Hi, new to the forum. returning to photography after an 18 year lay off. Bought some Nikon gear off E-Bay and just had first film processed, generally okay. My question pertains mainly to image sharpness in the following stages: 1) Prints versus slides. I read that slides will give a sharper image. is this true? I like having prints to show people, would a decent inkjet printer printing a scanned slide image give better results than a high street produced print from film? 2) Processing. How vital is the processing service? I can't afford to send every film off to one of these "pro-am" type labs advertising in the mags. Are they really worth the extra money compared to dropping a film in to my local LCE or Jessops? In general terms, if I use process paid slide film, do I have to have it processed at a specific place via a voucher system? If not, how does it work? Sorry for the length of the post, times have changed since my last photo experience Thanks, Lol
Hi there and Welcome to TPF. 1. This is a bit of a debatable point - some people prefer slide, but I can't be bothered with the hassle and extra cost. I don't think you'd see any difference between neg and slide when printing yourself, btw but others may disagree. I hate Velvia, I think it's nasty, but many many people swear by it - just find a film and lab whose results you are pleased with - it makes no difference if you pay £1.99 or £7.99 for a roll of film, it's how happy you are with the results that counts. 2. IMO doesn't matter unless you've got special instructions like pushing a couple of stops where you need the lab monkey to understand you. As long as they have a good maintenance contract and look after their machines, there won't be much in it between say Boots and Jessops or the local chemist and a pro lab. Yes, the process paid normally has an address where it's sent to and they do it and send it back. It's advisable to take a photograph of your name and address on every roll of film in case they lose it. Good luck, hope to see some piccies from you Rob
