Which color film should I buy?

anubis404 · Sep 7, 2008

Which color film should I buy? I just bought a FSLR and want to buy some 35mm film. I know almost nothing about film photography, so is there something I should look for or stay away from in film?

Steph · Sep 7, 2008

Print or slide?
What do you want to use it for?

sarallyn · Sep 7, 2008

i'm a fan of kodak professional ultra color 400 UC

but just to begin, I would go to a photoshop where they sell really cheap stuff. expired film can be cool to work with.

bhop · Sep 7, 2008

To elaborate more on what Steph said. Different films have different purposes and results. Are you shooting in bright sunlight? Low light at night? Do you like warm colors? Cooler colors? Muted tones? Bright saturation? Are you shooting fast moving objects or people? or will you be shooting still objects with a tripod?

answer is I guess.. "It depends"

Personally, a print film that I like as an all-arounder is Kodak Portra 400VC. (400 being the ISO) If it's a little bright out, I can put on a polarizer or ND filter and it takes the stops down some, but if the light gets a little low I can shoot without the filters. The "VC" stands for 'vibrant color' (I think) so your colors should "pop" a little more with this film. If you prefer a more muted warm tone, then the Portra 400NC (natural color?) might be more your style.

Since you're still learning film, you might want to get some cheap film in the beginning (as sarallyn mentioned) so you don't feel like you're wasting as much money if the shots don't come out like you want.

anubis404 · Sep 7, 2008

I'm mostly going to be shooting people and landscapes. I want print film, and I don't want the ISO over 400. I do want a bit of a saturation boost.

Silver.Winged.Demon · Sep 7, 2008

400 ISO is your basic type of film

the higher the numbers the more grain and fuzz you will get however it is perfect for low light situations.

the lower the number ex: 100, 200, 400
the tighter the grain and the sharper the image, however more light is needed. Great for outdoors and very sunny days.

bhop · Sep 7, 2008

anubis404 said:
I'm mostly going to be shooting people and landscapes. I want print film, and I don't want the ISO over 400. I do want a bit of a saturation boost.

I would give Kodak Portra 160VC or Fuji npc160 a try.

anubis404 · Sep 7, 2008

Will this stuff work well?

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-ROLLS-FUJI-F...oryZ4202QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

bhop · Sep 7, 2008

anubis404 said:
Will this stuff work well?

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-ROLLS-FUJI-F...oryZ4202QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

"Well" is a relative term.. that is the basic stuff you can buy in any supermarket. It'll probably be fine for learning, but eventually you'll want to use something better. But then, after searching for shots taken with that film on flickr, it doesn't look half bad.

randerson07 · Sep 8, 2008

Ive got a few rolls of that superia 400, its pretty good stuff
http://www.flickr.com/photos/randerson07/sets/72157606083312313/

If you just do some searches on flickr you can get an idea of what a particular film will look like. But keep in mind the scans you see on flickr will all depend on what scanner and settings were used in the process, it will give you a general idea though.

Have a look at my stuff I separate it all by film type
http://www.flickr.com/photos/randerson07/collections/72157606079271802/

bhop · Sep 8, 2008

randerson07 said:
Ive got a few rolls of that superia 400, its pretty good stuff
http://www.flickr.com/photos/randerson07/sets/72157606083312313/

If you just do some searches on flickr you can get an idea of what a particular film will look like. But keep in mind the scans you see on flickr will all depend on what scanner and settings were used in the process, it will give you a general idea though.

Have a look at my stuff I separate it all by film type
http://www.flickr.com/photos/randerson07/collections/72157606079271802/

What film scanner are you using if you don't mind me asking?

randerson07 · Sep 8, 2008

Epson 3490 got it off craigslist for under $40

bhop · Sep 8, 2008

randerson07 said:
Epson 3490 got it off craigslist for under $40

The reason I ask is because your images seem pretty sharp. I use an Epson 4490 and can't seem to get them that sharp..

randerson07 · Sep 8, 2008

Hmm, Well I scan at between 1800 and 2400dpi based on how good I think the neg is and how big I might ever want to print it. I let the scanner do medium sharpening, then I adjust contrast, levels, and unsharpmask in photoshop if it needs it. Alot of the ones in my flickr are straight out of the scanner but I couldnt tell you which ones unless I checked the properties to see if they were PS files.