Luminous Landscape Forum
Equipment & Techniques => Medium Format / Film / Digital Backs – and Large Sensor Photography => Topic started by: amsp on January 26, 2012, 11:35:05 am
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As per my trip down nostalgia lane recently I'd like to hear what people's favorite films are (was) and why. Color negative, reversal, b&w, doesn't matter which as long as it's available in 120 rolls. Also, if you have some examples you can post that illustrates the "why" I'd love to see them.
cheers
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For me, it's easy: Kodak E200 slide film. Sadly discontinued in 2009. I've about 50 precious rolls in the freezer.
Why? It's the film which best delivered the magic mix of properties that astrophotographers want: very low reciprocity failure, great red (656nm Hydrogen) sensitivity, strong blue sensitivity, pushable, reasonably fine grain. E200's amazing sensitivity to red nebulae was off the scale compared to most other films, certainly all colour films of the past decade. Blue nebulae like around the Pleiades (below) were super too.
Ray
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Velvia was amazing (to me) when projected onto a white screen. The colors would jump off of the screen in a dark room.
Black and White, I really liked Kodak Plus-X and Tri-X. It has been so long since I used either, I can not remember exactly what it was that I liked about them though....LOL:
All of my experience is prior to 2000, when I went digital, so my memory is not that keen.
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I liked Fuji Astia for general photos of people (it was a lower contrast ISO 100 slide film, though "lower" did not mean "low," just not as contrasty as Velvia.) Loved XP2 and then Kodak T400CN, especially in 120 size, for b&w work.
As with Bryan, I went all digital at the end of 2000, so these memories are long outdated.
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plus-x/ tri-x rodinal/ HC-110/Pyro
colour stuff is generally horrible but VLC and E100s were o.k.
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Velvia 50 - still shooting with it with a Horseman 617 - amazing detail and I have sold prints to corporate clients at 43" x 129".
Steven
http://www.friedmanphoto.com (http://www.friedmanphoto.com)
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Velvia 50. I loved it.
PdF
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B/W AGFA APX100, now ADOX has taken over their machines and processes, so I can still buy this film
Development, RODINAL 1/50, by hand under green light or nightvision
and
FUJI NEOPAN 100
Color negative : KODAK PORTRA (scans beautifull too)
Color Slides : KODAK E 100 NC (the closest to reality, without exagerating saturation)
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Fuji Astia is my favourite colour film, great dynamic range and natural colours for a slide film, Kodak Portra 160nc is my next on the list though sadly discontinued, I have just placed a bulk order at Freestyle for a bunch of 4x5 Astia and Potrra sheets cant wait to get out shooting again.
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B&W: TMax 100 and 400. TMax has the GLOW to it. I can get similar results from digital but with two hours of post, and only with the M8. Not ethe M9 or Phase P30 or Leaf 22 and 75. The tonality of this film blows me away.
Color: Portra 400. I liked the last incarnation better, seems the blues were a little more cyan, which I liked.
For 35mm, TMax and TriX.
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I used to shoot a lot of Provia 400F for slides, Portra 400nc for color negatives, and Hp5/T-max for B&W back in the day.
Now I'm trying out pretty much all there is out there to find my new favorites, so far I've shot Provia 400X, E100G,
Portra 400, Ektar 100, and Hp5/Delta 400. But I definitely need to do further testing and also see how they scan.
I do mostly fashion/people/lifestyle/travel, not really into landscape, so velvia is of no interest to me. My main concern
is usually how the film renders skin-tones. I'm also usually not that interested in realistic renderings, but rather like my
films to have a certain character.
If you have any tips & tricks I'd love to hear them too, like for example overexpose color negatives 1-stop and underexpose
slides 1/3-stop for punchier colors and more contrast.
cheers
Portra 400nc back in the day:
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B&W: TMax 100 and 400. TMax has the GLOW to it. I can get similar results from digital but with two hours of post, and only with the M8. Not ethe M9 or Phase P30 or Leaf 22 and 75. The tonality of this film blows me away.
Color: Portra 400. I liked the last incarnation better, seems the blues were a little more cyan, which I liked.
For 35mm, TMax and TriX.
+ 1 for the TMax. I used exclusively the 400. I've never been able to reproduced its look in post, and reading your post if you only get it with the M8 and sweating, I'm feeling a little better.
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+1 for the tmax 400. love, love, love it.
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+1 for the tmax 400. love, love, love it.
Again, I'd love to see some examples. For a photography forum it's surprisingly difficult to get people to post some photos ::)
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Provia.
Agfa Scala (esp. pushed one stop).
Tri-X (of course).
Kodak 64T.
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Here you go
Horseman 617 Camera Velvia 50 Film. All the panoramic images on my website are Velvia 50 film. Most are from the Horseman 617.
Steven
http://www.friedmanphoto.com (http://www.friedmanphoto.com)
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Here are four more
Horseman 617 Camera, Velvia 50 Film
http://www.friedmanphoto.com (http://www.friedmanphoto.com)
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Again, I'd love to see some examples. For a photography forum it's surprisingly difficult to get people to post some photos ::)
I would have post immediatly a Tmax 400 example here. But I can't. All my B&W films from my youth are actually under 5 meters of water, exactly under a bridge in Paris called "Le pont neuf".
One day I decided that I was done with all that photography stuff and started to paint. At night I took all my negatives and through them on the river Seine in a silly teenager ritual. Not kidding.
At that time, each time I started something new, the old had to disappear. (as they where in heavy ring binders they are still probably somewhere arround there...). So, no Tmax example possible for me, or, a scuba diving. (then when back into photo it was digital and never worked again with film)
I remember that I generaly pushed it as if it was 800isos, so I exposed as a 800isos and pushed it in the dev process. I found the grain more present-plaisant and it crushed highlight details.
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Oh, I forgot.
If you want to experiment with film, there is a very interesting b&w film called Gigabit Film. (a sort of successor of the Technical Pan)
It's worth trying. resolving power is impressive. It's a 40 isos film.
http://www.gigabitfilm.de/html/english/menu.htm
http://www.gigabitfilm.de/html/international/international.php?Layout=normal
http://www.gigabitfilm.de/html/english/distribution/distribution.php?Layout=normal
(http://www.3dlichtgestalt.de/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/B_W_eggersberg_crops.jpg)
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For slide film it's Velvia 50 all the way, the colours have a richness and snap that I can't get from anything else.
Scans don't do it justice, when the slides are projected on a screen it's a "wow" feeling for me.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hA2W04Hqd2I/TOSf4OgiBII/AAAAAAAACZQ/tdHj5JRR6BM/s640/Img_002.jpg)
For colour negative films I like Ektar 100 for its many varied looks. By changing the exposure, I can go from a fairly neutral look to a bolder saturated look.
The colour shifts are a bit wonky when I do this but it's a matter of choosing the right subject.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AlryhaubbUg/TRE4BREQIDI/AAAAAAAACbo/DL3nXv1b2KQ/s600/ektar3.jpg) (https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-V-4TJWgFxHg/TRE4DGG8aDI/AAAAAAAACbw/qYLe3w9T9es/s600/ektar3c.jpg)
With B&W films I don't have nearly as much experience, having tried only a handful of films. So far I like HP5+ for action shots or when I need the speed and Fomapan 100 when lighting conditions allow for it. I can't really explain why I like Fomapan 100, I just like the way it looks, I'm not really sure what it is or why, I just know I like it. I'll try to get an example scanned & posted in the next week or so.
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Velvia 100 pro in the spring, summer, and fall (for its vivid colors and contrast) and Astia in the winter (for its palette more suited to the season: greater dynamic range, more neutral colors). I gave up film last year, and I miss the tonal gradations of photos with the sun in the frame; in most cases digital is terribly poor in this regard.
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All 120, most alas no more.
Agfa Optima http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/5270686429/
Ektar 25 http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/tags/ektar/
Fujicolor SHG 100 http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/tags/fujicolor/
Portra 160vc http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/5721120964/
Velvia 50 http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/tags/velvia/
Velvia 100 http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanklein2000/tags/velvia100/
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Tri-X
We are going to miss you.
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Tri-X
We are going to miss you.
Huh? Tri-X isn't being discontinued.
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Fuji Velvia
Fuji Provia
Kodachrome
Kodak Portra 160 NC
Kodak Portra 400 NC
Techpan
Agfapan 25
Agfa Ultra 25
Kodak T-Max 400
Kodak T-Max 3200
Kodak Infra Red
Ilford Delta 100
Polaroid Type 59
Polaroid Type 79
Polaroid Type 55
Polaroid Time Zero
Expired cheap stock from drug stores.
Sigh.
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I think some of you didn't quite understand the reason for this thread, maybe I was a bit unclear. A list of names without the "why you like them" is kinda pointless, backed up with a photo illustrating the "why" would be even better. Also I was mostly hoping for input on films that are still available for purchase, and maybe some tips & tricks on getting the best out of them. Still, I appreciate everyone taking the time to answer.
cheers
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Films still available that I like and their uses:
Transparency:
Kodak E100G and Fuji Provia 100F.
Both have "natural" but still punchy colors... not neutral, not crazy like Velvia, but natural.
Choose E100G for warmer tones (and nice skin tones), and Provia for cooler tones (skins tones are good on Provia too!).
The Provia is very sharp. Both are very fine grained. Choose Astia 100F for less contrast, which could result in easier scans, more DR, etc.
Negative:
Kodak Portra 160 (new version).
Very neutral. Possibly the best skin tones. A lot of latitude, which makes for easy scanning.
Kodak Ektar 100.
Very sharp, and I can't really descibe the colors. It's more like a slide film, but with the DR of neg film.
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Was KII ever made in 120? ;) I know K64 was.
Simply, Kodachrome II was the best film I have ever used for colour photography. ;D
But you can get “looks (http://www.alienskin.com/exposure/index.aspx)” nowadays; Daguerreotypes!
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Available
http://www.ebay.es/itm/Kodak-400-TMAX-Sharpest-Black-White-35mm-Film-NEW-Use-04-2014-/130629138628?pt=UK_Photography_Film&hash=item1e6a1a78c4
http://www.ebay.es/sch/i.html?_nkw=tmax+400&_sacat=625&_odkw=tmax+400&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313
Personaly I used it generally at 800 isos.
Easy to find on stores in Madrid.
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I would have post immediatly a Tmax 400 example here. But I can't. All my B&W films from my youth are actually under 5 meters of water, exactly under a bridge in Paris called "Le pont neuf".
One day I decided that I was done with all that photography stuff and started to paint. At night I took all my negatives and through them on the river Seine in a silly teenager ritual. Not kidding.
Good god, Fred! Such petulant behaviour, in the name of art. Honestly, you sound like you're French or something. ;)
At that time, each time I started something new, the old had to disappear.
So...I'm afraid to ask...what did you do with your ex-girlfriends?? :o
Ray
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Fuji Astia and mostly Portra 160NC.
I did a lot of scan tests and realized that you could always amp up color or contrast in photoshop with ease. But you couldn't go the the other way!
So a good, neutral film with a lot of dynamic range was like a RAW file. You could then apply any "look" you wanted in post.
I haven't shot medium format film since 2003 or so. Still some in the freezer, along with a bunch of 4x5 Portra 160NC. Great scanning film.
I had a bike/car accident when I was in graduate school for photography. Was injured for a couple of years, walking with a cane, etc. Like Fred I destroyed all of my images, trying to start over. Except I put them all in a bucket of bleach - not quite as romantic!
Cheers. Michael
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Good god, Fred! Such petulant behaviour, in the name of art. Honestly, you sound like you're French or something. ;)
So...I'm afraid to ask...what did you do with your ex-girlfriends?? :o
Ray
;D
My ex-girlfriends have generally become my very best friends.
It's funy, when I think about all that, I never missed works I've thrown away. At that time I was absolutly unable to follow a single route for more than 2 years. I involved myself deeply in an expression lenguage and techniques but very fast I started to feel fed-up and the need to explore new fresh different ways. With the photography of that time, I wasn't satisfy with my production. It was ok but I couldn't find the images I had in mind, and I wasn't convinced. I thought that this was crap and it was useless to persist in something I'm not proud of, so I through away the negatives to be sure I wasn't going to loose any more time on that.
Best regards.
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Wow, Fred, that's a heavy personal philosophy!
I tend to find much comfort in my past; sometimes it can seem to be an anchor against further progress but at other times it's the saving of my life, the reminder that the grimness of today isn't how all days are going to be, that things can be both good as well as bloody bad. N'est ce pas?
I too destroyed all my fashion negs and transparencies, those that I couldn't sell back to clients, when we were getting ready to leave the UK to live here in Spain. I bitterly regret that; I'm not claiming they were wonderful, I'm just saying that in that act of thoughtlessness I threw away proof of my past, which considering the volume of fashion that I had produced, makes my surviving calendar work feel pretty thin as a proof to myself of having walked that walk with some success.
My excuse to myself, and that's all it can be, an excuse, is that I had no idea the Internet was going to happen, that I never for a second imagined that fashion photography would become art, as in collectable!
Websites? Best thing ever! It's the only easily visible way of getting a handle around how people think their photography!
Have you thought of renting a wetsuit and going back under that bridge to see what remains?
Ex-girlfriends, fortunately, are very few: met and fell in love with my late wife in school. But then that is just another example of the wonderful luck that has been mine over the years, and proves to me, at least, that quality is always going to beat quantity! (That might sound like a plug for MF!)
;-)
Ciao -
Rob C
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Wow, Fred, that's a heavy personal philosophy!
I tend to find much comfort in my past; sometimes it can seem to be an anchor against further progress but at other times it's the saving of my life, the reminder that the grimness of today isn't how all days are going to be, that things can be both good as well as bloody bad. N'est ce pas?
I too destroyed all my fashion negs and transparencies, those that I couldn't sell back to clients, when we were getting ready to leave the UK to live here in Spain. I bitterly regret that; I'm not claiming they were wonderful, I'm just saying that in that act of thoughtlessness I threw away proof of my past, which considering the volume of fashion that I had produced, makes my surviving calendar work feel pretty thin as a proof to myself of having walked that walk with some success.
My excuse to myself, and that's all it can be, an excuse, is that I had no idea the Internet was going to happen, that I never for a second imagined that fashion photography would become art, as in collectable!
Websites? Best thing ever! It's the only easily visible way of getting a handle around how people think their photography!
Have you thought of renting a wetsuit and going back under that bridge to see what remains?
Ex-girlfriends, fortunately, are very few: met and fell in love with my late wife in school. But then that is just another example of the wonderful luck that has been mine over the years, and proves to me, at least, that quality is always going to beat quantity! (That might sound like a plug for MF!)
;-)
Ciao -
Rob C
Hi Rob, nice to see you here.
IMO, If you where going to use, do something with those negs, then it was an act of thoughlessness. But if the only thing they'd do was being there, as a reminder of a past, a proof of some past volume work in a box, or even worse, a medium to deep nostalgy, then you did an act of wisdom.
It's very easy to indentify ourselves with our stuff, our productions, our career, but we're not that. Until we don't sweep the floor and "lighten our bags" it's almost impossible to conect with our real nature because we are identified with our possessions. Even people sometimes things that their partners, or their childrens are their possessions...big mistake ! But all paths lead to Rome and all my respect for every individual experience.
Paradox is that I enjoy very strong and stable relations with some people, in private and work. I'm very commited in the projects and specially the professional projects, when there is a real adventure involved. Where I don't connect is when it becomes an offices work. That's why I like reduced teams when everybody is pushing on the same direction and animated by a unique goal. Not animated by "being" this or that.
But that's very much away the thread's topic and apologies to amsp.
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Provia -scan output
Velvia 100 -Color, fine grain
Portra 160 - color
Astia -cheap!
My fridge still has about 2L volume of films. Maybe 200 135 rolls and several boxes 120.
Film will not die until sensors can match the 4 color layers nuance. IMO.
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Portra 160, best colour film I've ever used, the more digital progresses the better it gets.
I don't shoot transparency film any more I think digital does that job better, but colour neg printed or scanned I think is beautiful. I even shoot some now out on jobs.
http://treewithoutabird.com/pictures-from-the-tlr-camer/
Kevin.
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another + for Tech Pan, but only in the Technidol liquid developer. That was one finicky film to develop! Very prone to edge overdevelopment if you didn't have the agitation down. Really beautiful when done right.
Also love me some Tri-X... the grain is gorgeous and feels so much more organic than T-Max. FP4 was nice too. I was really into Agfa APX 100 for a while and then Efke 25.
And as long as we're reminiscing, Agfa Portriga Paper... really beautiful color to it and split toned nicely in selenium.
CB