This is the baby I was referring to. As far as I know my buddy had a baby but as my phone is not working I haven't had ... and just like that I got message from him. All-night labour and new baby girl. Wow!

Now the rest of my post is anticlimactic in comparison. So then, welcome to the world Lily Angeline!

I can see I'll have to start this post again when the excitement has died down. Wow again.

Now, then, I admit: I'm a collector

A little while ago an old friend who has known about my photo work for a while pegged me accurately when he said: "Keith, you're a collector". And after adding this ancient but marvellous piece of engineering to my arsenal I have to admit that it's true to a point. On the one hand, it's obvious that I like nice looking and unusual machines. On the other hand, though, I insist that each one of them actually works. This is not to say I don't have duds, but theoretically each of these cameras work, even if they have limitations.

This Pacemaker Speed Graphic, for example. Can you imagine that it used to be the standard camera for press photographers back in the 30s-50s? This same type of camera -- indeed, same model -- was used to take some of the most iconic images in recorded history. The photo of the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima by Joe Rosenthal was taken with a Speed Graphic. The shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald by Jack Ruby captured by Robert H. Jackson. All of these were shot with a bulky, heavy camera that could take only one shot at a time. One of the most famous street photographers -- WeeGee -- wandered the streets of New York at night with a Speed Graphic photographing crime scenes, night life, all with a camera that to all purposes cannot be focused with any speed.

Why this relic?

So why then this relic? Well, for one, it is my very first large format camera. As part of my self-directed study of photography I felt I owed it to myself to try out one of the most iconic instruments of photography, now limited to the most patient and careful of operators. I cannot deny the central romance of teaching myself the tool used by the masters.

Secondly, large format photography is actually experiencing a renaissance in use and owes some of it to the fact that many of these are now coming onto market through estate sales. At the time, hundreds of thousands of Speed Graphics were in circulation as the standard press camera. In time these became the camera for art and portraiture. Although eclipsed in the 60s with the rise of 35mm and 120 formats, a good many of these survived in attics and in storage. These are simple cameras; the technology really rudimentary (though refined), and so there is really not much that can go wrong with them that cannot be fixed. So they are out there.

Unmatched large images

Large format photography also has not yet been overtaken by the evolution of the digital sensor. Beyond the obvious advantages of using a digital / electronic tool, digital sensors do not yet compete with the size and resolution of a properly scanned large format negative (or even of a print). If you want to go big, then this is still the biggest. This Speed Graphic is a 4x5 camera. Beyond this there is 8x10. It would take a big leap in sensor technology to reach these levels.

Take a look at this gallery of images taken from a single large format image on the excellent Large Format Photography info website.

I'm not going to pretend that I will ever match the promises of this level of output but it will be nice to try.

Next steps...

So far this beast is nothing more than an object of admiration in my room of toys. I've ordered film from Freestyle, film holders from that awful auction site, even some Fuji instant 4x5 so that I can get some more immediate feedback before committing a shot. Also, the lens it came with lacks a sync port for flash and as my main intention is to try this beast out as a portrait camera I will have to acquire one. Until then, I've been familiarizing myself with its controls and trying to imagine its history.

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