Mate thank you for taking the time to review the camera, I was looking into a way I could buy a 617 roll film back for my 5x4 Horseman 45FA next month once I’ve prostituted myself to pay for one on E-Bay. But low and behold I realised Chroma sell just the back with the ground glass at half the price so I won’t have to walk the dark streets of the village in Northern Spain where I live. You’ve won another subscriber with your informative and humorous video and kept my chastity intact. Great images by the way!!!
I have used such a 6x17 back for a 4x5" camera. The do work, are a bit finicky to use (you need to change between the 6x17 groundglass and the film back) and are limited in the use of focal length due to vignetting. If I remeber correctly, anything between 75 and 150mm can be used as long as the image circle is big enough. Quality of build was fine.
Welcome to the 6x17 world....keep it up, you're going to LOVE it!! Yes, Nick Carver cost me some $$ too...I bought the Shen Hao 6x17 and a spare back (load one with color other with B&W)...Mine was pricey, but so far...worth every penny! But I'm looking for something a bit less bulky to carry around to hand hold, believe it or not. I'm looking at the Chroma for that....I think I"m close to pulling the trigger. One thing struck me...where do you live where film is THAT expensive? I just checked B&H and B&W film like Ilford HP5 is only $8.50/roll....and even Portra 400 in a 5 pack is about $15/roll.... I can't imagine $20 per FRAME?!?! :O Hope you can find better deals. If nothing else...start shooting B&W....it's a bit cheaper and good for practicing your compositions. Wondering, for the Chroma Six 17...can you get a spare back...it is SO nice to be able to swap as desired between color and B&W.... Good luck!! CC
If you want to develop your own film, it's not too hard these days, Cinestill makes a kit, that includes all the chemicals pre mixed, you just add water and a siu vide heater to keep the chemicals at the correct temperature I used to develop my own, but unless you are shooting and developing a lot, it doesn't really make financial sense as chemicals go off after they have been mixed so you need to use them up within the several months. I just dont shoot enough to justify the cost. But it was fun to do
Thanks for sharing your 6x17 journey. I think i will order one too ^^ and i've got a get question : where did you get your focus screen with a fresnel ? thanks for your help. Regards from France
Love it. I purchased the Chroma six:17 last week and opted for a 90mm and 180mm. Hopefully I’ll like those focal lengths in this format. Only 4-5 weeks left to wait 🎉
You're gonna love it. Yeah, a 90mm is next on my shopping list, I told myself I have to wait though, until I have mastered the 135 last thing I need is more complication 😂
I think it was only necessary because of the weak magnets on my first film back, so prob not necessary when you get yours. In fact there's a chance that when it's still in place the edge might keep the magnet slightly open at the edge, going to test next week now that I have my new back.
Hi. Funny. Interesting. I shot Arca Swiss 69 view camera for a long time. Require skills I did not really have. Given how challenging this is My suggestion is to shoot chromes as well. why? Because it is simply so great to look at a 617 chrome on a light table. Makes all the work and effort worth it. That being said, sad to say I think you should get a 3D printed kidney, sell the real one and get a Fuji GFX 100 II. I have been shooting pano with 50S and 100S and long story short, GFX seems like the right tool for that job. And, if you shoot a lot; in the long run it is cheaper. Still, there is nothing quite like a perfectly exposed and composed Velvia 50 chrome!!! Good luck. Vive 617!
Oh I definitely agree, I have a bunch of slide film ready to go, but I really wanted to nail down my process before I shoot it, seeing as how expensive it is and less forgiving to metering mistakes 🤦 Shot digital professionally for years, but now that I do it for fun only, I got rid of nearly all.my digital gear, kept my Leica m8 as it's hands down the best digital image I have ever shot, and my Nikon D700 for nostalgic reasons, but otherwise, I just don't get the same joy from shooting digital. I respect what the cameras can do, just don't enjoy using them. Would love to play with a medium for at digital one day, but only for interests sake. But totally agree with you about the slide film 👍👍👍
I’ve watched a good few videos featuring 6x17 cameras, and one weird thing I’ve noticed, is they don’t seem great for landscape shots. There seems to be a needs for something of interest more front and centre to give to image impact. Not sure why this is but they seem to work well in urban setting, maybe it’s to do with how we normally see things. Out in the countryside, we take in panoramas when sightseeing, so used to that view but in urban areas, we tend to be more focused on what’s in front of us and not standing back and taking in the bigger picture. I guess the 6x17 is good at showing a perspective we aren’t used to fully seeing.
Good point. It does seem like a pabinshould be perfect for landscape shots, but without something to focus your eye on they do seem kind of bland. I have seen some amazing landscape shots by Nick Carver but I much prefer the shots with buildings, or machinery etc as the focus .
Haaa, I have to admit, the music is the last thing I do and also rushed. But noted. My last few videos the music has been a lot quieter and less in your face
Not really, due to the lack of backing paper on 220 and this also frame numbers (which you need to know you have wound the film on enough for each frame) it would t really work. I suppose you could tape up the frame window and figure out how many turns of the film winding knob you need to do for each shit, but it would be pretty hit or miss. Best to stick to 120 film.
Cracking video, I've been keen on a 6x17 for a long time, but can't yet justify the expense. I shot a roll on my Bessa II with the intension of cropping top and bottom to mimic a pano shot, it kind of worked, vid on my chan, but that Chroma looks like a great option, time to google a price list. Thanks for the upload liked and subbed.
That's exactly what did with the Fuji GSW 690 III for a while, but it just felt wrong throwing away so much of the neg cropping it. And then the Chroma came around and was moderately affordable.
I just received mine a few weeks ago. Did I see you put a center ND on your wide angle lens? I am using a 90mm and 180mm and it was recommended to use a center ND on the 90mm. I had to give part of my spleen to buy that filter (sheesh) it was as much as the lens itself.
Yeah, I believe it's pretty much a must for a 90, with the 135 I can see just an ever so slight vignette, but it's very slight, easily fixable in Lightroom, and I think the 1 stop of a centre nd would almost be too much over correction. Also the cost 😭
Tell your dog I said Hi!! 😀 That's funny!! I love 6x17.... I don't have a camera in that format! BUT wish I did! Love the vid! Awesome story.... Cracking final shot!! 🙂
Ok I bow down to the Algorithm…. I have been scouring for a six:17 review ever since I saw Steve’s announcement video. Light leak bad, but at least not as bad as Noble’s issue where the material they used for a batch was, umm, not optically opaque. Steve is contemplating some movements for a future version which if happen in the way everything else he has brought to market will be a game changer in the quality:price space. I’ll stop Chroma fan-boi’ing, hit subscribe, and hope to enjoy your journey!
Yeah I saw that review where they had printed the Nobel with the wrong filament, ahh the joys of 3d cameras. Steve was awesome, he was so quick to send out a new film back, it arrived the other day, and wow, yeah I must have gotten a bad magnet, because the new one, jeebus, it holds onto the dark slide so tightly, I think I might need to work out just to get my strength up. Can't speak highly enough about Steve and my experience so far. The camera is truly a game changer.
i have a 24tse canon lens . i bought it 7 yrs ago. i use it to shoot panaromas n my 35mm camera. you develop the film, scan it, and join the photos in lightroom. you 2.5x1 ratio, so slightly less but way cheaper
Or just shoot digital and stitch. Really depends on what you want. Although, if you were to shoot multiple 35mm frames you would need to shoot 12 frames to match the 6x17 neg size and that's not even taking into account you would need more to get the required overlap. Probably wouldn't be cheaper after all. And that's not even mentioning what if things move between shots as can happen with multi shot pannos.
I have a question about your frame spacing. I also own the Chroma 617 and Steve states the frame counter should start at frame 3, and proceed as 3, 6, 9, and 12, on frame 12 I have no frame border at the end. Do you have this issue?
I was confused as well, those are the numbers he stated on his run through video, but there is a pinned update comment from memory, and I messaged Steve to confirm (also to ask which direction the film loads,) his reply ' You can actually load the film from either side, it will work the same way, but I always load mine left to right. The frame numbers are 2,5,8 and 11'
Wow, that's actually a great question, I was literally staring at some prints from both cameras yesterday. I would have to say the Fuji is sharper. It is crazy sharp. Not to say the 135 on the Chroma isn't sharp, but the GSW lens is hands down the sharpest lens I own, this includes my Hasselblad, Leica Summicron M and R lenses and all my Nikon lenses etc. If I was stuck on a desert island, and had to choose only one camera, the GSW would probably be my medium format choice (sorry Hasse and Yashica)
Too many Nick Carver videos? Is that possible? I am just getting used to my Chroma 6x17. One tip is to slightly tension the feed spool knob, to make sure the film winds on as tightly as in a conventional camera.
Haaa, my heart says no but my credit card says yes. Good catch on the feed tension. I did have a fat roll on one shoot, but luckily I had a feeling it might be so I opened it in a change bag and all was well .
I am torn between this one and the 2023 CubePan for the 24x72 images, they are similar in price, but the 6x17 neg would be amazing to behold! But the allure of the 24x72 is the convenience factor.
Why not buy both 🤣 definitely agree that the convenience factor of 35mm is tempting. Also, I'd almost say the resolution of 6x17 is almost too much unless your printing large images, they are just soooo big. If you shoot on something like Ektar, a 35mm pano will have plenty of resolution for most needs
@@thefilmlaundry I’m still hmmng and aarghng about it, this might just be the push I need 😅 But it feels so good to see a very well made fellow Aussie film photog video. Please make more of these 🙏🏼🙏🏼
Haaaaaa, I stand corrected 😂 Correct too much Nick Carver is not enough. I blame him for my next video I'm just finishing up, him and his damn Shen Hao 😭
