Picture this:

You are out on a four week excursion in the Tetons with your hard-core outdoor friends. Each one of you will be lugging about 75 to 80 pounds of equipment, and you want to carry with you your 4x5 view camera (and the accessories that go with it).

After much thought, you figure your back won't be able to withstand 20 more pounds, so you opt for your digital camera.

Think it over logistically. You'll probably need at least four battery packs, since there aren't too many wall outlets in the woods to charge them. If the temperature dips below 60F, they tend to run out of juice quicker than four weeks. And if you want to make time exposures at night, you're limited to perhaps a 4 minute open shutter (which will also drain your batteries very soon). Think of the moisture, or rain. It's not difficult to keep a digital camera dry, but are you sure it will be okay if some moisture condenses inside it? What if it shorts out? Finally, will a 3 or 6 megapixel camera produce the intense detail and range that your originally-intended 4x5 view camera produces? Close, but not really.

So, what's the next logical conclusion? Maybe that poor, neglected Minolta SRT, Canonet or Pentax K-1000 mechanical camera would be perfect. Think about it. No batteries needed. Carry an exposure chart for each ISO/ASA speed, and you really don't need to power up the on-board metering in any of them. If the temperature goes to freezing or near, it'll still shoot. But what about 4x5 quality? That can be arranged. Near enough, with Kodak's Technical Pan (Tech Pan) 25 ASA film. It's an extremely fine-grain silver-based film. The inherent contrast is very similar to Kodak Tri-X; perhaps 6% more contrast than Tri-X. 8x10" prints look like they were from a 4x5" negative. 11x14 prints appear to be from 120 format film. It's easy to develop, just like any other b&w film, but that's where the difference is. It uses Kodak Technidol LC developer. It's possible to use a "regular" developer, but what it will yield is extremely high-contrast negatives. Technidol LC comes in a small 4" x 5" packet, and sometimes is offered along with a roll of Tech Pan as a pre-packaged deal. Excellent, minute details can be achieved with the above combo of film & developer. The film scans easily and with significantly less grain than Tri-X. The darkroom worker will be pleased with the "wet" prints' quality compared to ink jet prints made with a digitized version. This is one of Kodak's jewels, along with their Kodachrome, which is now extinct. I do hope that film continues to be one of the tools used in photographic imaging. It will, and it will find a niche like view cameras, Holgas and medium format. So break out the K-1000 and try a roll of Tech Pan.

You'll be pleasantly surprised.