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View Full Version : Help! I'm being forced to use a film camera!



BerserkerCatSplat
10-26-2006, 11:41 PM
Well, I've been asked to do some portrait shots for a person's daughter. They need 2 shots for some sort of modeling agency or something to that effect. Anyway, the agency will not accept digital files, only film prints.

So, I will be using my off-camera lighting setup as usual, but I will be using a borrowed Minolta Maxxum 7000 instead of my usual Nikon. Now, here's my question:

My lighting system is all optical-based, and with film I would have no chance to see the results (obviously). I'm not yet experienced enough to just set up the lights and know what it'll look like, exactly. Is it possible to use my DSLR at a certain setting (ie ISO200, 50mm, f8, 1/30th) to get the exposure correct, then shoot the same shot with the film camera, provided I use the same settings and matching ISO film? Before you ask, Nikon is very accurate with ISO levels. I know for certain the D80 is dead on, and I assume the D50 is the same. Also, I would have to correct for digital focal length, but FL isn't my primary concern, just exposure.

Also, what would be some good film to use? I like the look of Velvia, but I don't even know if it's available in ISO200.

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated - I know there's some great film shooters on here. (Derrick, I'm looking at you!)

D'z Nutz
10-27-2006, 01:26 AM
"Help! I'm being forced to use a film camera!"???? You make it sound so bad! Haha! :rofl:

Does your lighting system provide any sort of modeling light so you know how the highlights and shadows will look? Ideally, you'd want to use some sort of flash meter and do an incident reading, but I guess if you can't, doing a shot in digital and trying to reproduce it in analog should work out if you are trying to match the exposure.

Assuming you nailed the exposure digitally and want to reproduce it in analog, you don't necessarily have to use the exact same settings. This is where it's handy to know how to count stops when calculating exposure.

Using your example of ISO 200, f/8, 1/30s as the ideal exposure (let's just use full stops for simplicity to illustrate the point):
- If you are using an ISO 100 film, that's one stop slower than you are doing digitally. If you use the same aperture and shutter speed, it will be underexposed. Compensate one or the other a stop up (ie: f/5.6 or 1/15s).
- ISO 400 film (one stop faster) --> f/11 or 1/60s (one stop slower)
- ISO 50 film (two stops slower) --> f/4 or 1/8s (two stops faster)
- etc... You kinda get the idea...

Full stops are generally calculated by halving/doubling (for the most part), so it's easy to do in your head:
ISO 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, etc...
f/1.0, f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22, f/32, etc...
1s, 1/2s, 1/4s, 1/8s, 1/15s, 1/30s, 1/60s, 1/125s, 1/250s, 1/500s, etc...

When in doubt, bracket.

I suspect you already know this, but just for completeness, I thought I'd add it in. Half stops aren't so bad, but don't ask me about doing third stops in my head! :rofl:

Alternatively, if you have a film you absolutely must use and is only available in a certain speed, you can also push (underexpose, but develop longer to compensate) or pull (overexpose, but develop for a shorter period) stops when developing. For example, you figured out what the settings are for ISO 200, but you only have an ISO 100 film. Shoot with the ISO 200 settings, but remember to get them to develop the extra stop(s) otherwise it will be under exposed. Definitely research your film first, because some films handle push/pull developing better than others. And that brings me to my next point...

Figure out the look you want. Most films are colour balanced for certain lighting temperatures, so just simplying saying "I like velvia, I think I'll use it" may not work under the lighting temperature you will be shooting in. Slide film is really great for vibrant colour saturation, but some of them have a really narrow exposure latitude, so you really gotta nail the exposure to get the shot to look right. But when you do, it just looks soooo right ;) Some slide films have a wider exposure latitude, so there's a bit of play you can work with. I know a lot of fashion and wildlife magazine photographers still prefer the use of slide film over digital. Negative film gives you a lot of room to play with in terms of exposure, but I find it doesn't have the colours that appeal to me with the exception of a few types of films. A friend of mine shoots a lot of colour negative and his experience shows that you can over expose 1 or 2 stops easily without worrying about killing your highlights. Or yeah, if you are doing model-like portraits, go with something slow speed and fine grain (smaller RMS number).

If you want to use a nice slide film, Fuji Provia 100F is a a good film to work with. It's pretty fine grain, has great saturation, and a decent exposure latitude. It's my all purpose film. But again, without actually knowing the lighting situation, it may not be the ideal film to use. Fuji Velvia should only ever be used in landscape photography, especially Velvia 50! It doesn't react very well to skin tones and people end up coming out looking very red. I've heard the term "boiled lobster" used many times! Haha! Plus it doesn't push very well and has a very narrow exposure latitude.

If you want to use negative film, I really like the look of Fuji Reala 100 or Fuji NPC 160, though I've yet to try either of these out myself. Yeah, I know I'm a Fuji whore! Kodak has some nice films too, but I'm more familiar with Fuji.

A real GREAT place to search for film examples is ALTphotos:
http://www.altphotos.com/

A lot of people post their film experiments on Flickr too, so be sure to check that out as well.

Lemme know if you are looking for more ideas or need some help/assistance!

BerserkerCatSplat
10-27-2006, 01:47 AM
Originally posted by D'z Nutz
"Help! I'm being forced to use a film camera!"???? You make it sound so bad! Haha! :rofl:

Yeah, I just thought it would be a funny title! It's more like "I have to use film way earlier than expected and before I could do any research or playing around!" :rofl:

Anyway, thanks a million for the extremely detailed response! I couldn't have asked for more information! All that will come in extremely handy, especailly the stuff about film choice. I'd heard of pushing and pulling film before, but I had no idea what it meant! That seems a little to advanced for me, so I'll probably stick to a more forgiving negative film like the Reala, or whatever tickles my fancy on Altphotos.

Thanks again, O Master of Film! :D I'll be sure to post again if I need some more help or advice.


Oh, before I forget, where is a good place in town to get film, in that it has a good selection? There's no use choosing a film I like if I can't buy it in time! I'd get it from Ebay if I had more time, but I've only got about a week. :(

D'z Nutz
10-27-2006, 04:23 AM
I get nothing but love from The Camera Store. Go speak to Chris. He really knows his stuff.

Thaco
10-27-2006, 07:25 AM
just take the pic with your nikon, look at the picture data and set the film camera to the same settings, it should give you almost identical results.

AccentAE86
10-30-2006, 03:58 PM
Film rocks.... but I only use film for Black and White photos now... digital for everything else. I personally like the Ilford HP5 and Delta black and white films. But it sounds like you are going colour only.

One super handy device is an incident light meter!!! Buy, rent, borrow or steal one! If you are going to do a typical 4 light setup, use the light meter to set up all the lights.

If you are using ISO200 F/8 1/30 (I personally use 1/125 or faster to keep ambient light out) then set the light meter to 1/30 ISO200. Place the meter where your subject will be.


-Fire the main light... adjust power until it reads F/8

-Fire the fill light... adjust until it reads something less. F/5.6 for minimal shadows, F/4 for stronger shadows, F/2.8 for more dramatic shadows... etc... (This is VERY general)

-Fire the snooted hair light... I like setting it to the same power as the main light... F/8. Some set it lower.

-Move the meter to the background and fire the background light. If you want a high-key image, start with around F/16 and move up or down from there. If you want a black background, use no light. Otherwise, I'd start with a background one stop less than main... F/5.6. These also look nice if they are snooted too, giving a sort of vignette effect.

Of course, bring your nikon and check it all out with that first if you can! Gosh, what a luxury that would have been back in the day.....

There are a million ways to do this.... this is just a general guideline.

xrayvsn
10-30-2006, 06:10 PM
If you prefer to shoot Nikon, I can lend you my F90x. I know its a bit older school, but I have had some good results with it, and you may still be able to use your Nikon lenses. PM me and we can try to work out a time we can meet.

I second the Fuji Reala 100 for colour negative portrait film. It is pretty forgiving if you are off with the exposure. Since you are controlling the lighting and it is for portrait photography, you probably don't need faster film like a 200.

BerserkerCatSplat
10-30-2006, 10:28 PM
Again, thanks to everyone for all the tips and advice!

xrayvsn: Thanks for the generous offer, but I've already been offered the use of a Nikon film camera by a friend of mine. That F90x sure is a nice unit, though. :D