SPECIALISED PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE S.L.R.

In the previous discussions I assumed that a fairly simple miniature camera with full manual control and a good lens would be used.   I still think that even such a camera offers immense possibilities and a long period of creative effort should result without the need being felt to obtain more sophisticated equipment.   But the need to specialise might arise and this may call for more features being available than can be found in the basic camera.

The first need will probably be to use lenses of different focal lengths.   This need can be met fairly easily with a camera body having a focal plane shutter and interchangeable lenses.   Viewfinders will also have to be provided for the new lenses and will fit in the accessory shoe on top of the camera.   If lenses of extremely short or long focal lengths are needed, many problems arise and here one will appreciate the possibilities offered by the single-lens-reflex camera.   In such a camera, viewing, focussing and light measurement are effected through the lens of the camera itself.   This is made possible by a mirror in the light path, which flips out of the way for the exposure itself.

Since today the S.L.R. camera is extremely common, one might be tempted to think that it can totally replace the simple miniature camera I advocated as the ideal tool for the beginner.   This is just not true and while the S.L.R. generally allows more scope for specialised work, it does have some drawbacks that can be serious for the beginner.   Such drawbacks include more complicated mechanisms, more bulk, synchronisation problems at high shutter speeds, special lens designs and the resultant high prices.

The above disadvantages are relatively small.   They are far outweighed by the ease with which the S.L.R. can work with a wide range of fittings and accessories when special work needs to be done.   Even the disadvantage of price is being overcome in some basic and robust S.L.R. cameras with universal lens mounts that allow relatively cheap accessories to be fitted.

Let us have a look at the possibilities offered by the S.L.R. camera.   The lenses that can be fitted, practically cover the whole range imaginable from a microscope objective, through extreme wide-angle “fish eye” to bulky long focus lenses and right up to telescope objectives.   The camera will not only give the correct field of view with all these lenses but also accurate light measurement is also possible.   Variable focus and “zoom” lenses can similarly be used where quick focal length changes are necessary.   Extension bellows allow close range work and allow movements similar to the technical camera.   In some cases even the viewfinder itself can be interchanged for special work.

It will be seen that the S.L.R. is indeed a versatile camera.   But I must insist that it should be chosen only when one’s work calls for the facilities that only it can offer.   Unfortunately, many modern S.L.R. cameras are being overburdened with so-called facilities like full automation and electronic circuitry, which calls for the basically unreliable dry battery to be relied on exclusively.   A faulty cell will mean a total loss of all the sophistication, perhaps during a critical moment of one’s work.

In this series of articles my main aim was to show that creativity does not depend on sophisticated equipment, as many will have us believe.   It does depend on a good knowledge of the basic facts related to films, lenses and light manipulation.   Finally, the adherence to the basic grammar of artistic expression will not hinder, but rather gives more freedom for the photographer to express his ideas using this modern artistic medium based on scientific foundations.

RL 29/4/85