Shooting film

[Tim Hall]

Seeing as the rozzers are holding on to my digital SLR following the Great Camera Theft (idiot leaves car unlocked) of 2015, I might be without it when I go on holibobs, I'm toying with digging out my ME Super and shooting some film.  Going the whole hog*, I'm considering black and white, probably XP2, as I enjoyed XP1 back in the day.

I'll have to remember I can't just hold the button down. I'll have to think about what I'm shooting. Focus. Manual wind on.  Blimey.

It's a bit exciting.


* whole-ish hog. xP2 is C41, not silver B&W.

[LEE]

Sounds like a terrible idea to me (and I used to shoot a Pentax ME Super).

#digitalconvert

[clarion]

Best thing you could do!

[LEE]

But we can't see the results unless we go round to his house or he sends us a print.

[Biggsy]

Personally I'd prefer even a cheap digital compact to a film SLR these days, but each to his own.  Tim can scan the negs or prints to share digitally.  Enjoy the hollibobs and the anticipation of seeing the photos afterwards.

[IanN]

I think it's a great idea. So good, I think I'll put a roll in the LX for the first time in...   ages... when i go on holiday. Thanks!

XP2 is really good. Fine grained and tolerant. Standard C41 printing often comes out a bit blah, though as I recall.

(I'm with the majority when it comes to colour photos, but B+W is different)

[hellymedic]

But we can't see the results unless we go round to his house or he sends us a print.

When I shot film, I always got a CD of the pictures so I could share images with my computerised friends.

My ME Super is still in a drawer upstairs...

[Aunt Maud]

My fave is B&W infrared, you'll have to develop it yourself though and scan the negs. 

[nextSibling]

XP2 is really good. Fine grained and tolerant. Standard C41 printing often comes out a bit blah, though as I recall.

So XP2 is actually really interesting stuff. Like many C41 process films it has great tolerance for over-exposure but rapidly falls apart into ugly muddy graininess if you push it anywhere above 400 ISO, even though that's what it's nominally rated at. Try exposing at around 250, instead, and you'll be building in some tolerance for any inconsistent processing chemistry and most likely get something pleasantly sharp and with a very wide dynamic range.

I used to shoot XP2 at around 200-250 on days when I knew there would be very varied light levels, or in the shade of high sun. With competent processing it prints (and scans) beautifully. Almost enough to make me want to shoot some film again...

[LEE]

Tim can scan the negs or prints to share digitally.  Enjoy the hollibobs and the anticipation of seeing the photos afterwards.

Yes I know ...but that's digital, and usually crap digital as well.  Why not just cut out the middleman and take digital photos?

The only reason I'd consider film is for huge prints with a view to framing/hanging.  For 6x4", absolutely no point.

[Tim Hall]

A plan B has emerged. My grate frend Nic has offered to lend me an Olympus body and lens.  I think I'll still give the ME Super /XP2 a whirl though.

[noisycrank]

My eldest expressed an interest in photography and I bought her a couple of rolls of XP2 and gave her my K1000. The B+W saves having to worry about the white balance and the K1000 means that it is all manual and you can see the interaction of speed / aperture clearly in the view finder and you can pick where you are focusing. The first roll is due to be processed soon. The first roll I shot with that camera was terrible but you soon learn.

[Tim Hall]

Got the ME Super back from the friend whose ex's daughter I'd lent it to last night. Blimey, it's small. And I'm sure the mirror wasn't that dirty.

Ordered a blower thingy,mirror cleaning for the use of, and three rolls of XP2 today.

(taps foot waiting for the postman).

[rogerzilla]

Kodak BW400CN was a bit better than XP2 but it's the same sort of thing.  I have experienced blown highlights at ISO200 when scanning negs so you might want to try the box speed if scanning.  It's ok at ISO200 for real printing but most labs now scan and print, removing the latitude of the optical procesz.

Beware X-ray machines.  The nazis at security won't usually do a hand search for you and you'll probably get a cavity search for asking, so it will have to go through the machine.  Post the film home to avoid a second dose.  ISO100 film is generally unaffected by a couple of passes but higher speeds might get a bit of fogging.  Machines used to be low dose and labelled film-safe but I doubt they give a shit nowadays.

[Tim Hall]

Kodak BW400CN was a bit better than XP2 but it's the same sort of thing.  I have experienced blown highlights at ISO200 when scanning negs so you might want to try the box speed if scanning.  It's ok at ISO200 for real printing but most labs now scan and print, removing the latitude of the optical procesz.

Beware X-ray machines.  The nazis at security won't usually do a hand search for you and you'll probably get a cavity search for asking, so it will have to go through the machine.  Post the film home to avoid a second dose.  ISO100 film is generally unaffected by a couple of passes but higher speeds might get a bit of fogging.  Machines used to be low dose and labelled film-safe but I doubt they give a shit nowadays.

Holibobs is Wales (scarily close to Basil I think), so X rays shouldn't be a problem.  Unless the cheese smuggling starts taking off.

[rogerzilla]

You'd have more of a problem in Cornwall; all that radioactive granite 

[Tim Hall]

Got the prints back today.  I'm quite pleased.  All that concentrating on what I'm doing seems to have worked - I must try and transfer it to my other picture taking.