Cheapskate film: friend or foe?

[raftman]

Since I'm a a bit of an amateur with film (I've been heavy on the digital use for several years) I thought I would ask how much it really matters what brand and price of film you buy? I am sort of used to being as frugal with just about everything but occasionally with some things, spending a little more can deliver in a way that makes it worth it the extra money.

I mean if I can get the generic supermarket roll of film for $0.99, would it actually be worth paying a few times more for Kodak? Is the difference significant enough?

 

[matt fury]

IMO, it all depends on your application. If I'm taking pictures of my friends hanging out, I'll try to use those Walgreens specials, etc. But if I'm going somewhere to specifially take pictures I'll use the good stuff.

 

[Adam Muir]

ditto, cheap film is good fun but if it matters risk nothing.

 

[Ash]

If you're new to film and you want to do your own black and white, then cheapo chinese "Lucky" film is your friend 🙂

I use Lucky SHD 400 for medium format cos I'm a cheapskate and the results are good. That said I only shoot black and white. If I shot colour I'd spend more money on good film

 

[raftman]

Well, I suppose it's one of those things one best find out for oneself. Heh, which is what today is for.

 

[OldNick]

One way to save money on film is to look at the photo shops for film that has gone out of date. I picked up some expired C-41 B&W for half price, and have never seen a problem with it.

Jim N.

 

[ChrisN]

If you're new to film and you want to do your own black and white, then cheapo chinese "Lucky" film is your friend 🙂

I use Lucky SHD 400 for medium format cos I'm a cheapskate and the results are good. That said I only shoot black and white. If I shot colour I'd spend more money on good film

How do you find the SHD-400 for scanning and handling? I've just done my first roll of SHD-400 in 120, and the film is so stiff! It feels thicker, too. I find it's quite awkward to get it into the neg holder for scanning.

 

[Ash]

Chris N -

Self Portrait:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=37991&cat=6184

Parents:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=41401&cat=6184

Mother:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=41399&cat=6184

I've chosen those 3 cos they're totally unedited - straight neg scans.

I find the film perfect for scanning but maybe I'm lucky, its a lot nicer than the 20-odd rolls of ilford delta 400 I just bought!

 

[sf]

The difference is not that significant at all. For instance, I shoot sometimes with Arista.edu Ultra 200 (fomapan 200) and sometimes with much more expensive films such as FP4, and the difference is mostly in tonal style rather in image quality. I'd have to say that the results are more pleasing to me from the more expensive Ilford, but that I get the Arista for half the price or less and sometimes I prefer the punchy tonality of the Arista to the smoother tones of the Ilford

 

[Todd.Hanz]

some "store" brand films are made by major manufacturers, check the box.

If you like the results you get with cheap film, by all means...shoot it! If not then buy the good stuff, 35mm film is still pretty cheap, even for the better emulsions.

Todd

 

[Stephanie Brim]

Buy grey market Fujifilm Superia. It's usually at least half the cost of the US market film and still the same.

 

[Andrew Sowerby]

Unless you're planning on shooting A LOT I'd say buy film based on the results it gives (as opposed to price). Film isn't that expensive. It's the developing that costs $$$.

 

[bsdunek]

I say stay away from the store brand stuff unless you know for sure it's from a good manufacturer. Most is Farrena, and it has poor exposure latitude and bad grain structure.

For B&W, check out Arista.edu. Buy in 100 ft. rolls and roll your own. This is assuming you're going to do your own developing. That way you can re-use the cassetts several times.

Just IMHO 😎

 

[David Goldfarb]

Depends on the film. There are some inexpensive East European B&W films that are really beautiful films that you might prefer to the major manufacturers for their tonality. The emulsions are soft, though, so handle carefully when wet. I particularly like Efke 100 and J&C Classic 400 (same as Fortepan 400, or Classicpan 400 in Europe). You can get these from http://www.jandcphoto.com/

 

[dmr]

Assuming you're here in the States, the newer Walgreens house brand (marked Japan, not Germany) is really Fuji. Unfortunately they often price it for more than you can get Fuji-branded Fuji at Target'. I just picked up a bunch of their 200 for $4.99 a 4-pack, about US$1.25 per roll.

The older Walgreens is actually Agfa. A couple weeks ago they had a clearance on it for $1 per roll for the 200. The 200 is not bad for outdoor or flash. I didn't really like the 400, and the 800 is/was nasty. 🙁

I recently tried a 4-pack of Kroger house brand 200, which they say is actually Ferrania. It's very "OK" for outdoor or flash, but lacks the Charles Atlas Seal Of Approval. 🙂

 

[40oz]

quite honestly, if you spend $20 on a bulk roller and maybe $5 on 5 film cassettes, you can get all the film you'll likely shoot in a year of casual shooting for ~$60. So for less than $100 total, you can buy even "expensive" film for far, far, far less than buying individual rolls of discount store specials. And you can usually find used bulk rollers and cassettes at shops that deal in used equipment.

I know it sounds like a bit much to get into at first, but it will save you SO much money. If you pick a 400 speed film, it will work well in a very wide range of conditions. A filter will allow you to use it at high noon, and depending on the film, you can push it down to late evening. You can roll 12 exposures per roll for a family event, or a 36 exp. roll for a field trip. You can afford to be throwing film away, rather than worrying about the cost of it all.

As has been said, the cost of developing is what most people find prohibitive. Even that can be cheap as dirt if you are willing to do it yourself. You can dev the negs, then drop them off for printing if you wish. Developing film takes some attention to detail and some organization, but technically, it is really easy to do well.

 

[raftman]

Assuming you're here in the States, the newer Walgreens house brand (marked Japan, not Germany) is really Fuji. Unfortunately they often price it for more than you can get Fuji-branded Fuji at Target'. I just picked up a bunch of their 200 for $4.99 a 4-pack, about US$1.25 per roll.

The older Walgreens is actually Agfa. A couple weeks ago they had a clearance on it for $1 per roll for the 200. The 200 is not bad for outdoor or flash. I didn't really like the 400, and the 800 is/was nasty. 🙁

I recently tried a 4-pack of Kroger house brand 200, which they say is actually Ferrania. It's very "OK" for outdoor or flash, but lacks the Charles Atlas Seal Of Approval. 🙂

Just yesterday I had some of the Kroger 200 film developed. It's the second time I've tried using it (the first time was with the Kodak 35 RF, heh, the less said sbout that experience the better). The second time around (using a Fed 5) yielded pretty decent results, quite a bit better than I was expecting. The shots weren't much in terms of composition, but I was mainly testing the camera itself as well as the film rather than trying to take good pics.

 

[dmr]

The second time around (using a Fed 5) yielded pretty decent results, quite a bit better than I was expecting.

Coincidentally, I just had the last of my 4-pack of Kroger film processed and I also got more than I was expecting. Some of them were actually quite good.

I'm attaching one here. The lack of a "Fuji Blue" sky is due to the fact that the sky was not really blue. This was a very hot, hazy day last week.

It does say "Ferrania" on the negatives, so that question is answered most definitely.

I don't think I will get any more of it unless it's really cheap or something, but it was good to try it out to see what it's like.

 

[raftman]

Agreed. Got some kodak 400 black and white stuff today for $4. Will expect quite a bit since now I know the camera is capable of taking good pics.

 

[raftman]

Now, I've a question, because it's really starting to get at me... Where exactly does one get cheap b&w film? I've checked 3 different photography stores in Portland (or at least their sites anyways) and couldn't find a roll for less than like $4.14. Also checked a couple of supermarkets, which of course had far less of a selection, but prices were not really any better. Online, it's easy to find rolls going for less than $2 but I've developed a strong aversion to online shopping, so I really prefer to avoid that method. Am I out of luck or...??