It is great seeing a new generation taking up Film Photography, especially 4x5. It makes you slow down and think about the photograph instead of clicking away with your iPhone or digital camera. I have the Toyo also and I love finding vintage lenses and using them, I am learning to embrace softness and shalow depth of field. It is also fun to play with lens tilt and shift to create the impact point of the image. You are doing a fantastic job and everyone can learn from you! Too bad I can only give you one thumbs up!!
In the age of tack-sharp and widely available digital cameras, I think that film (especially medium/large format) brings an inherently different experience and final result which is very appealing when you want photos that stand out. I shoot on a Pentax 67 with the 105mm - no phone or full frame digital camera comes close in the rendering from that lens.
As a Corona native who started watching Willem in NYC, I never thought he would photograph the freeway construction we all complain about-but let me tell you, he made the area just five minutes from my house look so damn beautiful.
The last 4 photos are chef's kiss. But I really like the bridge / gas station photo, really sums up the entire project. You need to cross a river? Need gass ?...cars !
I don't think I could pick a favourite. Absolutely love the way you compose these shots with foreground elements and love how the slow shutter almost gives them a dreamlike quality.
You asked if there were any images that we loved, well my favorite was the one when you returned to the freeway and took that image (11:12) just loved those trailing lights with the curved freeway above...just a beautiful image and yes i do appreciate those 4x5 images.
Solid work Willem! After leaving photography for a few years, this video has given me some renewed vision to continue what I once loved. Keep the inspiration coming!
my fav is definitely the second shot of the freeway under construction, absolutely love it and kinda so telling for human constructionism and our car-centred approach to our environment.
Man, I like all of them! I too, use a 4x5 field camera, but live in a small town. While our subject matter may be different, I can really appreciate the work you have done here! Kudos Willem...
I came across this video as a long time lover of shooting 4x5. I grew up in LA and live out of state now. Planning a trip in early August to shoot a bunch of film in the area, would love to meet up and shoot some sheet film together!
11:13 photo is a favorite. Just picked up a toyo 45aii and can't wait to shoot with it! More 4x5 for sure, always stoked to see what you're working on!
My first attempts at photographing such structures were with a Hasselblad film camera in the 1980s. I had no shift lens of any sort, nor even a wide angle lens, so I would back off, visualising the final frame to be cropped out of the default 6x6 square. It was good practice. I still do this sometimes, because I have two wide angle lenses, but now I have a Linhof Technika, which is another world. There is also a Linhof monorail that stays mostly in the studio. The Technika is the go-to camera because it packs up in seconds and takes up very little space in the backpack. You are going to enjoy your work, more and more as you become familiar with every control on that camera. A violinist never has to look where the fingers go to play a note or a chord. It's all about 'muscle memory'. Thanks for sharing this moment in your journey. 👌 ... 🤝
I have a Toyo 45G and absolutely love it. I bought it a year or so ago off marketplace and it was new in the box. I enjoy using it. I bought a excellent condition Nikon 180F5.6 lens for it. Amazingly there is a company that makes a backpack that can carry the whole setup - the F.64 "large." Also, I would mark your dark slides to the point where they clear the film and not completely remove them, just makes things easier.
Yes, more please, love the one near the end, of the star trails with car headlights!, proves to everyone, you don't always have to use 35mm Dslr's to do it!!
It's great to see you pursue this type of photography. Keep up the great work! 2 suggestions: 1. Get some zip lock type bags and put your film holder in it immediately after you load it. That got rid of most of my dust spots. 2. Shade the film holder, a Dark cloth helps and the view of the ground glass is much better when using a dark cloth.
Definetly that one on 11:08, where a tiny red path of an anti-collision light crosses the long exposure slightly above the center of the photo! What plane was that?
I work at a camera shop right above the freeway in Corona, where you took the freeway construction, and the mountains in the morning are so beautiful, and most of the time have a thick layer of fog in between, wish I could've said hi!! Love the shot too!!
Please make your next book available in Europe !! All of your work is so inspiring, following your channel from Belgium for a few years now and it gets better and better each time you post a video
Brings back wonderful memories, but I’m glad there’s digital medium format cameras for all the most obvious reasons. It would have been nice to show metering the scene. You give the impression you just frame the composition, load the film and fire. Don’t take this the wrong way. I love your work so keep posting. Happy trails.
This is a great example of how the type of photos you take change with the format you use. The photos are so different from the coastal California project on 6x7. But nonetheless amazing.
The two long exposure shots are, in my opinion, the best out of a set of great images. I’m considering trying 4x5 myself, so more of these videos would be very welcome.
Great photos! I especially liked the revisited construction site and the twilight shot of the overpasses with the plane going by in the background. I noticed that you used rise and fall to address the elevation issues. It would be interesting if you talked a little about the adjustments you had to make to get the capture you were after, given the geography you were working in. This was inspirational.
Very cool photos of the viaduct under construction, especially the one during golden hour. I find myself taking lots of pictures of construction sites, they make good time capsules of when a cityscape looked different when I revisit those photos in the future.
Love the long exposure at night. I've got a Toyo-Field 45A with a 135mm lens. It definitely forces you to slow down and focus on composition rather than just taking 100 shots and picking the best.
Willem Verbeeck + 4x5 = cracking it wide open. Can't wait to see more. Your subject matter combined with this format and your unique perspective documents LA in a way I've never seen, but have always wanted to. When you finish this project and produce an output, like a book or whatever, I'll be the first to order. Love to see you work with 4x5 for more future projects...
Look foward to additional vids like this. Great to see your work. Volvo content brought me to your channel, though i am a VW guy. Keep going and try something uncomfortable.
Nice video and the shots. Sometimes I think about buying a film camera but then thinking more about scanning/developing I come back to real life and keep using my GXF100s.
man oh man this makes me wanna work with 4x5 more… I had a week long workshop last October where we had to take 5 pictures on 4x5 b/w film with a hefty Sinar camera and such a heavy tripod… with that we had to develop them and scan them (didn’t have enough time to print them in the darkroom). we didn’t have enough time to learn tilt shift but maybe I can learn soon! (I also need the budget to shoot 4x5 lmao)
I can't pick out any shot in particular but they are all very interesting Coming from Ireland, they are all very alien scenes to me However it's great to have a project, it keeps your photography focused and you can learn quite a lot Best of luck with it 📷👍
It is great seeing a new generation taking up Film Photography, especially 4x5. It makes you slow down and think about the photograph instead of clicking away with your iPhone or digital camera. I have the Toyo also and I love finding vintage lenses and using them, I am learning to embrace softness and shalow depth of field. It is also fun to play with lens tilt and shift to create the impact point of the image. You are doing a fantastic job and everyone can learn from you! Too bad I can only give you one thumbs up!!
In the age of tack-sharp and widely available digital cameras, I think that film (especially medium/large format) brings an inherently different experience and final result which is very appealing when you want photos that stand out. I shoot on a Pentax 67 with the 105mm - no phone or full frame digital camera comes close in the rendering from that lens.
the long exposure one on 11:11 is master piece, great video
Totally agree, by far the best shot.
Thank you
Completely agree, a fine exposure.
As a Corona native who started watching Willem in NYC, I never thought he would photograph the freeway construction we all complain about-but let me tell you, he made the area just five minutes from my house look so damn beautiful.
Shout out Corona! 👏
4x5 is just something else.11:30 is stunning, the roadway dividing the darker sky and the lighted section. Another gem by Willem!
I second that.
Dark sky is giving feeling of extra openness. Fav.
Thank you ❤️
I'm a design engineer at Link-Belt Cranes and I loved the shot at 8:36! I'm always wanting to get action shots of our stuff and you nailed it.
The last 4 photos are chef's kiss. But I really like the bridge / gas station photo, really sums up the entire project. You need to cross a river? Need gass ?...cars !
It’s hard to see in the photo but the bridge isn’t connected to anything. It’s being constructed in that spot
1:49 Love the Mr Sheep in the shelf behind :D
10:05 Love that there's another guy literally in the exact same spot who also went to take a photo
3:03 Willem pulling up like he's taking the kids to soccer practice
The sheets of film are my children
it was cool seeing you out on the dirt roads in the mountains over the weekend. thank you for waving back :)
Haha I thought it was a Toyota wave! Hope you enjoyed the trip
11:09 is magical.
I don't think I could pick a favourite. Absolutely love the way you compose these shots with foreground elements and love how the slow shutter almost gives them a dreamlike quality.
You asked if there were any images that we loved, well my favorite was the one when you returned to the freeway and took that image (11:12) just loved those trailing lights with the curved freeway above...just a beautiful image and yes i do appreciate those 4x5 images.
All of those photo's were absurdly BEAUTIFUL! Fantastic work Willem!
Solid work Willem! After leaving photography for a few years, this video has given me some renewed vision to continue what I once loved. Keep the inspiration coming!
my fav is definitely the second shot of the freeway under construction, absolutely love it and kinda so telling for human constructionism and our car-centred approach to our environment.
Man, I like all of them! I too, use a 4x5 field camera, but live in a small town. While our subject matter may be different, I can really appreciate the work you have done here! Kudos Willem...
The second to last one was my favorite. The one with the palm trees. I really enjoyed that one. Thanks!
Love this 4x5 series. Well worth going back to take the construction shot again in better light - it's a stunning image.
Really lovely work. The 4x5 really does. “Sing”. Love the night shot.
The “better light” construction shot and the first long exposure…🔥👌 nice work
I came across this video as a long time lover of shooting 4x5. I grew up in LA and live out of state now. Planning a trip in early August to shoot a bunch of film in the area, would love to meet up and shoot some sheet film together!
11:13 photo is a favorite. Just picked up a toyo 45aii and can't wait to shoot with it! More 4x5 for sure, always stoked to see what you're working on!
Now we want the exhibition with 4x5 meters prints, and the night ones blacklighted like a Jeff Wall masterpiece 😊
Keep the 4x5 coming. I love these cameras. They're the best
Awesome photo's, I would love to see some 4x5 portraits
Yes. My thought exactly. ✅👍🏼
the penultimate shot, with the curved freeway at night is amazing. def my fav
My first attempts at photographing such structures were with a Hasselblad film camera in the 1980s. I had no shift lens of any sort, nor even a wide angle lens, so I would back off, visualising the final frame to be cropped out of the default 6x6 square. It was good practice. I still do this sometimes, because I have two wide angle lenses, but now I have a Linhof Technika, which is another world. There is also a Linhof monorail that stays mostly in the studio. The Technika is the go-to camera because it packs up in seconds and takes up very little space in the backpack.
You are going to enjoy your work, more and more as you become familiar with every control on that camera. A violinist never has to look where the fingers go to play a note or a chord. It's all about 'muscle memory'.
Thanks for sharing this moment in your journey. 👌 ... 🤝
4x5 goes crazy, love the gas station photo with the freeway in the back! all of them in general came out so nice(:
I have a Toyo 45G and absolutely love it. I bought it a year or so ago off marketplace and it was new in the box. I enjoy using it. I bought a excellent condition Nikon 180F5.6 lens for it. Amazingly there is a company that makes a backpack that can carry the whole setup - the F.64 "large." Also, I would mark your dark slides to the point where they clear the film and not completely remove them, just makes things easier.
The first night shot of the interchange at 11:08 is stunning.
Coming back 6 days later to watch this video again! So good, keep up the great work!
Yes, more please, love the one near the end, of the star trails with car headlights!, proves to everyone, you don't always have to use 35mm Dslr's to do it!!
Definitely wanna see more 4x5 content, these shots were great!
cool! I love my speed graphic. I like the shot with the windy weeds at 8:55
It's great to see you pursue this type of photography. Keep up the great work!
2 suggestions:
1. Get some zip lock type bags and put your film holder in it immediately after you load it. That got rid of most of my dust spots.
2. Shade the film holder, a Dark cloth helps and the view of the ground glass is much better when using a dark cloth.
2 last photos are wild.
Definetly that one on 11:08, where a tiny red path of an anti-collision light crosses the long exposure slightly above the center of the photo! What plane was that?
I shot one of these for years. One of the best 4x5's ever made.
I work at a camera shop right above the freeway in Corona, where you took the freeway construction, and the mountains in the morning are so beautiful, and most of the time have a thick layer of fog in between, wish I could've said hi!! Love the shot too!!
What’s the name of the camera shop?
@@Williamnegatives Mac Star Camera, I've been trying to get film at our shop but no luck yet, mainly digital cameras and gear for now!!
My buddy Eric told me he walked up a construction ramp and exposed a sheet of 4x5 film the other day before leaving it there!
Definetly saw you warming up, the last 6 pictures were dope. 9:19 was my favourite
Your 4x5 work is dope! 😮💨
Please make your next book available in Europe !! All of your work is so inspiring, following your channel from Belgium for a few years now and it gets better and better each time you post a video
the two last photos are crazy good, thanks for another video king
Incredible mate, I'm so glad I found your channel
Those images from that massive negative are just beautiful! 💪👏
i skate around here often it's great to see photos of the unique stuff around here
The Royal Industrial one at the end was really cool
...if it weren't for the name. Koninklijke Industriële Oplossingen. How silly. 🙂
The shot is great indeed.
Love the bridge construction shot at golden hour....
I finally got my first high quality medium format SLR and now Willem's gonna start posting about large format photography. The chase never ends 😒
I love the night photos. They are amazing.
last two are gold.🖤👌🏼
So good man love the photos and the project.
Brings back wonderful memories, but I’m glad there’s digital medium format cameras for all the most obvious reasons. It would have been nice to show metering the scene. You give the impression you just frame the composition, load the film and fire. Don’t take this the wrong way. I love your work so keep posting. Happy trails.
We need more 4x5! Loved the latter shots, especially the one at the gas station
Bro, what a great video! thank you
Beautiful shots and very enjoyable to watch
The first night photo and the return to the construction site are my favourites. Definitely more large format please!
This is a great example of how the type of photos you take change with the format you use. The photos are so different from the coastal California project on 6x7. But nonetheless amazing.
This was excellent. The best shot was the high overpass at the end at night!
What a great video- I LOVED it! Photo at 11:11 is awesome :)
The two long exposure shots are, in my opinion, the best out of a set of great images. I’m considering trying 4x5 myself, so more of these videos would be very welcome.
Gorgeous photos! Well done!
Yes definitely more 4x5 The long exposure was amazing.
The first night shot is amazing! Please more 4X5.
Beautiful work!
Love watching your videos they put me at peace, thanks for sharing
Last two pics are awesome! Would love to see your imperfect photographs as well 😊
Great photos! I especially liked the revisited construction site and the twilight shot of the overpasses with the plane going by in the background. I noticed that you used rise and fall to address the elevation issues. It would be interesting if you talked a little about the adjustments you had to make to get the capture you were after, given the geography you were working in. This was inspirational.
yet another banger from Willem
A really nice series of compositions! Well done!
Very cool photos of the viaduct under construction, especially the one during golden hour. I find myself taking lots of pictures of construction sites, they make good time capsules of when a cityscape looked different when I revisit those photos in the future.
God the resolution is just hard to fathom. What an amazing camera.
keep it up with the 4x5. Really dig it and it is pushing me to get mine out there more.
Love the long exposure at night. I've got a Toyo-Field 45A with a 135mm lens. It definitely forces you to slow down and focus on composition rather than just taking 100 shots and picking the best.
Willem Verbeeck + 4x5 = cracking it wide open. Can't wait to see more. Your subject matter combined with this format and your unique perspective documents LA in a way I've never seen, but have always wanted to. When you finish this project and produce an output, like a book or whatever, I'll be the first to order. Love to see you work with 4x5 for more future projects...
seeing my hometown at 2:46 too good!!
also did you check out eagle rock camera after talking the shot at Tommy’s?
dude just has great taste in cars
Willem:
Me: just take my money
Look foward to additional vids like this. Great to see your work. Volvo content brought me to your channel, though i am a VW guy. Keep going and try something uncomfortable.
Loved this! Would love to see you meter while taking the shot, especially night shots.
Yeah, 11:11 is a real banger, nice work!
Don't get robbed.
Don't get shot.
🙏🙏🙏
Amazing work. Really inspiring work and a superb project.
It has to be made into a book and put me down for a copy please. Brilliant. 🔥
last few photos were my favorite!!
YES! More 4 x 5 please!
Really cool video. Love this format outcome 👌🏽
Thorn between 11:11 and 11:28 .... Both awesome
Nice video and the shots. Sometimes I think about buying a film camera but then thinking more about scanning/developing I come back to real life and keep using my GXF100s.
Love the 4 x 5 format videos.
great films always Wil!
man oh man this makes me wanna work with 4x5 more… I had a week long workshop last October where we had to take 5 pictures on 4x5 b/w film with a hefty Sinar camera and such a heavy tripod… with that we had to develop them and scan them (didn’t have enough time to print them in the darkroom). we didn’t have enough time to learn tilt shift but maybe I can learn soon! (I also need the budget to shoot 4x5 lmao)
The photo where you went back to retake the construction zone in nice light!
Older one but I’m rocking with 2:46
I can't pick out any shot in particular but they are all very interesting
Coming from Ireland, they are all very alien scenes to me
However it's great to have a project, it keeps your photography focused and you can learn quite a lot
Best of luck with it 📷👍
Fantastic.
great video, that last shot was killer!
That lexus is so fire. I want the 2024 model.
Yes!!!! Please create more 4x5 Photo videos! Also, where do you get your 4x4 photos developed and scanned in LA?
Especially 4x5 portraits!