First Roll Of Film

First Roll Of Film · Posted by rparmar, 10-04-2009, 05:55 PM

As announced in the thread Pentax 645N in da house I have a new camera. Well, I finally got some photos processed. Because I've been delayed in getting all the needed material for my own developing, I resorted to getting one roll done at the local store, exorbitant prices and all.

It's been 20 years since I shot film. And this is the first time I ever shot 120. So, here's some frames from my first roll of Neopan 400.

I used the method of spot metering into the darkest area I want to see detail in and then locking in that exposure. This is quite different from metering a scene in digital, but it seems to work well.

Comments welcome as always.

Back Alley, Limerick

The Island, Limerick

Private Call On The Canal

Partly Cloudy, Reception Is Good

P.S. The scans I paid for are crap and I can't say much for the developing either. Soon, soon, I will remedy this.

uccemebug · 10-04-2009, 11:19 PM

I like these. I shoot a fair bit of black and white film myself, and you've used the medium to its advantages (grain, texture, contrast). I don't know the city but it certainly looks well-suited to the medium.

One of the photos has what seems to be a dark vertical smear through the middle. It's on the wall in the foreground but then, oddly, also on the wall angling away in the background and if I'm seeing things correctly also in the air beyond the building?

*ramair455* · 10-04-2009, 11:47 PM

Well, you have definetely captured that ole skool 80's "film" look. But, for me these seem to be a bit over exposed and over processed. If I didn't know, I would guess this was 35mm.

rparmar · 10-05-2009, 03:46 AM

Originally Posted by uccemebug

One of the photos has what seems to be a dark vertical smear through the middle. It's on the wall in the foreground but then, oddly, also on the wall angling away in the background and if I'm seeing things correctly also in the air beyond the building?

Yep. Good catch! And there are scratches and pock-marks all over, more visible in other shots than these.

Originally Posted by ramair455

Well, you have definetely captured that ole skool 80's "film" look. But, for me these seem to be a bit over exposed and over processed. If I didn't know, I would guess this was 35mm.

I agree. I cannot believe this was entirely due to the original shooting. I don't think the development time was optimal. Like I said "The scans I paid for are crap and I can't say much for the developing either."

And this cost a small fortune, almost one euro per shot for the roll. Grrr...

uccemebug · 10-05-2009, 03:57 AM

Originally Posted by rparmar

And this cost a small fortune, almost one euro per shot for the roll. Grrr...

Holy moley! Perhaps they're only processing a roll every month or so, it could explain the mistakes (and price!).

rparmar · 10-05-2009, 11:34 AM

Yep. And it's the only place in the city. Good reason why I'm getting my own kit. And in the process documenting the process of learning medium format on my blog.

Thinking Outside The Frame: Sensor Sizes Explained
Which Medium Film Format?
Medium Format Priorities And The Mamiya RZ 67
Comparing Medium Format Lenses

*ramair455* · 10-05-2009, 01:48 PM

Originally Posted by rparmar

Yep. And it's the only place in the city. Good reason why I'm getting my own kit. And in the process documenting the process of learning medium format on my blog.

You have to process your own film!! I used to process TMAX 100 in microdol (i know it takes awhile) but the results from the 645 looked amazing, like 67 negs. Hmmm...maybe I will dig out some old negs....

rparmar · 10-05-2009, 02:22 PM

Does anyone know what would cause the smear in the second photo?

*ramair455* · 10-05-2009, 09:54 PM

Originally Posted by rparmar

Does anyone know what would cause the smear in the second photo?

It looks like bad processing. It could be improper loading on the reel(film stuck together); over agitation; not agitating enough. Its is definitely a development problem, and not a fixer or wash problem. All the more reason to process your own film.

PeteyJ · 10-05-2009, 10:24 PM

Definitely was in the developer for too long, and/or at too high of a temperature, but I don't think they look too bad. I think the contrast and the gritty look of the grain add a nice quality to them. Plus, theyre pretty good shots over all.

rparmar · 10-06-2009, 05:46 AM

The scans too are poor, not only because the resolution is low but the JPG compression is crazy high. No excuse for that! I will try to get my money back, perhaps, but they are the only shop I can buy supplies at, so I don't want to make the surly customer service even more impossible to deal with!

Originally Posted by PeteyJ

I think the contrast and the gritty look of the grain add a nice quality to them. Plus, theyre pretty good shots over all.

In pp I enhanced the sharpness and tried to bring out more shadow/highlight detail where appropriate. I am certainly not afraid of grain. It was a bright day with more contrast in the scenes than one can normally expect of the weather here.

These look to me like I'd used an orange filter, but I don't have any filters yet!

Thanks for the kind words. I have some framing issues but I'm glad I didn't have obvious focusing problems or camera shake or unusable shots due to some other user error.

I can live with this as a first roll.