First time film user, please recommend film. Thanks.

I started with Neopan 400, I guess you can try that too. It's cheap yet it looks good so you can try it out a lot and experiment.

Nice to see someone new go to film!
 
Beemermark said:
Go to walmart and buy some cheap color film. Your not going to be an Ansel Adams overnight. Buy cheap color film (which is stll somewhat easy to get processed) and shoot a lot. Once you start to learn how the camera works, how film looks, etc you'll start thinking about what kind of film you really need.
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Agree.....some Fuji Superia in 200 is cheap and good enough to get started...plus many places (at least around here) still process it quickly.
 
I'll second the vote for Superia 200. There's very few people these days that want to wait the hours and days that it takes to get their film back from mail order (myself included). The almost-instant gratification of getting the prints back from a 1-hour lab is a wonderful feeling and it will help you relate the methods you used to take the pictures with the results while the information is still fresh in your mind. Make sure to get them scanned so you can share with your friends and us!

Here's a set of shots I took in Marquette on that film.
 
adamli629 said:
Hi everyone,

I recently got a film camera, but I had never used any film camera before. So I have no idea about the B&W, slide, and print film. Could you recommend me some B&W, slide and print film?

Thanks!
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Quite possibly the saddest words in photography...

Good luck in whatever film you do choose...I hope you get hooked...!!!;)
 
ornate_wrasse said:
As the previous poster mentions, the kind of film that would be recommended would have a lot to do with the kind of lighting you will be shooting in and the subjects you will be shooting.

That being said, to give you a very rough idea of what's out there and what is currently preferred by many film shooters:

Black and White

A favorite film is Kodak Tri-X. Its ISO is 400, it can be used in low light situations. Some prefer Ilford HP5, same ISO as Tri-X. When you are shooting in better lighting conditions, i.e. more sun for example, you can use Kodak Plus X or Ilford FP4, both are ISO of 125. One of the higher speed films is Ilford Delta Pro, its ISO is 3200, so it can be used in very low light situations.

Color Slide

A popular film, especially for saturated colors, is Fujichrome Velvia. It comes in both 50 ISO an 100 ISO.

Color Negative

Kodak Portra is available in several different ISOs, so can be used in different lighting situations. It comes in 160, 400 and 800 ISO.

A newer film is Kodak Ektar 100. It is marketed as being fine grain.

I have made no attempt, whatsoever, to list ALL films available. The above is just to give you a general idea. What may be a good choice for a cloudy day in winter would probably not be a good choice for a sunny day at the beach. Different films have different characteristics beyond speed of the film, so that's another thing to keep in mind.

You didn't say whether the film camera you have is 35mm or not. If it doesn't use 35mm film, your choices could be different.

Hope that helps.

Ellen
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Hi Ellen,

Thanks for your suggestion, I ordered some Arista Premium B&W 400 ISO film from Freestyle, because I saw someone told me there is the same as Kodak Tri-x. So I want use some cheaper films to start my experience. And also I ordered some Arista Premium B&W 100 ISO film, Arista EDU 100 and 400 ISO B&W film. I am planning develop the B&W film by myself.

Also, for the slide film and negative film, I ordered some Velvia 50 and 100, and Kodak Ektar 100.

I shoot both 35mm and 120mm, so I ordered each of them. Maybe after a few weeks, I will post my own pictures on the forum.

Thanks for your kindness help and suggestion.

Adam
 
Matus said:
I would say - it depends on whether you prefer color or BW photos. Start with the one you like. If color start with slides - it is quite rewarding to look at nicely exposed color slides on a light table. Contrary to color negatives - it is much easier to judge just by looking at the slides whether the exposure was right or not. Also it lets you know - if the camera you just got works correctly (light meter, shutter).

For the slides:
- I would start with something like Fuji Astia, Fuji Provia (100F or 400X) or Kodak E100G. The reason is - they are not as contrasty as Velvia or Kodak E100VS which are a bit special I would not (and do not) use them as "general color film". Velvia is best for those low contrast situation when it can intensify those subtle sunrise or sunset colors.

For color negatives:
- it depends how much you want to be investig per roll. Consumer films like Fuji Superia or Kodak Gold are cheaper than the "pro" films like Kodak Potra films or the Fujifilm "Professional" films. The "pro" films seems to have smaller grain. Then there is the rather new Kodak Ektar 100 - very interesting negative film with strong colors - it gets rather close to a slide film, though it has larger exposure latitude.

For BW: - now we are talking ;)
- there the choices are great - but on a very basic level you can choose from "modern" films with smaller grain like Ilfod Delta 100 and 400, Kodak TMax 100 and 400 or "classical" films like Ilford FP4+, HP5+, Kodak TRI-X, Plus-X. The difference is - at the same speed the "classical" films have large exposure latitude (know as more "forgiving" to over/under exposure) and often very nice tonality, while the "modern" films give you smaller grain. There are many other films on the market which mostly fall to '"classical" class.

For the start I would go with one of the classical films - the ISO depends on what you want to shoot. As I am more of an Ilford guy I would go with FP4+ probably.

BW in C41:
- there are currently 2 BW films on the market which are processed like the color negative films with C41 process, but are BW. These are Ilford XP2 400 and Kodak BW 400 CN. Both are ISO 400 films (but many users expose then at ISO 200). I would choose these films if I would not be able to do my own developing at home. One small advantage - these films do not use silver to form image what brings advantages during scanning compared to "normal" BW films.

Now - I would definitely advice you to do you own BW developing - it is not that hard and it does not require not that much tools and gear. There is ton of information on the web how to do it. I use Jobo 1520 tank (again, there are many others).

Developer for BW
- for the start I would with something that comes as a concentrate and not powder. I have made a good experience with Ilford Ilfotec DD-X. It comes in 1 litre bottles and working solution is obtained by mixing it 1:4 with water. It gives small grain and films speed close to the speed the films are rated to (called also "box speed"). There are MANY others, but apart from Pyrocat HD I have only experience with this developer. Once opened, the concentrate seems to have rather good shell life.

Just to stress - different developers and developing techniques have very strong impact on the look of the final image, so you will need to find your way. There is no "best" developer or the "best" technique. It all depends on what you want to get.

The most important is - enjoy it! - that is what the film photography is about (contrary to digital :D )
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Thanks for your suggestion. I think I will try all your listing film in the future. Right now I purchased about 30 rolls film, I think the best things for me is going out and start shooting. After I use all those film, I will purchase some new one. And I am sure I will find the best film fit for me.

Thanks!

Adam
 
photo4ls said:
Freestyle.com sells it very cheap and calls it Arista Premium 400.

If you chose to go w
/a slower speed film and want to save money there is a rebrand which is Fuji.Legacy Pro B&W100 ISO
35mm x 24 exposures @1.89 per roll. Several members
here have had good results

Nelson
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Thanks Nelson,

I already ordered some Arista Premium 400 film today. Compared with Kodak Tri-x, it is really a bargain.

Adam
 
nikon_sam said:
Quite possibly the saddest words in photography...

Good luck in whatever film you do choose...I hope you get hooked...!!!;)
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Yes.. It is a shame I never use the film camera before. I am not old enough, so when I have the first camera it is digital.

And right now, I aware I need a film camera and shoot film.

I think I will get hooked. ;)

Adam
 
adamli629 said:
Yes.. It is a shame I never use the film camera before. I am not old enough, so when I have the first camera it is digital.

And right now, I aware I need a film camera and shoot film.

I think I will get hooked. ;)

Adam
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So, what brought on this awareness...what are you looking for in film...what is it that digital isn't giving you...???
 
nikon_sam said:
So, what brought on this awareness...what are you looking for in film...what is it that digital isn't giving you...???
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I recently look lots of photos which was taken by RDPIII and RXP. It surprise me and the exposure latitude is much better than digital camera. That's the things I want pursue.
 
You will find that many suggestions have been thrown out, and I can certainly sense your excitement. I personally use Tri-X 400 and push it (you will find out more as you begin learning about developing your own film) and have gotten very good results. It's really a lot about preference, as I trust you have observed from the variety of responses.

That said, I think it is important that you get out and practice shooting with film. Be familiar with how your camera meters light and work on nailing your exposure.

You will find that with that, not only will you get very gratifying results with film, but that even your digital shooting will improve.
 
Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400 Velvia 50 Neopan 400
 
Give Ilford SFX a try. This past year, I got back into film, coming from digital, and I've been trying a lot of different films. For B&W, I haven't found anything I like nearly as much as SFX.

For color negative, I like Fuji Reala and Superia. I have a roll of the new Kodak Portra being developed now, I'll get it back tomorrow and see if I like it. Really love the Fuji, though.
 
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