35mm Color Slide Film

The last three trips I've taken I have shot only slide film. Would I do that the next trip? I'm not sure. But I have been very happy with the results overall and most of my problems have been do to user error rather than a result of the film/camera.

On these trips I shot a couple rolls of Velvia, a few rolls of Astia, and a lot of Provia 100f.

Velvia is, for most, the landscape king. Quite frankly I was just, if not more, happy shooting Provia 100. Provia gave me less saturation and a cooler look that adapted well to different situations (including portraits). I'm not a fan of the overblown landscape (but that's just me).

Astia is a wonderful film that gives very neutral/accurate colour reproduction. It's a brilliant portrait film (which I believe is its intended use). I like Astia and had no problems using it for landscape if it was still in the camera (but of course it wouldn't be my first choice for this application).

Provia 400x is incredible in my opinion. I love the results. Great colour rendition and totally acceptable grain. The only catch is that it's terribly expensive.

I have given up on slide film for the time being and I'm turning my attention to colour negative for trip-type photography. Mostly for the reasons that everyone above has listed. I'll decide what I want to go with before the next trip.
 
Wouldn't my SRT-101 be a good camera for shooting slide film because of the fully metered-manual and match-needle exposure guide?

Also, now that I'm about to have a ton of slide film, I figured I should buy a mini-fridge to keep the film in and a light table to view the slides with. Does it matter at all what kind of fridge? Any recommendations for a light table?
 
Jeremy: Provided that the SRT's meter (and shutter) has been checked for accuracy not terribly long ago, you're all set.

I think most any good mini-'fridge should do the job. I don't know if there are any without a freezer section, but that would be my preference (no wasted space...I almost never deep-freeze my film).


- Barrett
 
Jeremy, please be sure that your camera´s meter is really accurate. It will be terrible to over or under expose all these slide rolls. Before shooting slides, I had no idea that negative color film is so forgiving - you really don't know if your meter is accurate until you shoot slides.

If you find a very contrasty scene, be very careful with the exposure. Perhaps it is good advice to bracket.

And, last but not least, be welcome to Brazil! Which places will you visit?
(As for security: it seems nobody wants film cameras here anymore, including thieves. But be careful if you are in a lonely place, looking like a tourist, specially in Rio.)
 
Roger Hicks said:
Just hope it stays in production. I'm still bemoaning the loss of Fuji RF/RFP and their replacement by the grossly inferior Velvia.
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Roger,

200% with you here. I spoke to many which bemoan the demise of RF. It was something very special.
 
i am happy with my slides and learned a lot. However, as predicted by lots of you guys, I did screw up some pictures with good potential by not getting the perfect exposure. And I also screwed up a picture that I am positive I would have loved by trying to change film halfway through the roll and opening the camera before the film was rolled back to the beginning.

But this is simply how one learns photography, through trial and error.
 
I've recently been trying slide film. I've yet to shoot enough to make any valid observations, but I can say that I really like the workflow. The light table is a very quick way to sort images and makes for much less scanning. So far trying Astia, Velvia 50, Velvia 100, E100VS and E200.
 
bwcolor said:
I've recently been trying slide film. I've yet to shoot enough to make any valid observations, but I can say that I really like the workflow. The light table is a very quick way to sort images and makes for much less scanning. So far trying Astia, Velvia 50, Velvia 100, E100VS and E200.
Click to expand...

I really like the look of slide film. Give E100G a try too. That along with Elite Chrome 100 are my favourites in 35mm.
 
Just a point, I often find that what works in one camera won't work in another. The lenses seem to have a colour balance that tweaks theoretical results a little.

More to the point, I'd start with the easily available ones first, as maintaining (even finding) the film I want at times can be a pita. That means finding some to buy and finding it when I've bought it...

Regards, David
 
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