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10/20/2005 09:06:16 AM · #1 |
Ok, now I'm one of those people that had no interest whatsoever in film, we have 2 dSLR's and 3 digi p&s plus lenses, tripods, macro equipment etc. etc. In essence I have enough equipment to get 99% of the shots that I would want.
I do intend to go to college to 'formalise' my photography and I realise that this means using film, so with some relutance I started looking into the idea of buying a film body. A local shop had a Nikon F801s which I went back to 3 times in as many weeks and eventually purchased, the winning feature being the fact that it had a spot meter (I use this quite a bit on my D70). So I was pleased with my new toy, I messed around a bit with it and then put it away until I started the course - still in my mind was the fact that I bought the camera for the course and not for everyday use.
A few days later we were at a car boot sale (note for international readers: this is not a place where car boots are sold, rather a place where everyone sells any old crap they can find, usually out of a car boot), and I found a Praktica MTL3 with it's original kit lens, a Zeiss 50mm and a scrap 28mm (heavy fungus in the lens). I got the camera and lenses for £10, bought a battery for the meter and put a roll of film into it and took it out to see if it worked.
I fell in love.
Really!
Full manual controls (but with the aid of the meter), I found myself spending so much time thinking deeply about composition, light, etc. I knew I only had a limited number of pics that I could take so I wanted to make each one count, the experience has changed my photography.
Now I know that there are many out there that have been there, done that, got the t-shirt etc etc. But for me it was a first, I have never before composed a shop on film.
Film will not replace as my main medium, but it will certainly have a place alongside from now on.
The F801s live in my Nova 5 alongside my D70 and Orion Trekker has now become home to a couple of Praktica MTL5B bodies, flash units and a small collection of M42 lenses that were bought on a recent ebay raid.
For those in a similar position to me - try film, it's good!
Cheers
Darren
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10/20/2005 10:59:44 AM · #2 |
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10/20/2005 11:05:43 AM · #3 |
nice story... wish i could afford it.
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10/20/2005 11:07:33 AM · #4 |
Yes, I know where you're coming from. I have a Nikon FM2n manual body which I have a love-hate relationship with.
I love it because it's always there just waiting to be picked up with that 50mm lens on it. No need to worry about batteries or memory cards. And it just feels so nice! - This camera is going to last forever. I hate it because it brings a degree of uncertainty to things.
Digital gives you the preview screen and the delete button. Just fire 20 shots with different bracketing and composition, and pick the sharpest/best exposed one to postprocess. With film... well... you said it yourself. You have to be so *sure* of everything before you click the shutter.
So film SLR really is an exercise in confidence. Although, one thing is for sure, if you want to learn about photography, film is a great place to start. |
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10/20/2005 11:12:08 AM · #5 |
Now you are having a love affair with film, colda...try bringing some spice into the relationship, experiment with different film brands and ISO's.
Compare Fujifilm with Kodak, have a go with Agfa B&W...you'll love the results. Then, have a shot at slide. Digital maybe fast, easy and cheap, but film is a different beast altogether.
Steve |
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10/20/2005 11:14:42 AM · #6 |
Although I abandoned 35mm film in favor of digital, film is still quite viable. The only part of 35mm I miss is infrared, because Kodak doesn’t make IR in large format. I shoot my favorite film, Velvia in both medium & large formats. There is just something magical about a beautiful transparency that digital just doesn’t offer.
Although sometimes the quality is hit & miss there is a lot of really good Russian glass for your Praktica as well as other accessories. E-bay is a good source.
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10/20/2005 11:27:29 AM · #7 |
I lovelovelovelovelovelovelovelovelovelovelovelove film. I always say that instead of giving film cameras to beginners you should hand them digital, if they're really serious they'll get their own film.
I have 6 film cameras ;-) Three zenits (Next week I'm hoping to buy lenses for them), two canons and one yashica. Unfotuantly only three of them works.
Wait until you really get drawn to the dark side... litteraly. The darkroom ;) Once you go in you never go out.
Few exemples I have here:   
Oh and an advice, although some of the shots turned out not bad I really don't recommend using film for fashion, bad bad move.
Message edited by author 2005-10-20 11:33:01.
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10/20/2005 11:57:41 AM · #8 |
been running through rolls of B&W for a B&W printing class
fun playing wwith the chem. & the prints are really neat,very different from inkjet
still end up shooting like digital and pulling a just a few to print
two cameras F80 and a FG, really enjoy the viewfinders on both compared to the 'crowded & dark' view on the D100
debating with my wife about an enlarger & etc etc etc ... or go for a film scanner
(and a wide format printer, shh.. don't mention that part .. )
toys toys toys |
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10/20/2005 12:26:26 PM · #9 |
I was sniffing around at some film cameras today when i went to pick up my Tokina 12-24 ... they had an F4s Nikon there for $450 with all the bits attached.. I used to shoot film years ago with a Contax and Zeiss glass so I know your feeling about thinking before you hit the trigger.. digital is so easy these days I could just walk around with my finger on the trigger all day and not worry about it.. film...*FILM* those were the days. Enjoy your new love and dont tell the wife you fell in love again.
Message edited by author 2005-10-20 22:56:25.
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10/20/2005 01:33:40 PM · #10 |
I recently uncovered a 25 year old Sears KSX Super film camera with a few lenses. I haven't used it yet, mainly because I can't afford equipment and processing since I'm not working right now (not to mention I spent $$$ on a D70s in August). Eventually I will get the thing working. I'm actually excited that it doesn't have a lightmeter or autofocus or any of that jazz-- kind of getting back to the basics.
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10/20/2005 01:51:15 PM · #11 |
last January I took the same plunge. I took a begining Black and White photography course. I now have a darkroom setup in my house, and I actually spend more time shooting with B+W film and in the darkroom than I do shooting digital.
The film vs. digital debate is a decade old now, and there are many pros and cons to both. I also found myself taking more time setting up the shot when shooting film, and I think that has translated to a better digital image as well. I no longer shoot hundreds of digital images in a trek, only to like 3 when I get home. I now shot 30 for the entire day, and I like each and every one.
Another thing that I found interesting is learning to look at the world as a series of gradations of grey and trying to find interesting compostions with nothing more than strong contrast. It's harder than you think, but once I did, it translated into better color photos.
One thing that you may want to look into is a film scanner :) There ARE some things that you just can't do with a silver darkroom that you CAN do in a digital darkroom...plus, people like to see their photos posted online (I'd post my link of 35mm scans, but my server crashed recently...)
-Jason |
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10/20/2005 02:19:54 PM · #12 |
Originally posted by Ennil:
Once you go in you never go out. |
oh so true.
I have always messed around with photography, but this year I decided to acctuly enroll.
so... signed up for online digital photo class at a local community college, and at my high school, darkroom photo.
they are both amazing, but once your in the darkroom, it's just a zen feeling. All you can see is the bumbling outlines of your fellow developers and the light of your enlarger. Ah, bliss.
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10/20/2005 02:21:19 PM · #13 |
i recently went thru a load of old photos to find 30 or so with which i was pleased (an exercise to find my 'niche' and a topic for college photography project) and found they were ALL from film. I've never felt confident with digital, and never got the same results because of the time + thought that has to go into a film photo. It feels much more like you're creating an image, rather than just capturing what's already there.
Also, as i dont *sniff* have a dSLR, my 35mm olympus offers a lot more creative control than the F717, even in fully manual mode
But what i do find is that any time spent using film, particularly B+w, helps my digital photgraphy too. And learning to dodge + burn in a darkroom with scraps of paper (for example) makes you appreciate its applications much more than discovering the tool in photoshop. That said, i do like to scan images to tweak levels, tones etc and get the optimum image without tons of teststips and failed attempts.
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