Film recommendations

den9 · Oct 10, 2009

never really thought of that, good idea.

cooltouch · Oct 11, 2009

Well, if you are just going to scan the negatives, meaning you can do post processing of the photos on computer, why not get color negatives then turn them into b&w as you wish? I don't really know what the difference is between a true b&w negative vs turning a color photo into b&w, but I figured this will give you more options to how you want the final result to be.

The most obvious difference between color and B&W negatives, besides the presence and lack of color, is that B&W had a greater dynamic range than color negative film. Depending on the subject, this greater lattitude might make a difference.

I have shot in color, then in PP converted to B&W, then added colorized effects -- sepia toning, etc. -- and this worked quite well.

den9 · Oct 11, 2009

what would i need for infrared pictures? should i use infrared film or a filter? if i use a filter should i use black and white film?

Battou · Oct 12, 2009

I might suggest that wile you are retraining your self to just pickup what ever the local drug store has to offer....seriously, if you've been out of film for any amount of time you are bound to botch some shots due to digital habits and/or rust. Get the cheap stuff and knock the rust off first and then move on to the high end films being suggested here.

cooltouch · Oct 12, 2009

Battou said:
I might suggest that wile you are retraining your self to just pickup what ever the local drug store has to offer....seriously, if you've been out of film for any amount of time you are bound to botch some shots due to digital habits and/or rust. Get the cheap stuff and knock the rust off first and then move on to the high end films being suggested here.

Unfortunately, I've been finding that the local drug stores around here, like Walgreens and CVS, carry a variety of disposable 35mm cameras, but no film. Walmart still carries a small variety. My local Walmart even had pro packs of BW400CN.

But here's a counter to your argument about using cheap film. First, most film you buy nowadays -- even the cheap stuff -- is of excellent quality. Second, if a person is interested in a particular type of photography, they should get used to the film that suits that photography the best from the get-go. May as well make it part of the overall learning experience. Just MHO.

jbylake · Oct 12, 2009

Wow, glad this thread got revived, a lot of experience being shared here, lot's of useful information. Except for T-Max color, I can't find diddly squat around here, as far as B&W goes, I have to order on-line.

J.:mrgreen:

den9 · Oct 12, 2009

Battou said:
I might suggest that wile you are retraining your self to just pickup what ever the local drug store has to offer....seriously, if you've been out of film for any amount of time you are bound to botch some shots due to digital habits and/or rust. Get the cheap stuff and knock the rust off first and then move on to the high end films being suggested here.

Second, if a person is interested in a particular type of photography, they should get used to the film that suits that photography the best from the get-go. May as well make it part of the overall learning experience. Just MHO.

i never used film previously, but im currently using expired ilford 125 iso black and white, im not sure how thats gonna work out.

i want to do star trails so i want to buy fuji T64

cooltouch · Oct 12, 2009

You'll probably be okay with the Ilford. If you're concerned, just use the roll for testing something: lens sharpness at varying apertures is a good one. That's always been a popular one with me. I could shoot several rolls of film just testing the sharpness of all my various lenses

Or bokeh tests. Find a subject that has some distance between it and a background, then shoot at varying apertures with any lens you have that might be good candidates for nice bokeh. Just a couple of ideas, and there are many more. Anyway, if on the slim chance that the Ilford was no good, you really haven't lost anything. If it is good, well, hey, you've learned more about your gear.

Just curious, but why a tungsten film for star trails? Because it has a relatively slow ISO? Back in the day when I did some astrophotography, I did just the opposite. I would shoot ISO 1600 Fujichrome to avoid reciprocity failure.

den9 · Oct 13, 2009

i read it on a tutorial and it makes sense, it says the stars really come out with tungsten? i guess it has a cool blue effect. also low iso so the black sky isnt noisy. this is all with super long exposures. with 20 minute exposures i might use a 400 speed film.

compur · Oct 13, 2009

den9 said:
what would i need for infrared pictures? should i use infrared film or a filter?

Both.

if i use a filter should i use black and white film?

B&W infrared film with IR filter is best.

den9 · Oct 13, 2009

i just went far out of my way to have bw film developed thinking id have it within 3 days. 1-2 weeks!!!

bhop · Oct 13, 2009

den9 said:
i just went far out of my way to have bw film developed thinking id have it within 3 days. 1-2 weeks!!!

Dang.. that sucks. You could've done it in around 45 minutes at home. :badangel:

jbylake · Oct 16, 2009

Battou said:
I might suggest that wile you are retraining your self to just pickup what ever the local drug store has to offer....seriously, if you've been out of film for any amount of time you are bound to botch some shots due to digital habits and/or rust. Get the cheap stuff and knock the rust off first and then move on to the high end films being suggested here.

Good sound advice, my problem is that I can't find any BW film around town anywhere. No camera shops, had a Ritz, but they're gone now. Have to order online, but I could buy some of the cheaper "Lucky" at 2 bucks a roll. Shoot up about 5 or 10 rolls, then try some of the "better" stuff.

J.:mrgreen:

den9 · Oct 19, 2009

bhop said:
den9 said:

i just went far out of my way to have bw film developed thinking id have it within 3 days. 1-2 weeks!!!

Click to expand...

Dang.. that sucks. You could've done it in around 45 minutes at home. :badangel:

someday

ErectedGryphon · Oct 19, 2009

It would be awsome if they started making digital backs for these older series cameras...

Hey, idea, who wants to start a business venture with me!

I really loved my Canon AE-1 and my T-70, I had some nice glass with them too. But film developing got too expensive when digital starting taking over.

My dad still has some of that old stuff too, including a first production auto-focus lens, what a noisy little thing.