Pherdinand
the snow must go on
velvia and polarizing filter? 😱 i never tried that, but wouldn't you get crazy colours of type l'oreal commercials?
Slide film choice for a newby
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fgianni
Trainee Amateur
Don't forget to give a try to kodachromes, there is nothing like that, even if I agree best film to start with is probably Provia 100 expecially if you plan to scan it.
Kat
Well-known
About metering when using slides...When I'm using my Yashica GS, for instance, usually the over/under lights don't go off in at least 3 apperture settings, so I choose among those. Sometimes I don't really know what the proper value should be, I just guess, and I figure as long as the lights don't go off, the camera will automatically compensate with the shutter speed anyway. So if I use slide film in it, will it be all right if I just guess an apperture value as long as over/under lights are ok? Or would there be a good chance I might over or under expose and consequently ruin many of my shots?
I checked prices of the Fuji slides (velvia, provia, astia and sensia). Not much price difference🙁 About $1 or 2 max.
I checked prices of the Fuji slides (velvia, provia, astia and sensia). Not much price difference🙁 About $1 or 2 max.
Pherdinand
the snow must go on
Kat, with your yashica - do you mean by "the lights don't go off" that they are always on, or that they are always off, in those 3 settings?? i find it a bit confusing
anyway, if the under (orange) light is on, it indeed compensates with slower sh speed, that will be under 1/30 s. If the red light (over) is on however, it means the sh speed needed for the aperture you select, would be faster than 1/500 s which he cannot set, therefore he will overexpose the shot. That's not what you want with the slides.
If none of the lights are on, it's well exposed - at least that's what the meter thinks.
anyway, if the under (orange) light is on, it indeed compensates with slower sh speed, that will be under 1/30 s. If the red light (over) is on however, it means the sh speed needed for the aperture you select, would be faster than 1/500 s which he cannot set, therefore he will overexpose the shot. That's not what you want with the slides.
If none of the lights are on, it's well exposed - at least that's what the meter thinks.
fgianni
Trainee Amateur
Pherdinand said:
Anyway with slide film you should always bracket, since slides are much less tolerant than negative film.
Kat
Well-known
Oops, I'm sorry for the confusion. I meant that usually in each shot, when I half-press the shutter to check out the metering, the camera doesn't signal under or over exposure within a range of 3 f-stops. E.g. in a particular shot, at f4, 5.6 and 8, the under/over lights do not light up. So I just pick any of the three (f4, 5.6 or 8, in the example) without really thinking about it. I guess the Yashica is a not a very good example.
What I'm wondering (which I have so poorly expressed) is, in a situation where the photographer is 100% relying on the camera to fix the exposure, is it relatively safe to use slides, or would separate meters be necessary? (what if it's a PX 625 uncalibrated camera where metering may be a little off with 1.5 or 1.4v batteries)
What I'm wondering (which I have so poorly expressed) is, in a situation where the photographer is 100% relying on the camera to fix the exposure, is it relatively safe to use slides, or would separate meters be necessary? (what if it's a PX 625 uncalibrated camera where metering may be a little off with 1.5 or 1.4v batteries)
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naturephoto1
Established
I am not sure what your subject matter will normally be. But, many of us that use transparency films make our selection based on our prefered color pallet. Personally, I have been using Fuji Professional slide films almost exclusively since the introduction of Velvia in 1991. This is a beautiful, fine grained, very sharp, transparency film with very bold color and high contrast. It is a favorite of landscape photographers. This was probably the first very "punchy" film that Fuji introduced and has had a tremendous influence on the introduction of many subsequent offerings by both Fuj and Kodak. This is still my first film of choice for 35mm, 2 1/4", and 4" x 5". Many of us rate Velvia at ISO of 40 even though Fuji rates it at ISO of 50. The film does work well with polarizing filters, however a warm polarizer may be a better choice.
Next in line of the slower Fuji Professional Transparency films are Provia 100F, Velvia 100F, and Astia 100F. Fuji has been tweaking these films for some time. Provia is a very sharp transparency film with fine grain, good color (not as bold as Velvia), and less contrast than Velvia 50, and pushable to ISO 100 (with the usual increase in contrast and grain). Velvia 100 is even finer grained than Velvia 50, very saturated (but not as much as Velvia 50; a little more neutral than Velvia 50), very sharp, less contrasty than Velvia 50, and should be pushable to ISO of 100 (with an increase of contrast and grain). Provia 100 used to be my second choice for transparencies in all sizes but, will be replaced in all likelyhood with Velvia 100 as my second choice (as when need faster film for depth of field or windy conditions). Astia was developed largely as a studio film rendering skin tones accurately and with the reputation of not blocking up in contrasty situations. Astia is another very sharp, fine grained film, with less bold color (more neutral) than either Velvia, and less contrasty than the Velvia films.
Any transparency film will generally only record between about 3 1/2 to 4 stops of light. A 5 stop lighting range will result in recording from clear to black. One must be very careful in exposure of any transparency material. This is partially why checking exposure range of highlights and shadow areas is helpful with a spot meter. If you are in this exposure range, a trick that I use for exposure is to meter on the brightest part of the scene (generally sky or clouds). When the brightest part of the scene is known, use this as your exposure but, open the aperture (and/or adjust shutter speed) by 1 1/2 stops. Then bracket in 1/2 stop intervals as usual. This allows the brightest part of the scene to record some detail on the transparency. This is the same idea for correction of a scene of white snow or white sand. One or 2 of the bracketed shots is almost invariably correct and very usable.
Rich
http://www.nelridge.com
richard@nelridge.com
Next in line of the slower Fuji Professional Transparency films are Provia 100F, Velvia 100F, and Astia 100F. Fuji has been tweaking these films for some time. Provia is a very sharp transparency film with fine grain, good color (not as bold as Velvia), and less contrast than Velvia 50, and pushable to ISO 100 (with the usual increase in contrast and grain). Velvia 100 is even finer grained than Velvia 50, very saturated (but not as much as Velvia 50; a little more neutral than Velvia 50), very sharp, less contrasty than Velvia 50, and should be pushable to ISO of 100 (with an increase of contrast and grain). Provia 100 used to be my second choice for transparencies in all sizes but, will be replaced in all likelyhood with Velvia 100 as my second choice (as when need faster film for depth of field or windy conditions). Astia was developed largely as a studio film rendering skin tones accurately and with the reputation of not blocking up in contrasty situations. Astia is another very sharp, fine grained film, with less bold color (more neutral) than either Velvia, and less contrasty than the Velvia films.
Any transparency film will generally only record between about 3 1/2 to 4 stops of light. A 5 stop lighting range will result in recording from clear to black. One must be very careful in exposure of any transparency material. This is partially why checking exposure range of highlights and shadow areas is helpful with a spot meter. If you are in this exposure range, a trick that I use for exposure is to meter on the brightest part of the scene (generally sky or clouds). When the brightest part of the scene is known, use this as your exposure but, open the aperture (and/or adjust shutter speed) by 1 1/2 stops. Then bracket in 1/2 stop intervals as usual. This allows the brightest part of the scene to record some detail on the transparency. This is the same idea for correction of a scene of white snow or white sand. One or 2 of the bracketed shots is almost invariably correct and very usable.
Rich
http://www.nelridge.com
richard@nelridge.com
jano
Evil Bokeh
Kat, that may utlimatley depend upon the camera's metering capabilities as well as the conditions. Last year, I took my newly found contax G1 on vacation with me. First time since high school shooting film (which was standard kodak 200 gold). The guy at the camera store suggested I take along "velvia" and "astia", two films I had never heard of. I shot three rolls of each on vacation, using the G1 as a standard P&S in aperture priority. I got back from my trip, and was dismayed to learn at my local warehouse discount store they didn't accept "slide film." First time I ever heard that term, "slide film." 🙂 After some investigation and parting with more $ than I had anticipated, I had the slides developed and the pro-lab lady congratulated me since I had maybe 1 shot per roll that was under or over-exposed.
I was lucky in that the G1 has a decent in-camera meter and conditions were generally overcast which makes exposure easier. And interestingly enough, I bet if I went to try this again, understanding the difficulty of slide films, I'd probably come out 50% good exposures, so perhaps ignorance was a blessing 😀
Not sure if that helps...
I was lucky in that the G1 has a decent in-camera meter and conditions were generally overcast which makes exposure easier. And interestingly enough, I bet if I went to try this again, understanding the difficulty of slide films, I'd probably come out 50% good exposures, so perhaps ignorance was a blessing 😀
Not sure if that helps...
Kat
Well-known
LOL! Thanks, jano. Maybe it's time to shop for a meter...
sf
Veteran
E-6 choices
E-6 choices
I do not know what the color saturations are like in those films, but I'd say that if you prefer fast film - faster than Velvia, for instance, which is the flagship slide film - you would do best with Provia 400 or one of the Kodaks, but the Kodaks are more expensive, in my experience.
Buy Provia 400, it is best balance between all worlds, but is not the best for landscapes, etc. Landscapes - Velvia classic (50 is SLOW but has really poppy, intense colors). People - (Astia because it has Portra like skin tones and subdued saturations). Street photography - (Provia 400 because of speed).
E-6 choices
I do not know what the color saturations are like in those films, but I'd say that if you prefer fast film - faster than Velvia, for instance, which is the flagship slide film - you would do best with Provia 400 or one of the Kodaks, but the Kodaks are more expensive, in my experience.
Buy Provia 400, it is best balance between all worlds, but is not the best for landscapes, etc. Landscapes - Velvia classic (50 is SLOW but has really poppy, intense colors). People - (Astia because it has Portra like skin tones and subdued saturations). Street photography - (Provia 400 because of speed).
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