[LargeFormat] Hello all

[Stein]

Dear Friends,

	 It is delightful to read that you are all still mostly alive. I
note Nephew Dave's message about field photography in Alberta and sympathise
with him - my family long ago refused to carry heavy loads for me. Threats
and pleas were to no avail - they had neither fear nor a better side that
could be exploited. So I determined to set my photography in a studio and
deal with nothing that could not be rolled around a smooth floor.

	 Remember the Mighty Shen Hao? It has been equipped with a spanking
new 180mm Tessar and a synchronising circuit and now forms the centrepiece
of a period setup. I'm afraid the lighting is still modern flash, but it is
modified in such a way as to suggest a big bank of tungsten lights.

	 The subjects this year have been dancers pictured in the manner of
the 1920's specialist - Alfred Cheney Johnson. It is a wonderful excuse to
open up the aperture and blend out the backdrop, though I seem to be
acquiring more and more 20's set props. But you try to get cloche hats -
they all disappeared!

	Since the last time we communicated I have satisfied a long-felt
curiosity about the Linhof Technika. I bought one, reconditioned it ( cut my
own cams!) and worked with it for a year before selling it. It was just too
heavy for what it did - I got the same results with my Crown Graphic at half
the weight. The complexity of the mechanism was wonderful but worrying - I
am much more comfortable with the monorail Linhofs.

	I can report that my retirement from practise has been beneficial -
I went out and took a full-time job as a salesman in a camera store. My
specialty is the large format and darkroom area - but I am also learning the
digital business and enjoying the experience. I must admit to having been
bored and anxious about the next decade, but with the new interest I look
forward to work.

	Unfortunately the darkroom training system that nurtured high school
students in our state is breaking down - there are still plenty of newcomers
to photography but they approach it dry - it is only in advanced classes
that they get their fingers wet. I am constantly amazed at how hard some of
the basic concepts we seem to take for granted have proven to be for some of
the students - at least I get to de-mystify some of this in the store. In
exchange I find some of the barriers to digital work are easier to scale
than I thought so it works both ways.

	The one constant in all this seems to be the desire for the
consumers of photography and its equipment to assume that they can get it
all for cheap - if it is a friend. I have been engaged in a small commercial
war to educate them that they get me at the dinner table for free but they
must pay for my time in the studio. I suspect it might also be the same for
any profession and many trades.

	Uncle Dick