Using Fuji Polaroid Film

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Hi all,

I recently got a Mamiya RB67 pro with a Polaroid back. I’ve bought a few packs of FP-3000b and FP-100C and done a few test shots. I’m a bit disappointed that it only uses a small section of the paper and I’ve noticed I need to be really careful with settings to get a useable image.
I would really appreciate it if you could share any tips you may have regarding the use of either film, they are expensive and I don’t want to waste them making silly mistakes.

Thanks
 
Whilst it doesn't use the whole of the print size, it is still larger than the RB67's standard frame size as it's 7cm square.

Using Polaroid is like using slide film. There is no margin for error as the output is the final product. It's not like using negative film where you can compensate for exposure errors when printing.


Steve.
 
The square of the shot that's used is taller than a regular negative frame taken by the RB67, and it's pushing the edges of the image circle for this camera - if you use the 65mm lens you'll see vignetting from the edges of the image circle in the corners. I'm pretty sure the image area on instant film is greater than the image area on negative film. If you want to make better use of each sheet you need the Arca back that takes two portrait format shots side-by-side.

The latitude of instant film is tight, you need to nail the exposure to get it right - it's a feature of instant film, and you can't overlook the bellows extension compensation in quite the same way you can with negative film (and let it sit within the latitude of the film). In addition to the exposure, the time and temperature of the development also affects the image. To be safe err towards leaving the shot longer rather than being impatient to see the result.


The FP3000-B is a fantastic film, it will hold up to a level of detail well beyond normal scanning resolution. It's far sharper than the colour film, despite being that much faster.
 
Thanks for the speedy responce.

I can live with the smaller image. I have a light meter and i'm still getting to grips translating the settings across to the camera when they dont quite match.

I was under the impression that it doesnt matter if i want to leave peeling apart till a while after the shot as they are self terminating, 5 minutes upwards if i'm wandering about.
 
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I always though that the polaroid back were a mean of checking the exposure before putting a film through for critical lightning situation and no chance of reshot. Am I totally wrong?
 
Also can i ask you were did you get you FP-3000, I used it a few years ago and used to buy it for 8£ on internet, then it went up to 12£, now I think it is maybe the double of this?
 
Blasted said:
I was under the impression that it doesnt matter if i want to leave peeling apart till a while after the shot as they are self terminating, 5 minutes upwards if i'm wandering about.
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I've left a shot unpeeled for a couple of days (I forgot about it), the risk is that the emulsion dries and you get more tearing and spotting of the image as you peel the back off.
 
Lemaildetom said:
I always though that the polaroid back were a mean of checking the exposure before putting a film through for critical lightning situation and no chance of reshot. Am I totally wrong?
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I think that's what they were for, however using instant film is a bit of fun and something different.

Lemaildetom said:
Also can i ask you were did you get you FP-3000, I used it a few years ago and used to buy it for 8£ on internet, then it went up to 12£, now I think it is maybe the double of this?
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Some place in Europe, someone provided a link in one of my other polaroid threads, its quite a bit more now, hence me not wanting to waste it.
 
Such a shame, it is still possible to buy some colour film not too expensive but black and white is way too expensive now. I tried a bit some impossible film but it's also prohibitif with very random results... It a shame, the new polaroid don't have the same feeling about them...
 
Test the shutter speed of your lenses, mine where all off by different amounts


Also what metre you using? On my Minolta it will say 5.6 in big letters, then a small number, that's 10ths of a stop, so 8 or 9 is of course quite big..
 
Don't give up in Impossible Film, it's constantly evolving. It's not, as a lot of people think, the same Polaroid film from the 60's and 70's they've pretty much had to reinvent the wheel. I first used it just after it launched and it was completely random whether you would get any meaningful results from it. As they bring out each generation of film it gets a little more reliable and a little more predictable. Despite its flakiness I'm a fan, without the Impossible project I've got far too many paperweights and if I want a paperweight I'll buy a Canon :runaway:
 
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RaglanSurf said:
Don't give up in Impossible Film, it's constantly evolving. It's not, as a lot of people think, the same Polaroid film from the 60's and 70's they've pretty much had to reinvent the wheel. I first used it just after it launched and it was completely random whether you would get any meaningful results from it. As they bring out each generation of film it gets a little more reliable and a little more predictable. Despite its flakiness I'm a fan, without the Impossible project I've got far too many paperweights and if I want a paperweight I'll buy a Canon :runaway:
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Do they even do film compatible with rectangle polaroid? I just checked their website and can't see them, just some square ones.

I'm sure I did try a colour, a sepia and a blue one before. The sepia was nice but there was a lot of randomness looking like some out of age film when the film removes badly.
 
they dont do film for "land" type cameras, thats solely fuji and any remaining polariod stock
 
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