural photography, shoots 4x5 film landscapes, and hosts  photography seminars and critiques at The Halide Project, Fleisher Art Memorial, and  Peters Valley School of Craft. 

Rick says, “Photography is 93% of my life. The other 7% is occupied by film camera  repair, short story writing, and motorcycle photo trips. I chose photography over painting  for its speed, unpredictability, and ready bends of reality.” 

Rick’s work resides in several permanent collections including the Philadelphia Museum  of Art, Johnson & Johnson Collection, and University of Pennsylvania, and is exhibited  internationally. In addition to a 2020 museum solo show at The Griffin Museum in MA,  he was published in Lenswork Magazine, and appeared in the First Zagreb Photo  Biennial.  

Rick lives in the Center City District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

Website: www.rickwrightstudio.com

This workshop has been generously sponsored The Phillip and Edith Leonian Foundation.