Dumb, newbie, 120 film question.

Kev M

Kev M

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Me again,

Groucho is kindly donating me a MF camera to dabble with so now I need a pointer as to what sort of film to start with. I think I should start with colour rather than B&W and they'll be sent away for developing rather than doing it myself. I'm going to use it for portraits more than anythingi think (whether this influences film coice or not I dounno yet). So much to learn and i can't wait to get started.

So any pointer for a first film choice would be gratefully recieved.

Kev
 
I suppose the first counter question would be do you want to take slides or colour negative and secondly what do you plan to do with them afterwards ... :shrug:


Fujifilm is generally the easiest to find and there is quite a choice still out there ... ;)


Calumet do a great selection of all colour slide and negative as well as B & W and you can also usually get hold of it on Fleabay ... :D


HTH a bit at least ... ;)





:p
 
negatives I guess, I don't have a projector so don't think slide film is for me. I'll probably get the first couple of rolls developed and either printed or scanned onto CD as I experiment with the camera. Probably printed as it'll be more tangible way of analysing what's happening. Will make a change to hold a print in my hand, something I've not done with my SLR for a long time.
 
Who the hells got an M/F projector:shrug:

Shoot slide film, you know you want to.

want negatives ?, shoot B/W

:)
 
Kodak Portra colour neg film is the best i've found, i usually use VC (vivid colour) but they also do a natural colour version, which i can't comment on. i like vc though, bright colours, little grain. i mostly shoot landscapes on MF but Vc skintone's are still accurate and it just amkes the colours POP. love it.
 
joxby said:
Who the hells got an M/F projector:shrug:

Shoot slide film, you know you want to.

want negatives ?, shoot B/W

:)
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Looks like we need to go back to basics here Joxby. What's the difference between slide film and negative and their uses?
 
Why is it a lot of the film I'm looking at jumps from ASA160 to ASA400? There doesn't seems to be a lot of ASA200 MF film about unless I'm looking in the wrong places. Something tells me I might miss the flexibility of the DSLR when it comes to setting the ISO.

I intend to take some outdoor portraits when I go mountain biking next, given that the weather might be variable and the max shutter is 1/250 I think what ASA rating film should I plump for as I'm just starting out?
 
Kev

I think the difference between 160 and 200 is to small to worry about. it's 1/3 stop so nothing to write home about.

Problem is this time of the year it's difficult to predict the weather.I would suggest you opt for a 400 speed film. Better to have to much speed than too little.
 
Kev M said:
Looks like we need to go back to basics here Joxby. What's the difference between slide film and negative and their uses?
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There's lots of reasons, but primarliy once the film is developed that's what you get back -there's no printing stage, and that's where it can all start to go pear shaped with your average High Street processors. A lot of the printing is done by automated machines with little or no human judgement given to how they should look. Also, the allowed temperature variance during slide development is negligable, so slides are well suited to an automated temperature controlled process - there's no leeway for the High Street bodgers, they have two options - get it right - or get nowt.

You get wonderful colour saturation with slide film, even more so if you under-expose it by about half a stop. The only downside is you really have to nail the exposure with slide film - there isn't the leeway for correction like there is with negatives.

So- assuming you want the least processing hassle, get the film developed and then scan the results onto your PC, or get them scanned to CD- should look fantastic. ;)
 
Cheers CT. I was going to use Colab or Peak Imaging for the developing who should be pretty reliable. I don't own a scanner yet either so the developer will have to put them straight on CD. If slide is so sensetive to exposure then I'm probably best off dabbling with negative to start with until I get familiar with the camera and all that goes with shooting film. Then have a go at slides when I'm a bit more confident in what I'm doing.

Cheers Chappers, think I'll get a couple of rolls of 160 and 400. What's the worst that can happen eh?
 
Certainly Colab will do you a good job Kev - I used them for years - first class.
 
bejesus I've just seen what Colab and Peak Imaging charge to develop a 120 film and stick it on CD. £15 near enough plus postage. I guess there's a fair bit more skill involved than making digital prints but I didn't realise it'd be that steep. Is that about the standard price or do you find your local labs are different?

Does anyone know of any labs in the Burton or Loughborough areas?
 
You need to forget everything you are used to doing with digital, go back to basics, do everything by hand.
Meter > choose the balance between shutter speed and aperture to suit > compose > focus > throw the big switch:)
Its a different approach, you can't just fire off 40 frames on auto and then check em out, you have to be more involved with decisions.
Some films are more forgiving than others if you are slightly off with settings, but if the equipment is right and you do the routine....why would it be off ?
B/W is more forgiving, you ought to shoot some cheap stuff to get accustomed to your routine/how the camera works/if it works correctly/loading/lightmeter works, all that crap, before you shoot slides, its cheaper film and processing...I think.
I like slides because its a positive image, at the end of it all you have something you can appreciate, in your hand, you can see it as it was.
Negatives.....humm.....I cant see it, its all back to front, it doesn't mean anything to view, b/w's not so bad, you can nearly swap the blacks and whites in your mind, but colour negatives...:shrug:.
I am more than likely never going to shoot colour negative, but I'm no expert...
 
developing is usually about 3-£4, so the rest must be scanning/postage.
To be perfectly honest, I've tried a few scanners but generally I'm settling for slide copying with a macro lens/dslr.
 
You could try B&W, develop it at home then scan it.

That's what I'm hoping to do when the bits come from ebay, at least you won't have to wait a couple of weeks for the film to come back!

Paterson tanks are about £10-15 off ebay, a changing bag is about £10 and chemicals about £15.

Then you can do as many as you want! (in thoery, not tried it yet but looking forward to it!)
 
Just read this thread with interest, I've borrowed a pair of MF cameras with spare backs to play with between now and August. Can't wait, but I think it's going to be a bit of a shock as someone who's only ever known digital!

Will be shooting mainly landscapes, assuming both the bodies work fine I'm planning on having one loaded with B&W and one with colour slide film. Any advice on the best film to use and where to get it? Phaedra's recommendation of Kodak portra sounds pretty good.
 
TomB said:
Just read this thread with interest, I've borrowed a pair of MF cameras with spare backs to play with between now and August. Can't wait, but I think it's going to be a bit of a shock as someone who's only ever known digital!

Will be shooting mainly landscapes, assuming both the bodies work fine I'm planning on having one loaded with B&W and one with colour slide film. Any advice on the best film to use and where to get it? Phaedra's recommendation of Kodak portra sounds pretty good.
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What camera bodies are they Tom?

You've no need to worry about both bodies being working, or need to cart two bodies about. The whole purpose of the magazine backs is that you can have one loaded with colour and one with B&W. As long as the dark slide is in place, you can swap mags mid roll at any time you like, and all on the same body.

Provia reversal colour film is nice.

Provia shot
 
Put a film through my EOS 30 the other week, kept checking the back after each shot, like a ****, kept telling myself off but did i listen?
 
If film is supposed to be stored somewhere cool like a fridge how long will a roll of slide film last in the camera? I'm itching to try some slide film I bought but don't know how quickly I will use it.
 
Tom ... You should be able to pick up a Weston Master 5, or earlier model, pretty cheap ... solid gear and relatively easy to use ... :shrug:


Kev ... I reckon film will last quite a long time as long as you keep the camera it's in coolish and not exposed to extremes ... :shrug:






:p
 
Film is pretty good for a while after being in the fridge but warm it slightly in your hand before puttin it in the camera, otherwise it kinda gets shock! Kodak NC is lovely for portraits, the tones are a bit more muted than VC so skin tones look a bit less like they've been at the sunbeds! VC is pretty good for bright landscapes or buildings, good contrast etc, 120 C41 is fantastic to print by hand but if you're a starter then try B&W first cos its a bit less tricky to hand print than colour is, hope that helps! 120 is fantastic once you get into it, 120 just makes you slow down and work in a more considered way, enjoy!
 
I have lots of 120 film lying around I was thinking about selling.. Pm me and i'll dig out what I have.
 
TomB said:
Sorry for not replying CT, i trashed Kev's thread then completely forgot I'd posted in it!

I have a Bronica SQ-A and SQ-Ai (difference is?) both with 80mm lenses.

Thanks everyone else for the recommendations.
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It appears the SQAi is an SQA with TTL flash capability with the addition of a SCA 386 adapter and an SCA compatible flash unit.


CLICK
 
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