Some Film Questions

[Nero]

So, I've been thinking of trying to shoot film with the F4 I got a couple of months ago but I want to do it 100% old-school. I found a store nearby with film supplies, lenses, etc. and I wanted to know what film lenses you guys would recommend. Most likely going to try landscape, still life and maybe portrait.

Also, can film photos be transferred onto a computer? I assume they can but I want to be sure there's a good way to do it.

And finally, I've heard about some DIY film processing kits. Does anyone know anything about them and are they a good investment? If this goes well I might shoot film more often.

 

[480sparky]

So, I've been thinking of trying to shoot film with the F4 I got a couple of months ago but I want to do it 100% old-school. I found a store nearby with film supplies, lenses, etc. and I wanted to know what film lenses you guys would recommend. Most likely going to try landscape, still life and maybe portrait.

If memory serves, any current 'G' lens can be used on it. But I don't think the VR will function.

Also, can film photos be transferred onto a computer? I assume they can but I want to be sure there's a good way to do it.

Yes. With a scanner.

And finally, I've heard about some DIY film processing kits. Does anyone know anything about them and are they a good investment? If this goes well I might shoot film more often.

Color or b&w? B&w is stupid easy. Cheap, too. You can get into souping your own film for about $100. That just develops the film, however. You'll need a proper darkroom to make wet prints.

Color: Expensive and very finicky. I'd leave that to a good lab.

 

[Nero]

Yeah, I was told it's not really worth doing color with film.

As for the lenses, I wanted to use an actual film lens. That's what I meant by 100% old school. lol I should have specified.

 

[480sparky]

Yeah, I was told it's not really worth doing color with film.

As for the lenses, I wanted to use an actual film lens. That's what I meant by 100% old school. lol I should have specified.

Lenses don't care what camera you're using. If the camera can use it, then it's a 'film' lens.

I shoot plenty of film, mostly B&W, but I still shoot color, have the lab process only/no prints. I then scan it and end up with 70mp files.

 

[aroy]

So, I've been thinking of trying to shoot film with the F4 I got a couple of months ago but I want to do it 100% old-school. I found a store nearby with film supplies, lenses, etc. and I wanted to know what film lenses you guys would recommend. Most likely going to try landscape, still life and maybe portrait.

Also, can film photos be transferred onto a computer? I assume they can but I want to be sure there's a good way to do it.

And finally, I've heard about some DIY film processing kits. Does anyone know anything about them and are they a good investment? If this goes well I might shoot film more often.

1. Any FX lens will work with film body. No idea of F4, but all my film lenses had aperture ring where you could set the aperture. Some of classic AI-S lenses a - 50mm F1.2, 28mm and 105mm are perfect with film body. Most of the older AF lenses will work, but a few "G" lenses may not. The current lenses with electronic shutter will not work at all.

2. Though many of us have processed B&W film at home, I found that getting development done by professional labs much easier and most of the times cheaper, especially if you shoot a roll of film once a week or less often. For color as suggested it is best to get developing done professionally.

3. Thre are two methods for transferring film to computer.
a) Use a high end film scanner, one that can do 2,000DPI to 4,000DPI optically (not extrapolated).
b) Use a film adapter with a digital camera.

As film is 1 1/2 inces on the long side and 1 inch on the short side, a 2,000DPI will give you 2Kx3K = 6MP, while a 4,000 DPI 24MP. Note that 4,000 DPI scanners are horribly expensive. In contrast a Digital camera will result in 24MP to 50MP depending on the model.

 

[hark]

Thought of you when I read this article. Kodak is bringing back T-Max with ISO 3200. It's a B&W film.

https://fstoppers.com/film/kodak-bring-back-t-max-p3200-high-speed-film-can-push-iso-25000-224986

 

[SFW]

You can use the G lenses in S and P modes on the F4. If you want to be able to actually control your f stop manually, you will need something with an aperture ring. You can pick up AF-D and AIS lenses for dirt cheap these days online. I recommend a 50mm and a 28mm for general film photography. If you want to do wildlife, perhaps an 80-200mm zoom. The F4 will matrix meter with these lenses. Great camera.

 

[GeorgeInGeorgia]

Processing BW is, as stated above, easy. And the cost is low, especially after the gear is bought. With a little care results for processing negatives are as good as professional labs, and far, far cheaper. BW darkroom printing, on the other hand, is as much art as craft. While excellent enlargers and lenses are now really cheap, the learning curve to progress beyond a mere record print to something approaching art is long. And of course you need a darkroom, while processing film can be done in the kitchen, after you load the tank in total darkness. Keep an eye out for Ansel Adams' classics on the print and the negative.

Processing color, either C 41 or E 6, is a bit more difficult, mainly because of the need for close temperature control. Additionally the solutions have a shorter life after mixing than do BW chemistries. Color darkroom printing is, IMHO, really difficult. I say this having done a lot of BW work in the past, but only assisted in color printing. A really, really steep learning curve, and can get costly quickly.

My workflow is scanning 35mm and 120 negatives with an Epson V 700; I have a used Nikon CoolScan V coming which will handle the 35mm stuff. I'm setting up a BW darkroom which will enable both 35mm and 120 BW printing. I've been either taking files to Costco for printing, or running my own on a Canon Pixma Pro 100. Oddly enough ink jet printing color is easier than getting a really good BW print.

One last word: If you decide to use WalMart or other such for processing film, MAKE SURE THEY RETURN THE NEGATIVES!! Many such services transmit scanned images to the store where a CD is burned, with typically smallish file sizes. The negatives are destroyed. The problem is that without your negatives you can't get a custom high resolution scan of that wonderful shot. All the money you've spent for quality lenses is negated via WalMart and their ilk.