I want a Holga for my brithday, any tips?

First of all, hello! this is my first post in this place, but I do linger about

here...perhaps a bit too much.

Well, the camera that I use is a K1000, and I love it, but I want something less

serious. I heard about the Holga and since then, I've been researching it to no

end because I want one for my 17th birthday that's coming up.

However, I still feel unsure about them. It's not the "effects" that it does,

but it's the film. I don't know why, but when it comes to film, I always get a

bit nervous

1. Is it easy to load and unload the film?

2. I want to start with black and white , which would be the best film? Fuji? I

don't want to ask for 120 film and then getting technical questions and I'll be

standing there, open mouthed.

3. Can I give Walgreens the film and ask them to send it to an actual lab? I've

read that Walmart does that , how is the quality.

 

If I'm asking too much..sorry. I just want these things clarified. This forum

has been helping me alot! as I get deeper into using my Pentax. I have a book on

photography, and my high school only teaches digital photography. :(. No dark rooms.

Thank you for reading this! I appreciate it very, very much!

-Samantha M.

Samatha, 120 is very easy to load. It is spool to spool, attach the paper backing to the take up spool by slipping the tapped end through the slot in the spool and wind it around a couple times to be sure that it is caught securely. Close the back and wind the film forward until you see nthe number one in the little red window. Very easy.

 

Any BW film is good. The faster films are grainer but it generally depends on what you are shooting. If you want to do daylight shots go for the 100 ISO or something close.

 

Walmart can process 120. The one I have used has to send it off so it takes a few days rather than an hour. I would assume Walgreens does the same. It is standard timed machine processing, which is what you will get anywhere unless you find and want to pay the prices of a professional lab. That is unnecessary at least for the learning process. If you shoot BW in your K1000, the process is the same. You just do not have as many options on the Holga for settings.

 

No need to be embarrassed, just ask what they have in 120 BW in the speed you want. You don't have to worry about matching color temperature or whether to get transparency or print. Unless you go to a full fledged camera store you probably are not going to have many choices.

Thank you very much, Mr. Woodward! That has cleared up a lot of things!

I appreciate it, a lot! I was worrying about the processing, it seems that it is highly recommended to eventually develop your own, which sounds like fun , but alas, my parents see it as a waste of time. :(.

Finding the film locally may be more difficult than getting it the film. processed... you may have to hunt down a pro lab or pro camera store in your area to get 120 film. Good luck!

Buy your Holga from http://www.holgamods.com

Have Fun!

Happy B-day!

Brian

Samantha -

 

Surprised that people haven't mentioned these points earlier.

 

1) Processing "traditional" black and white film (Kodak Tri-X, Ilford HP5) is very cheap at home in a darkroom (you don't actually need a darkroom, just a developing tank and a bathroom for 30 minutes!) So you can decide whether you want to start developing film yourself, or whether you want to develop it at Walmart. I'd say start with Walmart until you're sure you like black and white.

 

2) Processing this same "traditional" film is VERY EXPENSIVE if you use a photo lab! The film is made in an entirely different way and you have to take it to a special lab...that's why you should get what's called "chromogenic" film...this is a special kind of black and white film that can be developed just like any other film, for 3 dollars or whatever they charge.

 

Bottom line: If you want to develop at Walmart etc, make SURE you get Kodak 400CN or Ilford XP2 in 120 size!

 

Also -- your Holga will come with light leaks and you'll need to do a lot of work with electrical tape to make it functional. Keep this in mind when your first roll comes back totally unusable! Also keep in mind that a film image is reversed upside down and left to right by the lens, so if you see a light leak in the lower right hand side of your prints, it's in the upper left hand side of the camera as you look at it from the back.

Hey Samantha... the real fun isn't so much in developing the film itself, but in printing from

your negatives. So hold onto those (of course) and look forward to the day you'll get to work

on them in a darkroom! Just hold your breath until college. Then you'll have more options

hopefully. :-)

 

I tried darkroom for the first time myself last summer. Man, was that humbling! But FUN.

Got me wishing for a 4x5 camera.

try this side: it has all you got to know about the HOLGA:

Plastic Fantastic :)

 

http://squarefrog.co.uk/holga/index.php?id=loading

A Holga is an excellent 17th b-day present. The Holga is dead cheap. 120-220 film is not too expensive either. 120-220 film offers excellent quality. for black and white film I have used fuji and illford products and had great succes with both.

 

I do not think that walgreens can process it. I usually take mine to the local pro shop or do it myself.

Here's a video on youtube that shows how to load a Holga:

 

 

It's very easy.

Rick is absolutely right. You need to either develop B&W film yourself, which is easy enough, or you need to get the version of B&W that can be processed in the same machines as color. The cost of having someone else do the processing on regular B&W is usually custom work and high around here, even with students moonlighting.

 

If I may also suggest, I just shoot cheap color negative film. Anyplace that still does film can process it. That way, you can get both color and B&W.The film has essentially 3 stops of latitude. I have had no problems with scanning in the negatives, notwithstanding the orange film mask.

Wow! Thanks for all of the answers! They have been very useful, so thanks alot.

I am willing to process my own B&W once I learn enough about it.

So, thanks again guys! :D.

-Samantha

Hello again, well, I got my Holga today ... but since there's two day before my birthday, my mom is holding it hostage. :(.

Poor Holga.

You wont find any 120 film at Walgreens, Walmart or any pharmacy! You will need to go to a specialist photo shop or get it by mail-order.