First film finally developed and scanned!

[Digital_Clarity]

After a week of wandering around with my newly acquired second hand 50E and and roll of Fuji neopan 400 I finally have my first roll of film in the bag

As a digital user I wasn't sure if I would even like film, the lack of control in post processing, no chimping and so on, but now I've got the negatives back I'm completely and utterly hooked. One thing I can safely say is that it makes you think twice before pressing that shutter and I actually found myself taking much, much longer to compose and consider the scene before I committed it to film. In fact now I pick up my digital SLR and feel a lack of excitement about taking pics with it!

I thought I'd post some here for you to have a nosey at. Mods this is geared more at the film forum than photo sharing/critique sections so would appreciate it not being moved if possible! Thanks.


4 of my favourites, the rest are here if you're at all interested!

My little sister (she's actually not camera shy in the slightest!)


My dad enjoying reading the paper after work.


A very friendly barista in a coffee house.


A very animated discussion taking place behind me in a bar one evening!

 

[IainG]

Excellent shots!!

 

[TheBigYin]

Mods this is geared more at the film forum than photo sharing/critique sections so would appreciate it not being moved if possible! Thanks.

I wouldn't worry about that - can't remember any photo thread posted in here getting moved... Worst we get is someone who view's the forum postings from the front page of TP rather than the forum itself and doesn't realise it was posted in Film and Conventional, who looks at a B&W shot and says "I'd like to see the colour one..." then wonders why we bite their heads off or Shout "HP5+ you tool!" at them

There are some nice shots in there, both in the ones posted here, and the flickr set - i'm not big on people photography personally, though I do enjoy seeing other peoples. I take it you were shooting the Fuji 400CN - the one that you can get processed on the high-street minilabs? There's a nice tonal range to the shots, though personally i'm not keen on the slight colouration - maybe just a quick convert to greyscale might be worth a look, though this could just be me...

It's strange you say about losing the excitement of shooting with the digital after using film... the same happened to me initially, then returned to normal for a while. Until I started developing my own, first B&W, then C41 and E6. I'm getting back to normal now, and I guess that the only thing left is to start printing my own too... though I can't afford that, or at least I can afford the darkroom kit, could probably afford a shed to house it, bu can't quite afford the messy divorce that would ensue

 

[alistair.o]

Well done. I enjoyed mooching through the whole set.

Did you scan them yourself? If so, which scanner did you use?


Thanks

 

[Digital_Clarity]

I take it you were shooting the Fuji 400CN - the one that you can get processed on the high-street minilabs?

It was the B&W 400CN. I was quite pleased I could get it developed quickly as they said if it wasn't the C41 stuff they would have had to send it off. I think for now I'll stick with this film as at least I've got some kind of benchmark/reference point to develop some consistency with my actual shooting.

There's a nice tonal range to the shots, though personally i'm not keen on the slight colouration - maybe just a quick convert to greyscale might be worth a look, though this could just be me...

I was really surprised (and pleased!) at just how much contrast and grain came out in the end, it was exactly what I was after! What affects this most? Is it the brand of film, the C41 process or where it's been developed?
Also I'm glad you noticed the slight colouration, there was something that didn't seem quite right and that's what it was! I've tried what you suggested:

Before_____________________________________After

It's strange you say about losing the excitement of shooting with the digital after using film... the same happened to me initially, then returned to normal for a while.

Well I was out only a few days ago with my digital camera, and found the only way to get the same kick out of it was to be more brave with my street photography and take pictures I might have otherwise wussed out on
I've decided to put developing my own pics on hold for a short while as I've reached a bit of a financial crunch!

Well done. I enjoyed mooching through the whole set.

Did you scan them yourself? If so, which scanner did you use?

Thanks Alistair, I didn't scan them myself, I used the scans from Max Speilman although it is worth mentioning that it took 3 separate visits to the shop to get the full set on a disc that worked, and it still wasn't right! :bang:
I will be using a friends scanner later on to get some high res versions though.

 

[Andysnap]

Hi David, really like what you've posted here (love to see the colour versions though ). I too am a recent convert and you are right about the, almost, anti-climax you get going back to the digi camera.

Andy

 

[raathistle]

Really great set, just looking through the flickr now

you may actually find that if scanned properly some of that graininess will dissapear, I've certainly found C41 black and white to be pretty much grainless.

Overall a really great first roll, I wish mine was as productive

 

[Digital_Clarity]

Hi David, really like what you've posted here (love to see the colour versions though ). I too am a recent convert and you are right about the, almost, anti-climax you get going back to the digi camera.

Thanks Andy! I've been taking some more pics with my digital since the film was developed, and bit by bit I'm starting to just accept the good and bad that comes with each. I really really enjoy film, it feels like an adventure every time I go out of the house, but at the same time I enjoy the flexibility and ease of digital. After thinking about it, I'm just happy I have the opportunity to use both I suppose!

Really great set, just looking through the flickr now
you may actually find that if scanned properly some of that graininess will dissapear, I've certainly found C41 black and white to be pretty much grainless.
Overall a really great first roll, I wish mine was as productive

Cheers Glad you enjoying having a browse on Flickr. I'll check out the results when I get round to scanning them in myself.

 

[RaglanSurf]

A very animated discussion taking place behind me in a bar one evening!

Really like this one, for some reason it has a real period feel to it, almost 1940's.

And the combination of the Neopan and the 1.4 lens is working a treat.

 

[Digital_Clarity]

Really like this one, for some reason it has a real period feel to it, almost 1940's.

Thanks, it's one of my favourites Just out of curiosity, is your username in reference to Raglan Beach (surfing spot in New Zealand)? If it is that would be a bizarre co-incidence as I've literally just been looking at pics from when I was at Raglan beach a couple of years ago!

 

[TheBigYin]

...I really really enjoy film, it feels like an adventure every time I go out of the house, but at the same time I enjoy the flexibility and ease of digital. After thinking about it, I'm just happy I have the opportunity to use both I suppose!

That's a good way of looking at things. My Camera Bag has 3 cameras in there at the moment - a EOS450D Digital, a EOS-3 35mm and a Holga 120WPC Medium format Panoramic monstrosity. I like each of them for what they bring, and I'm aware of their strengths and weaknesses.

Digital's great for immediacy, or for experimental stuff where you're trying things that are a bit off the wall, and of course for the times when you're going to bang off 5-600 shots. I've a mate who used to be a ship's photographer, and used to go around during the dinner services loaded down with 2 cameras and maybe 30 rolls of colour neg. He'd shoot through those, and be away to the photography shop and running the minilab for the rest of the evening so that the next morning everyone could come in and pick up their photo's. Shooting digital would be so much easier, obviously.

But, as you've already noticed, somehow film just makes you slow down and think a little more rather than just pressing the button. And if you think that 35mm film slows you down, just try something like my pinhole camera.

For a start, exposures start at around 1/2 second, and go up to minutes so a tripod is not an option, it's an ESSENTIAL. Then, framing is a bit of a "point it in the vicinity and hope" seeing as the viewfinder is 3 bumps on the top of the camera, indicating the maximum angle the camera can take in. Focus doesn't come into things obviously - it's a pinhole camera f:135, so DOF kind of takes care of focus for you. The film wind is not interlocked with the shutter release, so you need to have a routine in your head... fit cable release, meter, calculate how much more it'll take at f:135 instead of f:16, frame,wind on, remove lens cap, check exposure again because you've been faffing for 5 minutes and the sun's changed, recalculate, press the release, count the requisite number of elephants, release the release, put lens cap on, say silent prayer,repeat as necessary (bearing in mind you'll only get 6/8 shots to a roll )

You can probably see how that slows you down.