Digital is dead

benno

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Someone stole my dSLR (and phone) the other day. Very, very unhappy.

So, 35mm it is I guess. I need a proper 35mm scanner now though - I was using the dSLR and a macro bellows/slide adaptor before. I'm not really in a position to buy one though...

I guess I'll need a light/flash meter too if the Leica is going to be my main camera. Can't afford that either.
 
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sorry to hear about ur loss. But Dslr can be had for a cheap, unless u want a top of the line one. And if you want to go RF - there is always Bessa cameras - cheaper and have built-in meter.
 
sorry to hear about ur loss. But Dslr can be had for a cheap, unless u want a top of the line one. And if you want to go RF - there is always Bessa cameras - cheaper and have built-in meter.

Thanks mate, unfortunately 'cheap' is a very relative term. I'm a student and really couldn't afford even a secondhand one right now.
 
hm....maybe now is a good time for you to cut back to the shoot it only because you want it phase and learn to meter by eye well. Then send the stuff into the shop to be scanned, it sucks, but it all sucks. Being poor sucks most though.
 
Yeah... I am happy to keep using the Sunny 16 method of exposure, I'm starting to get the hang of it. The problem though is that I am scheduled for a strobist meet at the end of the month and if I was to shoot film I would really want a meter.

And my local shop charges a friggin fortune for scans.
 
Benno,

Not sure what you are actually needing, but you should be able to pick-up a second-hand Epson scanner with a transparency adapter pretty cheap, like $50. I bought an Epson 2400 Photo about 2 years ago for $100 and all the stuff that I have on-line has been scanned with it. Far from perfect, but one day when I can afford a really good scanner(Nikon, etc.) I can always rescan my negatives. Even a 1600dpi will do a decent job for internet stuff.

As for meters, decent flash-meters are not cheap. But you can work with strobes without a meter if you learn the old fashion method of Guide Numbers. Not as easy or quick, but you can get around it and knowing how to shoot strobes without a meter will come in very handy some day.

Continuous light meters are a dime a dozen just hit eBay or your nearest camera flea market. It really helps if you shoot one film speed for a while, soon you will pretty much know your exposure without a meter and then when shooting other film speeds work from you base exposures.

Sorry to hear about your loss.
 
hm....Being poor sucks most though.

I didn't say that, you said it! ;)

Back to topic: I deeply dislike digital. I got the M8 today and it brought back all the memories about shooting digital. 1000 images per outing, countless pixelpeeping hours... Yuk! Shoot film and be happy!
 
Digital is dead for me too. My LC1 died yesterday as I was shooting. The screen went all haywire for about two seconds then nothing. Paperweight. I got a good deal when I bought it but it still wasn't cheap!
Even my P&S has a hot pixel. Screw digital - it totally sucks. Back to my M4 which has worked flawlessly for 38 years, and my Rolleiflex which has worked flawlessly for the last 55 years!
 
I used my DSLR this past weekend, along with a Leica IIIa. I got both working again. The IIIa was an antique store rescue, had a jammed shutter. Worked after getting some film fragments out. The digital camera refused to fire. Needed the contacts between the camera and digital back cleaned up. About fifteen minutes for each to get working again. BUT- someday the disk drive will die on the Digital and I only have one spare SCSI Notebook drive.
 
Benno,

Not sure what you are actually needing, but you should be able to pick-up a second-hand Epson scanner with a transparency adapter pretty cheap, like $50. I bought an Epson 2400 Photo about 2 years ago for $100 and all the stuff that I have on-line has been scanned with it. Far from perfect, but one day when I can afford a really good scanner(Nikon, etc.) I can always rescan my negatives. Even a 1600dpi will do a decent job for internet stuff.

As for meters, decent flash-meters are not cheap. But you can work with strobes without a meter if you learn the old fashion method of Guide Numbers. Not as easy or quick, but you can get around it and knowing how to shoot strobes without a meter will come in very handy some day.

Hmm I'll have to keep an eye out for a cheap scanner. Ebay maybe... it's hard to know what's good though.

Meanwhile, I've managed to line up a light meter for the strobist meet - they really are essential when dealing with umbrellas and other light modifiers.

I just have to decide what kind of film to shoot... any suggestions? I'll be shooting this sort of stuff with an Oly 35 RC and Leica M3+50/1.5 Summarit. Nice skin tones would be important.

I'm kind of looking forward to it in a way - slowing down the shooting process and trying to visualise the lighting will be good for my skills I think.

Thanks for your help!

Re: digital being dead, I think it will just be a temporary thing for me. Film is cool and all but there's things it just can't do. And next year (when I graduate and have a real job) I'll probably pick up another dSLR.
 
Benno,

Not sure what DSLR you had before or what you want as a replacement. You obviously want another DSLR, so get another one. Till you buy a decent scanner($100) and 10 rolls of film with processing($200) you will have spent more than what a Nikon D70 or similar would cost you. I just bought one for $150. May not be your dream DSLR, but it will give you good digital capabilities and work as a stop gap till you get more money. If you are into the Strobist thing, you will quickly burn up more film than the price of cheap DSLR.

Example, for your Strobist shoot, you will need a minimum of 4 rolls of Fuji Superia or Kodak Portra, so at about $10+-, that is $40. C-41 processing at a pro lab, cut and sleeve only, runs about $10 a roll. If you want proofs or contacts add another $10 per roll. Even a decent 1-hour lab will cost you $15 per roll with a set of prints. So your cash outlay for your Strobist shoot will cost you a minimum of $80, up to $120. And that is without scans. Most pro labs charge about $12 per roll for scanning to 2Mb+- files, and 1-hr labs are about $5 a roll. So you could easily outlay $200 just for this one shoot. That is $50 more than a cheap DSLR. So even if you have to eat only bread rolls for a week or two, a DSLR will quickly pay for itself in your situation.

In my case, my Nikon D70 paid for itself twice in the first shoot. I was to shoot a 40th birthday party, lit only by candles. So the film would have been TMax 3200 and Fuji Press 1600 pushed to 3200. I would have bought 10 rolls for the event and $13 a roll plus processing, the D70 was paid for in 5 hours of shooting.

As for digital being dead, I use digital very sparingly. In fact, I only use my D70 for events. I always prefer to use film for everything else. A lot less work and the quality exceeds any DLSR until you spend the equivalent of a small car.

That is my advice, for whatever it is worth...
 
Digital is dead here too. I hope I will be digitalless soon for a time being :D I just put it in coma. I decide when it should be awake :)
 
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Never used a flash meter, but light meters can be found for cheap on the 'bay. As for a scanner, I purchased a refurbished Epson 4490 for $100 direct from their website, the primary considerations being price and the ability to scan 120 film. Does a fine job, especially w/ the d-ice, you don't want to buy a scanner without that.
 
Well I thought I'd post a bit of an update:
I did the 'cars and bras' shoot yesterday with the Oly 35RC. I used a flash meter and I'm very happy with how the shots came out, exposure wise. I was a bit nervous last night, the digital guy I was teamed with seemed to have trouble getting good shots and I didn't have the benefit of chimping.

But, they came out pretty good:
2522984143_5eddb2ca45_o.jpg


The only problem is, I accidentally loaded a roll of Acros instead of Reala. Bugger! At least the iso is ok.

More pics in my flickr stream (mildly NSFW).
 
Benno,
your shots show what an amazing camera the RC really is. I love this camera and use several of them loaded with different films, so I am prepared for diifferent light conditions. No need to buy a flatbed! Go for a dedicated film scanner. I've already purchased 3 Polaroid sprintscan 35plus (Important: no other model, only the plus!) The can be found very cheap in the US. Excellent image quality, real 2700 dpi (giving you 9 MP). Works wonderful with classic film material like APX, Plus-X and Tri-X. shouldn't cost you more than some $100. Qualtiy is 10 times better than Epson 2400 which gives only about 1200 dpi in reality (I use that one for MF).
 
Forgot to mention: you need a SCSI-Adaptor for the Polaroid.
If I find the time I will post some examples later...
 
I saw your strobist work over on your flickr page. Awesome work! Sure you wan't to go back to digital?;) Love how you guys lit up the interior of the Crown Vic. Another good film to try sometime to get good skin tones is Kodak Portra VC. You nailed it with the Reala though & once you find a good combo it's hard to switch.
 
As much as I try to keep an open mind (I shoot digital and film) there is just that certain something about film shots that make me say wow!
 
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