In the last two months:
GS645
GS645W
Bronica RF645
Mamiya 7ii
Leica M3, M6 & M-A
Film Portra 160, Ektar 100 & E100. Film on order Portra 800. Film considering when available.. Leica Monochrome 50.
Just getting back to film and my biggest problem is the same as always.. location..not enough travel and insufficient imagination.. All a work in progress.
I've mostly been shooting digital but have become really interested in 120. With film prices and availability being what they are, I probably could have picked a better time to join in but here we are.
dennishy wrote:
I've mostly been shooting digital but have become really interested in 120. With film prices and availability being what they are, I probably could have picked a better time to join in but here we are.
For me, medium format is quite an exciting entry point back into film photography and we now have a more limited, but more capable lineup of film stock. I’m a big fan of rangefinders and will probably sell my Bronica ETRSi system, but Hasselblad, Pentax, Mamiya and many other very capable systems are out there..just a matter of how much you want to pay, what lenses you will need and how much bulk and weight you can tolerate. I just picked up an X2Dii and as of today a friend of fifty years that I haven’t seen in a decade has decided to fly to Texas and we will take a road trip to Oregon and Washington state. I’ve decided to take my Bronica RF645, Ektar 100 and Portra 800. A bit of a stretch for me in that I’ve only been back to film for a couple of months, but the extra analog limitations make it more of a challenge and forces me to slow down. Just make sure that you know what your going to do after exposing the roll. My learning curve has been steep, but rewarding. So, great time to get back into, or get into analog photography.
dennishy wrote:
I've mostly been shooting digital but have become really interested in 120. With film prices and availability being what they are, I probably could have picked a better time to join in but here we are.
120 is the easiest entry point to medium format. FP4 and HP5 are all you really need and you can keep costs low by developing your own film.
bwcolor wrote:
For me, medium format is quite an exciting entry point back into film photography and we now have a more limited, but more capable lineup of film stock. I’m a big fan of rangefinders and will probably sell my Bronica ETRSi system, but Hasselblad, Pentax, Mamiya and many other very capable systems are out there..just a matter of how much you want to pay, what lenses you will need and how much bulk and weight you can tolerate. I just picked up an X2Dii and as of today a friend of fifty years that I haven’t seen in a decade has decided to fly to Texas and we will take a road trip to Oregon and Washington state. I’ve decided to take my Bronica RF645, Ektar 100 and Portra 800. A bit of a stretch for me in that I’ve only been back to film for a couple of months, but the extra analog limitations make it more of a challenge and forces me to slow down. Just make sure that you know what your going to do after exposing the roll. My learning curve has been steep, but rewarding. So, great time to get back into, or get into analog photography....Show more →
I was so tempted by an RF645 kit but thought I'd split the formats in the middle and try out 6x7 first. I think the Zenza RF645 is such a cool looking rangefinder. Good luck with your trip I look forward to any pictures you might have to share.
I was overzealous and have some portra 400 in the freezer but have a test roll of gold 200 to get to a lab. I'm hoping the test roll shows the Mamiya 7 I just picked up has its rangefinder patch aligned because the test shots have seemed to go fine so far.
theHUN wrote:
120 is the easiest entry point to medium format. FP4 and HP5 are all you really need and you can keep costs low by developing your own film.
I have never really been into B&W, especially as a digital filter, but am really eager to try it with film. I had happened to pick up a book called 'Darkroom' that had different photographers talk about their B&W processes (solutions, times, etc.) and I'd be curious to try it out myself one day. Then I could also try pushing and pulling film as well but if I pick up any more kit I'm liable to get in trouble so I'll hold off on that yet.
The Mamiya 7ii and E100, or if you have a supply, Velvia 50 (100) are perfect for the negative size. Portra 160 has more resolution and Ektar is a pseudo negative stock that can give a bit of what Velvia 50 has, but nothing like positive film through 6x7. Of course, regular caveats with transparency film. Have fun with your Mamiya.. great camera and wonderful lenses.
Desmolicious wrote:
What is with all this fancy gear? Just get yerself an 'Olga, mate.
I bought a Holga and ended up buying a Fujica Super 6 and a Yashica D. But I did manage to talk myself out of buying a Rolleiflex. It was a one sided argument.
I'm mostly shooting medium format now, but not for the typical reasons: in my case it's because my most primitive low-fidelity cameras shoot 120 film (pinhole cameras, Holga, and the Vredeborch Felica, a toy camera from the late 1950s). I do have a Mamiya C330 for the rare occasions when I want nice clean, sharp images but I seem to be more attracted to imperfection and surrealism these days.
I much prefer working with 120 film: it's simpler to load into the tank (no canister opener/film retriever or scissors required) and I like the shorter rolls. I like that I am limited to 12 or at most 16 exposures per roll, and that I get to reuse the spindle for the next roll.
My 35mm cameras are mostly sitting unused but I do like them for travel plus I keep a small zone-focus 35mm camera in my pack all the time.
The GW690II, FM2 and the EOS 1V were bought on eBay from sellers in Japan. I know what you might say. However, I took a chance and it turned out great for all three cameras.
There was a hiccup with the GW690II. When it arrived the viewfinder was cloudy and dusty. I notified the seller who immediately emailed me a return shipping label the day. I packed up the camera and shipped it back to the seller in Japan. She took it to her local Fujifilm service center who, oddly enough, has parts and was able to service those old cameras. They did a CLR on the camera and best of all recalibrated the rangefinder.
I got the camera back two weeks later with an apology plus two rolls of film. She also covered the cost of shipping both ways and the repair. Now that's customer service!
I've dropped into the weird, wild, wacky, and wonderful world of the Hasselblad 1000F. Some of the lenses for this camera are gorgeous...
So film certainly isn't dead around my house.
How many are shooting film then printing digitally? I've thought many times about picking up a mid-range photo printer (don't have space or real desire for a darkroom) but haven't done enough research to know what would work best on a budget of $400 to $500. I'd be curious to know what others are using.
DougVaughn wrote:
How many are shooting film then printing digitally? I've thought many times about picking up a mid-range photo printer (don't have space or real desire for a darkroom) but haven't done enough research to know what would work best on a budget of $400 to $500. I'd be curious to know what others are using.
A lot of people do this, even some diehard darkroom printers; see ?si=s7drwBOCkQhzvB0K
I don't often print my photos; I think I've printed a grand total of three in the past 25 years, but if I ever start printing I'd probably get one of the Epson printers...the choices depend on the size of paper you want to print on, whether you only want to print in B&W or colour, etc.; there's a printing and post-processing board here on the FM Forum (https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/board/16/) that will have recommendations from users.
