Not much Film love around here?

[Brownie]

I need to do something while I wait for that container ship to dock. I enjoy shooting film and working on old cameras. I collect Argus, a few Brownies and some odds and ends. I have more cameras than I know what to do with, most of which still need a cleaning.

Pentax 110 with fresh Color Tiger from Lomography

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000249380020 (2) by telecast, on Flickr

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000249380011_429064_1620970853_lg by telecast, on Flickr

1948 Argus Markfinder with expired Kodak 200

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000248750015_429064_1620970822_lg by telecast, on Flickr

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000248750016_429064_1620970823_lg by telecast, on Flickr

Argus AA with...I think Ilford 100

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P1031567 by telecast, on Flickr

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P1031537 by telecast, on Flickr

Brownie Hawkeye (620 shooting 120) with Ilford 100

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P1061969 by telecast, on Flickr

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P1061964 by telecast, on Flickr

Minolta Maxxum 7000, can't recall the film

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P1061632 by telecast, on Flickr

1942 Argus A-3 with Rollei Retro 80

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000459210004 by Shotglass Photo, on Flickr

Early 50's Argoflex E TLR with Kodak Portra 100

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000458340004 by Shotglass Photo, on Flickr

I'll stop now.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

I have a collection of film cameras I've accumulated over the years. I will admit to not having shot film in over 5-6 yrs, maybe longer. Two reasons, 1) developing costs, 2) developing time needed to get results back.
I do have a liking for good mechanical cameras. I can appreciate what went into making them, especially the old ones where tooling wasn't what it is today.

 

[bdbits]

I have an old Minolta XG-M that was my first serious camera. I don't think I have fired it up since sometime in the 1990s. The last nearby place that developed film - a camera shop actually - went out of business a few years back. The owner retired and could not find a buyer, even though he made a profit. Same for film - I do not think anyone around here sells it any more.

I know I could do it all online and through the mail, so it is mostly laziness and an excuse on my part.

 

[WNG]

Wonderful shots! I have a box of old flim SLRs, M42 Pentax, Fuji, an Olympus, and forgot about the rest. Gained them my manual lens hording.
I was interested to try the ol' Pentax with some B&W film, but also no longer have patience and best route to acquiring film, developing it, and no longer have negative scanning ability.

 

[Brownie]

I buy film from B&H, either enough to get free shipping or a few rolls here and there when I buy something else. Some film comes from my local camera shop in Ann Arbor, they carry a decent selection of 120 and 35. B&H has some 35 you can get for $4.99/roll.

If I send out for developing it goes to the Darkroom. If you have a method to scan they'll develop the film and send your negatives back for $8 + shipping. Shipping costs $6 for unlimited rolls. If you want scans, add a few more $.

I started developing my own B&W last winter. All of the B&W shots posted except for the one from the A3 are home developed. I just picked up CineStill's C-41 kit and will be trying my hand with color pretty soon.

I use a camera mounted on a copy stand and a light table for scanning, either the G9 or GX9 which gets me a 20MP negative in RAW. I've been using macro tubes but recently picked up the Olympus 30mm which has a 1:1.25 ratio, enough to fill the frame with a 110 negative. If you look at the EXIF on Flickr you will see some were scanned with one of my cameras and some by the Darkroom.

It's a fun diversion, especially in the winter. I've learned to disassemble cameras and lenses, clean shutters, etc. If you click through the phots to my Flickr page there are several shots of disassembled cameras. Not the car or airplane, that's my second Flickr site. Click on one of the landscapes.

Here's the display case my wife allows in the dining room (she has no choice, she has two full of elephants!). This doesn't include any of my SLR's. The top two shelves are Argus, the next one is Kodaks and a few odds an ends.

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Argoflexes and A's by telecast, on Flickr

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C's A, and 21 by telecast, on Flickr

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Brownies and a few Kodaks by telecast, on Flickr

 

[Brownie]

I have a collection of film cameras I've accumulated over the years. I will admit to not having shot film in over 5-6 yrs, maybe longer. Two reasons, 1) developing costs, 2) developing time needed to get results back.

I want to comment on this. I shot my first roll of film out of a Brownie like the one in my Avatar, sometime around 1967 or 68, which would have made me about 9 or 10. I had found it in my parent's linen closet and begged my mom for film. I don't recall now if I convinced her because of the train wreck at the local crossing, or if I already had the film when the train wrecked. In any event, I shot the entire roll at that wreck. The photos have long since been lost, although I think I kept one. It's likely pressed between the pages of a book somewhere.

I remember taking the film to the drug store and waiting what seemed an interminably long time to get it back. I think back then it was two weeks.

Now to the point: I can very clearly recall getting the film back, and excitedly opening the envelope to reveal my treasure. I was absolutely beside myself with anticipation, and you know what? I get the exact same feeling (although a bit more reserved) every time I open an envelope, or a file with scans, or my developing tank. Digital is nice for Instant gratification. I can take a shot and chimp, then decide if I need to take another. That's great, but nothing can top the thrill of seeing the results of your film effort for the first time.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

OK. So, it's early 1969 or so. My neighbor is just back from a tour in Nam and before he left he had sent word I could order any camera I'd like and he'd get it for me over there, cheap.
I knew nothing about cameras so I asked a friend what I should get.
I ordered a Mamiya Secor 1000DTL.
My neighbor gets back before my camera arrives and he's got a gorgeous black Minolta SR-T 102 kit. On top of that he's willing to loan it to me when I want to go to the races out at Riverside raceway.
I fall in love with that camera. Shoot up a whole roll of film in no time flat.
When I get back home I ask if I can change my order and get one like his. Nope. Mine's on a boat already coming home to me.
Bummer.
I send the race pictures off to be developed. Get them back and the roll is all black. UNEXPOSED!
I didn't load the film correctly and rewind it till I got tension to see if it caught correctly. Rookie mistake.
But I was hooked. I loved that camera.
Mine arrived and it was, well, more than disappointing to say the least. I never got a good shot out of it. Ended up giving it to my friend who'd reco'd it to me when he informed me he'd dropped his 500TL.
Took me thirty years but I finally got a Minolta. Wasn't black, but it did have the 58mm 1.4 lens on it. Had it cleaned by the factory and still have it to this day. It is one of the keepers in my modest collection.

 

[Brownie]

Those are great cameras. Most people have no idea how many contributions Minolta made to the technology. It seems they were never able to capitalize like Canon and Nikon.

Here's my Dad's SRT-101 with the 58/1.2 mounted. He had the 1.4 as well, not sure why he needed two so similar, but I remember how excited he was when he got the 1.2.

I sent this out after he passed and had it gone through professionally.

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Minolta SRT-101 and Rokkor 58mm f/1.2 by telecast, on Flickr

 

[bdbits]

I want to comment on this. I shot my first roll of film out of a Brownie like the one in my Avatar, sometime around 1967 or 68, which would have made me about 9 or 10. I had found it in my parent's linen closet and begged my mom for film. I don't recall now if I convinced her because of the train wreck at the local crossing, or if I already had the film when the train wrecked. In any event, I shot the entire roll at that wreck. The photos have long since been lost, although I think I kept one. It's likely pressed between the pages of a book somewhere.

I remember taking the film to the drug store and waiting what seemed an interminably long time to get it back. I think back then it was two weeks.

Now to the point: I can very clearly recall getting the film back, and excitedly opening the envelope to reveal my treasure. I was absolutely beside myself with anticipation, and you know what? I get the exact same feeling (although a bit more reserved) every time I open an envelope, or a file with scans, or my developing tank. Digital is nice for Instant gratification. I can take a shot and chimp, then decide if I need to take another. That's great, but nothing can top the thrill of seeing the results of your film effort for the first time.

I fully get that. I started with film, though being married with children meant I could not do as much as I would have liked. I took a course when I went back to finish college and got to develop and print film and had a blast. But one of the great things for me when digital finally got reasonable was the almost-free nature of it. I am definitely not a spray-and-pray kind of shooter now but I certainly take more than I would have with film. And I shoot all RAW, with my camera set up to help me with my all-but-one manual lenses, so I get a little bit of that anticipation in that I do not really know if it will turn out until I 'develop' the RAWs. Much shorter wait, to be sure.

It may seem odd to have an advanced camera used in mostly manual mode. Old habits die hard, I guess. As I age I am thinking of switching to more AF lenses but not quite there yet. Maybe soon if I can find some I like as much as my beloved Voigtlanders. That is not an easy task, and not cheap. Still thinking.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

Those are great cameras. Most people have no idea how many contributions Minolta made to the technology. It seems they were never able to capitalize like Canon and Nikon.

Here's my Dad's SRT-101 with the 58/1.2 mounted. He had the 1.4 as well, not sure why he needed two so similar, but I remember how excited he was when he got the 1.2.

I sent this out after he passed and had it gone through professionally.

View attachment 115922 Minolta SRT-101 and Rokkor 58mm f/1.2 by telecast, on Flickr

Wow, that's a beautiful SR-T!

 

[WoodWorks]

I started out with a Brownie, @Brownie, a Brownie Hawkeye to be specific, back in 1964, and have used a bunch of film cameras since then (my favorite was the Olympus OM-2). But the anticipation of seeing “what I got” from a film shoot vs. the immediate feedback I get by “chimping” is no contest for me. Sure, it would be fun to play around with that OM-2 again, but I‘d probably get better shots from my phone.

 

[Brownie]

I started out with a Brownie, @Brownie, a Brownie Hawkeye to be specific, back in 1964, and have used a bunch of film cameras since then (my favorite was the Olympus OM-2). But the anticipation of seeing “what I got” from a film shoot vs. the immediate feedback I get by “chimping” is no contest for me. Sure, it would be fun to play around with that OM-2 again, but I‘d probably get better shots from my phone.

Nahhh!

 

[Brownie]

I fully get that. I started with film, though being married with children meant I could not do as much as I would have liked. I took a course when I went back to finish college and got to develop and print film and had a blast. But one of the great things for me when digital finally got reasonable was the almost-free nature of it. I am definitely not a spray-and-pray kind of shooter now but I certainly take more than I would have with film. And I shoot all RAW, with my camera set up to help me with my all-but-one manual lenses, so I get a little bit of that anticipation in that I do not really know if it will turn out until I 'develop' the RAWs. Much shorter wait, to be sure.

It may seem odd to have an advanced camera used in mostly manual mode. Old habits die hard, I guess. As I age I am thinking of switching to more AF lenses but not quite there yet. Maybe soon if I can find some I like as much as my beloved Voigtlanders. That is not an easy task, and not cheap. Still thinking.

I usually shoot in manual with the exception of lenses, I've become lazy with autofocus. Still, I have adapters and use legacy glass on my Pannys from time to time. The caveat is a custom program I have set up to shoot at the drag strip. P mode, front dial programmed for shutter/aperture, rear dial programmed for exposure compensation. IBIS is switched to up and down only so the camera doesn't try to correct when I pan. I switch back and forth between that and manual. I shoot manual so much that it's as fast for me to make a change that way as it is in P. I never let the camera choose ISO, ever. Always in RAW. I do shoot in burst mode when a car is coming off the line, it gives me 5 or 6 frames to choose from. Drivers like to see their cars at the extreme, whether it's wheels up, slicks wrinkling, or torque twisting the chassis. Shooting a short burst gives me options.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Another 1950s child, I too grew up with film. As a small child I had a plastic camera from Woolworth for one holiday: I dropped it on a rock and it broke. I wasn't allowed another one.

Much later, and after a "point & shoot" or two, I had a Pentax spotmatic, but sold it after a short time to pay some debt. Sob.

Most of my film photography was done with an Olympus OM1n. I never had more than the kit 50mm lens. I still have that camera, although the lens is fungused. As far as I know, it still functions, although a good service would be required. I did take the small battery out. It's spent twenty years sitting at the back of cupboards. When I last looked at it, I was going to check it out, and went to open the back... only to realise that there was a film inside! Well, it was a dim room, but I expect it will be fogged now.

So then came a "bridge" camera and a P&S, before the Sony a6500. The Olympus was a lovely camera to use, but no, I'm not going to go back to film now

 

[Brownie]

Just bought this lot from CL, going to pick it up this afternoon. Some cool pieces in there, including the Miranda and the Lentar 500mm. And look! Another SRT-101. I'll go through this stuff and decide what to keep.

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[MWhite]

There was a time I enjoyed film; it was all there was, years and years ago. (My first camera was a Brownie Holiday Flash, which I bought at a pawn shop.) I continued with film, even though there were some very good digital cameras available. Then a film camera's shutter died at the beginning of a long trip. And I discovered it only after receiving 15 rolls of black, utterly black, film from the processor. I switched to digital after that. More recently, I spent an inordinate and painful time scanning two file drawers of slides that I had taken over the years. I have no interest in ever doing film again.

PS I took the attached in 1957, with the Holiday Flash.

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Grandmother Crisman, the Buffalo Hunter - 1957 by UnderOpenWater, on Flickr

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

What I like to do now is let my digital cameras imitate a film camera when I put one of the manual lenses on them. It's kind of fun shooting a lens from 1936 on a newer digital camera. The lens/adapter adds nothing to the weight of the camera its so small.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

Just bought this lot from CL, going to pick it up this afternoon. Some cool pieces in there, including the Miranda and the Lentar 500mm. And look! Another SRT-101. I'll go through this stuff and decide what to keep.

View attachment 116162

I could easily drive my wife nuts if I collected stuff like that. With me it's like a sickness. Once I start I'd have a very hard time stopping.

 

[MWhite]

I could easily drive my wife nuts if I collected stuff like that. With me it's like a sickness. Once I start I'd have a very hard time stopping.

Been there, done that! ?

 

[Ad Dieleman]

Maybe there's not too much talk about film here because this is an E-mount centered community. In my younger days (I'm from 1954) I used to do black-and-white film, had a darkroom with all the gizmos needed. Luxury item: a film dryer which allowed me to examine the results after only 1 hour. Some years ago I tried film again with a Minolta X-300 (only camera that didn't need its seals replaced) and the Minolta 4/17. Worked well enough but choosing between processing and scanning myself or having to send the film in was way too much of a hassle.

I once dreamed of being able to do processing in the living room with daylight and without chemicals in those days when Kodak came out with the service to have your film processed and get the results on CD. And lo and behold, here I am with Lightroom on my computer! Results right after shooting, super-accurate focusing with any lens you can mount and image stabilization are just a few of the things that makes me enjoy photography way more than I ever did before. Wonderful times IMHO.