Week One Progress - The Learning Curve, and Curvy 55 too

It has been one week since New 55 Project got going. You can read the chronicle of findings to date - lots more learning to do. Today was spent studying formulas, dozens of them, and reading more patents, and comparing them to existing commercial materials that are still available.  Also I got a very valuable email from Jo Lommen who alerted me to the lack of film flatness (see his photo with markings) with 55 in a holder - made all the more apparent to Jo with his vast experience with the Kodak Aero Ektar, an F 2.5, 7" lens that covers 4X5 quite nicely!  Jo manufactures lens mounts, shades and filter holders for the Aero Ektar that are beautifully machined, and they can be seen in some of my earlier posts.

Oh, and something I learned this week that surprised me very much - that I can easily recover Fuji FP100c negatives quickly, and without damage. They are durable, not too unsharp looking, and that I kind of like them! Shot of my Speed Graphic (and yours truly) with one of Jo Lommen's Aero Ektar shades, taken with another speed graphic and a 65mm Super Angulon at f11.