Long Live Film

RaglanSurf

RaglanSurf

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A nice little documentary which consists mostly of photographers saying how much they like shooting film. IMHO it could have done with a bit of editing as it's a little long and some of the interviewees don't really add much to the film. Sometimes it does feel a little like preaching to the converted but nonetheless it's good to see a wide variety of folk shooting film. Oh, and if you're a fan of the banjo you won't be disappointed.

 
Brilliant, I agree with everything said in that:clap:

Steve.
 
Interesting point about how digital images seem to look the same and there is a greater variety in film images due to different film stock and huge variety of cameras.

They can't spell their though. Typo in the closing credits. Doh!
 
I've watched this again last night. A few times in fact. One thing that struck me and I have been discussing with a friend, is the quality of images on that video. I cannot get anything close with my Hasselblad. What makes them so smooth and sharp and beautiful? I know that light is the main ingredient, but even in great light, I can't get anything remotely close. My B&W 125 ISO shots have visible grain.
 
gazmorton2000 said:
What makes them so smooth and sharp and beautiful?
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Light, good exposures, and the use of professional labs for the development, scanning, and editing; I would guess. Did I say light?

gazmorton2000 said:
My B&W 125 ISO shots have visible grain.
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If you're seeing very visible grain with 100 speed film, I imagine there's a weak link somewhere; it could be the exposure, the developing, the scanning, or any combination of these. Have you tried sending off any film to a professional lab for development and scanning? That way you could start controlling some of the variables to try to get a better idea of what's actually going on.
 
skysh4rk said:
Light, good exposures, and the use of professional labs for the development, scanning, and editing; I would guess. Did I say light?



If you're seeing very visible grain with 100 speed film, I imagine there's a weak link somewhere; it could be the exposure, the developing, the scanning, or any combination of these. Have you tried sending off any film to a professional lab for development and scanning? That way you could start controlling some of the variables to try to get a better idea of what's actually going on.
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I had some lovely light yesterday evening and there is still some visible grain. Developed at box speed (125) in Ilfosol 3 and scanned with Epson V550. So there should be none visible at all with 100 film? It's so frustrating as I was developing and scanning myself to save some money. I haven't sent B&W away for process and scan for a while and not since I did the light seals. :-(

Reading on the line, FP-4 isn't as fine grained as other 100 speed films?
 
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I've always worked on the assumption that since all conventional films - no matter how fine grained they are - still have grain, then it's a simply a matter of how much you enlarge. My limit is 5-6 times, and I never use anything faster than 125. There is an outside possibility that a sudden change in processing temperature could produce reticulation that can pass as grain.

Don't forget that developer choice affects grain size, and overexposure pushes the grain up as well. A condenser enlarger will make grain clearer, as will a drum scan.
 
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I enjoyed it worth a watch,i was brought up on film it wasn't really till my fav film Kodachrome 64 stopped i begun to shoot more digital.

But even as those i shoot mainly digital theses days,i still shoot as those i am using film, i very rarely pixel peep,i shoot mainly with the camera to my eye using single shot mode,not just bang away.

:)
 
StephenM said:
I've always worked on the assumption that since all conventional films - no matter how fine grained they are - still have grain, then it's a simply a matter of how much you enlarge. My limit is 5-6 times, and I never use anything faster than 125. There is an outside possibility that a sudden change in processing temperature could produce reticulation that can pass as grain.

Don't forget that developer choice affects grain size, and overexposure pushes the grain up as well. A condenser enlarger will make grain clearer, as will a drum scan.
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Somewhere I've still got a gadget to focus on the grain when enlarging for prints.
 
gazmorton2000 said:
I had some lovely light yesterday evening and there is still some visible grain. Developed at box speed (125) in Ilfosol 3 and scanned with Epson V550. So there should be none visible at all with 100 film? It's so frustrating as I was developing and scanning myself to save some money. I haven't sent B&W away for process and scan for a while and not since I did the light seals. :-(

Reading on the line, FP-4 isn't as fine grained as other 100 speed films?
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What format, 120 obviously give more scope for enlargement/scan, a little over temperature during development can increase visible grain too.
FP4 whilst not the finest is still pretty good, I don't see a lot in a 16x12 from fp4 and ilfosol.
Having said that, I've changed my stock film and developer to try to minimise grain, I like shooting a red filter and it can sometimes knock shutter speed on its arse factoring for a couple of stops on 100 speed film, so I was looking for a fine grain 400 speed film/developer combo.
I've been trying Delta 400 and Xtol, as an aside to that Xtol is mighty fine on Delta 100 and acros it turns out, dunno about fp4 yet I've not shot any lately.
Delta 400 & Xtol, its not a miracle combo, there's still more grain than 100 speed film but its less intrusive, its there but softish, that's how it looks in prints anyway.:)
 
Hey thanks for the responses about my grain query. I have been chatting to a chap in a shop today and he assured me it is pretty normal. Apparently, even ISO/ASA 125 films will show some fine grain with scanning so i feel a little more relieved. I think my non-film shooting friends had me worried too! Ha. Yes, it is 120. My main worry now is how many OOF shots I seem to be getting. Surely I can't be that blind!? :bang:
 
42 mins in what the camera the guy has? Good little film, a few too many hipster types but an interesting watch none the less :)
 
I just pulled my Kodak Black and White Darkroom Dataguide off the shelf to take a look at the very informative 13x enlargements from eight different Kodak B&W films. N.B. The book is 1988, so films may have changed. The only film that didn't show grain to my eyes at that magnification was Technical Pan; T Max100 came second with slight grain.
 
StephenM said:
I just pulled my Kodak Black and White Darkroom Dataguide off the shelf to take a look at the very informative 13x enlargements from eight different Kodak B&W films. N.B. The book is 1988, so films may have changed. The only film that didn't show grain to my eyes at that magnification was Technical Pan; T Max100 came second with slight grain.
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Interesting to know. Thank you Stephen.
 
essexash said:
42 mins in what the camera the guy has? Good little film, a few too many hipster types but an interesting watch none the less :)
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Looks like a Pentax 67 of some sort.
 
Hmm... I made it half way through and had to turn it off, preachy is exactly how I saw it. I wanted to see something that encompassed a love of photography, not something that was like Jehovah's witnesses of film telling me how great analogue is and how digital is the work of the devil.

Some people prefer digital, some prefer film. Some love both equally (like me - I love photography, not formats). I switch off when things get hugely biased, and boy, was that hugely biased...
 
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gazmorton2000 said:
I've watched this again last night. A few times in fact. One thing that struck me and I have been discussing with a friend, is the quality of images on that video. I cannot get anything close with my Hasselblad. What makes them so smooth and sharp and beautiful? I know that light is the main ingredient, but even in great light, I can't get anything remotely close. My B&W 125 ISO shots have visible grain.
Click to expand...

YouTube's video compression.
 
Finally got round to watching this. I like the take home message I think we all understand: Slow down and think.

Good stuff :)
 
ped said:
The Genius of Photography (BBC) - episode 1 in particular
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Must've been shown as a repeat - originally 2007 - series available on dvd from bbc shop etc.
 
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