Waste not …
I experienced issues with one of my large format cameras which resulted in a narrow strip of each negative being exposed. Although the problem was resolved by reading the manufacturer's manual and disassembling some of the camera parts, I was still left with eight sheets of 4x5 film holding a partial image (Figure 1).
Holding to my ‘waste nothing’ motto, I have scanned the negatives and created a polyptych with the exposed segments from each of the eight negatives (Figure 2). If you are wondering what the issue was, a sheet of the film had popped out of the negative carrier. Unbeknown to me, it was trapped and stealthily hidden in the camera and obscuring the exposure of subsequent captures. Thankfully it was an easy fix.
After clearing the Graflex negative holder, it was time for a quick walk around the block to ensure the camera was working correctly (Figure 3).
Figure 1. Zo Damage 2021, partially exposed 4x5” negative
Figure 2. Zo Damage 2021, “Fragments” (polyptych), created from eight partially-exposed 4x5” negatives
Figure 3. Zo Damage 2021, Christmas Eve (North Melbourne)