22 days in Europe. 30 rolls. How much contrast?

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xxloverxx

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Vague title, but here's the fix I'm in right now:

Going to London on the 22nd. Then Venice, Rome and Greece (but probably not in that order).

My Mamiya Pro-TL's due to arrive in, at most, a week (if DHL isn't lying). Going to put a roll of Ektacolor 160 through it to test that all works…but that's all I'll have time for before I need to start buying film for it.

Bringing 2 35mm cameras. Kiev 4a with J12 & J8 + Rollei 35 LED.

From consulting the Flickr photos, I think most of my photos are going to be B&W.

I was thinking:
25 rolls of 35mm Tri-X (1 roll/day, 1 roll extra/week)
2 rolls of 120 FP4 (1 photo a day)
2 rolls of 120 Ektacolor (what's this film like? A flickr search came up with great results) or Portra 400VC (can't find 160 or 400NC here) — again, 1 photo a day.

This being my first trip to Europe, is there anything wrong with the above?
Am I probably going to shoot more 120 than 35mm? More colour than B&W?

I have, many times over the past week, considered reversing my plan, and using 35mm for snapshots (2 rolls/week) and 120 for main shooting (1 roll/day).

Given that the prices are almost identical (and, in the case of 120 B&W, cheaper) to/than 35mm, I'd only be losing out on the number of photos I'd make per day.

Sum up:
  • More B&W or more colour (from your experience)?
  • Likely more "fine art" or street? (more 120 or 135?)
  • As I'm actually quite sparing with my shots, do I have enough film?
  • FP4 or Pan F (in 120), considering that I won't have time to properly test both and that I often overexpose (sometimes accidentally, sometimes on purpose) (I don't have a working lightmeter nor would I use one if I did)

Getting rather nervous as I have just over a week to decide what I'm gonna get (as it's such a large order, the lab'll have to order it; neither of the 2 labs I buy film from stock that much at a time).

Will try to find the itinerary and post it later. From what I gather, we'll be outdoors a lot, and on a cruise in Greece.
 
Your are asking questions that very much depend on personal preferences.

If you are in Venice and it's a sunny day and you are in the mood to capture all vivid colors of the summer, you're most likely not choosing to shoot BW. If it's cloudy and you are in a BW mood anyway, you'll not go for color.

If you scan the negs after returning home a BW conversion from color is easy, otherway around will a tad more tricky, just my 0.02 $. If it turns out you run out of either type you can still buy locally. Enjoy your trip.
 
Mablo said:
Are you going to haul the Mamiya to Europe for shooting just 4 rolls of film?
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jbielikowski said:
Get more 120, it will handle better big contrast of summer light. IMO you should consider more color shots per day.
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It seems I'll be shooting 1x120/day then, so it will be worth the weight.
8 rolls/week (1 B&W/week = 2 B&W/day) makes 24 rolls
+ 1 more B&W just in case
=25 rolls 120 total

2 rolls 135/week (probably 1x Tri-X & 1x Ultramax) = 10 snapshots/day = 6 rolls total (3 colour, 3 B&W)

Seems to be enough + a bit of spare, and anything I don't use (ha, fat chance…) can be used when I'm back.

A rough estimate of the total costs for developing & scanning (in HKD):
35mm: $55/roll for B&W developing & 8MP scans
$45/roll for colour developing & 8MP scans
120: $55/roll for both colour & B&W, 12MP scans (645)

If 35mm B&W is x, 35mm colour is y & 120 is z…
3x + 3y + 25z = $1675
--------------------------
Rough estimate for total costs of buying film:
a) Ultramax 400 (35mm): $20/roll
b) Tri-X (35mm): $40/roll
c) Ektacolor (120): $25/roll
d) FP4 (120): $36/roll

3a + 3b + 21c + 4d = $849

Total costs: $2524
 
icebear said:
Your are asking questions that very much depend on personal preferences.

If you are in Venice and it's a sunny day and you are in the mood to capture all vivid colors of the summer, you're most likely not choosing to shoot BW. If it's cloudy and you are in a BW mood anyway, you'll not go for color.

If you scan the negs after returning home a BW conversion from color is easy, otherway around will a tad more tricky, just my 0.02 $. If it turns out you run out of either type you can still buy locally. Enjoy your trip.
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Around how much is 120 (FP4 or Tri-X) in Europe? Same price (~4 euros)?

Krzys said:
1 photo a day is crazy!
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The original post was only referring to 1x120 photo a day; you didn't count 35mm 🙂 anyway I've changed my mind now. 15x120 photos a day and 10 35mm (5 B&W, 5 colour) a day.
------------------------

Also, just to bring everyone's attention back to a little thing I mentioned in my original post, will I be better off with Pan F+ or FP4, given that my exposures can sometimes be all over the place (and that my lab regularly tells me that some of my Tri-X frames were exposed at 100)?

I've heard that Pan F is more contrasty?
The lab's dev. is T-MAX.

Basically, which of the 2 is more tolerant of overexposure?
 
When I travel I generall allow 2 rolls per day and and it has worked well for me
The last thing you'd want is to be stuck in some place really really pretty and having to limit the amount of pics U can take because you are running short of film.

Also, that is A LOT of money you'd have to spend on film, develop and scanning.
 
I don't know what all those numbers mean.

I assume you're coming from Hong Kong, which is pretty bloody far. I'd bring as much film as you can cram in to your bags, down your underwear and up your nose. A few quid is a lot less than what you're spending on flights, hotels and boozes.

Or buy it when you're here.
 
I don't know how you photograph but I could not stick to such rules when I am in a new city/country/continent! I am going to NZ for 2 weeks and I will be taking 20 rolls of Trix. That is as much thought as I have put into it.
 
Greece, London, Venice and Rome? I would take one camera I knew and trusted, and some film.

This is just too much mathematics for me.
 
Tri X in the UK in 120 and 35mm is just over £3 where I buy from (either my local store or ag-photographic.co.uk). Fp4 in 120 is about the same but over £4 now in 36exp. 35mm.

Portra 160NC is sold in 5 packs whether it's 35mm or 120, and is £17 for 5 x 120, or about £20 for 5 x 35mm. 160NC is from what I understand is the same thing as Ektacolor 160. You can also get Portra 120 in all speeds/contrasts in 25 packs (5 x 5packs) for about £50 for 160NC and similar for the others.

I wouldn't be minded to use Pan F for general stuff, it can be contrasty, it's a fine film, but you'll have more versatility with Tri X, 2 stops overexposed is well within Tri-X's capabilities. You should be able to shoot it at an effective ISO of 100-800 with no real changes from your development (or your lab's) in my experience. It's got some serious latitude.
 
I got this rule from my grandpa who's travelled all over the world and told me that he always shot 1 roll/day and had 1 roll spare for every week he went.

Thanks for the prices; not as expensive as I'd thought it'd be in London. Anyone in Greece or Italy got any info?
London's right at the beginning of my trip so I'm not really going to run out there, if you get me.

Life would be much simpler if I could bear just taking colour or b&w, but I'm a sucker for a good sunset or anything with beautiful colours (including night scenes; I just hope the Gorillapod can hold the Pro-TL)

Lilserenity: Would you recommend shooting Tri-X at 100 or just shooting FP4 at 100?

Fixbones: Yes, it's a lot of money and it'll be the first vacation I've ever shot with only film, which is why I'm putting more planning into this than any other part of the trip (not that I have anything else to plan, really…). My main concern WAS that I'd get ripped off buying film elsewhere, but at least for the UK, that's not something to be worried about.
 
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Methinks you are overthinking this. Take the stuff you will enjoy using AND that you will feel comfortable lugging around for 22 days AND feel safe leaving in you hotel/B&B/hostel.

Whatever you think you will shoot, you will change your mind once you get there, especially since you've not been there before.

I'd be temped to take less film and buy en route, especially because all that film grabs room in the carryon (don't put film in checked luggage) that might be needed for something else. If your change of clothes is in the checked bag the airline sends to Madrid instead of London, you can't wear the film.
 
wgerrard said:
Methinks you are overthinking this. Take the stuff you will enjoy using AND that you will feel comfortable lugging around for 22 days AND feel safe leaving in you hotel/B&B/hostel.

Whatever you think you will shoot, you will change your mind once you get there, especially since you've not been there before.

I'd be temped to take less film and buy en route, especially because all that film grabs room in the carryon (don't put film in checked luggage) that might be needed for something else. If your change of clothes is in the checked bag the airline sends to Madrid instead of London, you can't wear the film.
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Fortunately I'm not travelling alone — mum's a digital, 1-small-zoom kind of person, and when dad catches up with us (in Venice or something), he'll have the rest of the gear that they 2 are going to use.

No way I'm putting my film in checked luggage. Thing is, my parents don't like making “unnecessary” stops, and we're on a tour most of the time, so I won't have the chance to just drop by a store and buy film.

Also feel more secure knowing that I'm bringing the film of my choice & not using whatever I find there.

3 cameras isn't a lot for me, and if any of them are to be left in the room, it'll be in a safe/somewhere strange (in a bag in toilet? 😛)
 
In London you should be able to buy all the film you need. Would not count on the other destinations for B+W, run of the mill color no problem. Just back from a week in Istanbul and shot Rollei Retro 100 at 40. Very contrasty light, I think it will be the same for you in Greece. Even here in Amsterdam at the moment I shoot Rollei Retro 100 (APX 100) at 40-80 (with-without yellow filter). Tri-x this time of the year is maybe a bit too much unless you do not mind small aperture, massive depth of field.
 
You're carrying that much kit and that little film? And this is your first trip? You're going to be spending more time carrying/securing/worryingabout/selecting cameras than looking through the viewfinder.

I'd carry 2x 35mm + 2-4 lenses and 60 rolls OR 1x MF + 2-3 lenes and 30 rolls, depending on what/how I planned on shooting. This is based on 30+ years experience: the first time I went to India I took too much kit too (Hasselblad, Nikon, Leica) but at least I took enough film.

Of course, only you know how/what you shoot.

Cheers,

R.
 
aperture64 said:
You are over thinking it and bringing too much gear. I went to Rome for a week with a Zip-Loc bag full of Tri-X, an M4, and 35mm Summicron. No regrets at all. If I could add anything, it MIGHT have been something wider than 35mm for interiors, but I didn't miss it.
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Roger Hicks said:
You're carrying that much kit and that little film? And this is your first trip? You're going to be spending more time carrying/securing/worryingabout/selecting cameras than looking through the viewfinder.

I'd carry 2x 35mm + 2-4 lenses and 60 rolls OR 1x MF + 2-3 lenes and 30 rolls, depending on what/how I planned on shooting. This is based on 30+ years experience: the first time I went to India I took too much kit too (Hasselblad, Nikon, Leica) but at least I took enough film.

Of course, only you know how/what you shoot.

Cheers,

R.
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Thanks for the advice, but I'm pretty set on bringing both systems as I have 2 shooting modes: "snapshot" (street photography style with moving subjects) and "fine art" (I call it that, but they're not really) where I take ages to compose and nothing's moving a lot.

I've just upped the 120 to 27 rolls as I figured my parents would want a play as well, but they definitely won't shoot it all. Pretty close to 30 rolls and with 35mm, I'm covered.

My lenses will be:
40 3.5 Triotar
Mamiya Sekor-C 80 2.8
J12
J8

I think that's all I'll need…I hope.
 
Why do you need the prices for film? Do you really want to buy film in Rome, Venice or Greece? MF Film? Good luck. Never been to Greece but in Rome or Venice you will only find some outdated 35mm colour film. Bring all the film with you or buy the rest in London.
 
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