What should I know about slide film before I try it?

[jmacneil]

I've recently moved to Japan, and would like to take advantage of the

relatively cheap Fuji slide film here for shooting fall foliage and rural

scenery. I've only tried slide film once before, so I don't really know

anything about it. I'm an amateur, so please explain things thoroughly--I've

read through some of the other posts on slide film and understand about 70% of

what is said. I'm using a Minolta Maxxum 5000 with a Minolta 35-70mm lens

(with macro) and a Sigma 75-300mm lens. I generally use Fuji Superia 200 but

am looking for a higher saturation.

 

So, with all that in mind, what should I know about slide film before I try it?

 

Thanks, Jennifer

[michaelging]

I little under exposure will give you great contast, great saturation and great color, a little over-exposure will give you blown highlights. Bracket your exposures ,but remember under is better than over.

[david_stanton1]

The comment on underexposure is correct. Slide film has perhaps a half stop latitude compared to probably two stops with print film, so your exposure is much more critical than with print film.

[jmacneil]

"Slide film has perhaps a half stop latitude compared to probably two stops with print film, so your exposure is much more critical than with print film."

 

ok, i'm reading that as when developing negative film you can sort of play with it to get the right exposure even if you didn't quite shoot it right. and with slide film there isn't really that room for error?

[david_henderson]

Yes, though not all slide films are the same in this respect. The brighter and more saturated the colours, the more contrasty they tend to be and the harder it is to fit both shadow and highlight detail onto the film. Velvia is both more saturated and contrastier than Astia, with Provia somewhere in the middle.

[mark_houlder2]

I went through this same process a few years ago - the main thing i've remembered is that slide film generally records a much smaller range of light than negative film, so high contrast scenes can be tricky. This is especially true of high contrast film like Sensia or Velvia - if you have, say, a street with direct sunlight on one side and dark shadow on the other, you're unlikely to be able to get a good shot of both areas (meaning, detail showing in both areas) in one exposure like you can (to a greater extent) with negative film. If you are faced with such a scene, you're better concentrating on the bright area and letting the dark parts come out black, as the opposite doesn't look very nice with slide film. If the scene is low contrast this isn't an issue, obviously (for low contrast scenes, i personally much prefer transparencies to negative film).

 

This is what people mean when they say meter for the highlights with slide film; although i think more along the lines of metering for the well-lit areas rather than the shadow areas. I actually find I take different pictures depending on whether I have negative or slide film loaded - slide film kind of narrows your options, but really improves many of the results from that narrowed set, I find.

 

Obviously this all depends on exactly how much contrast there is, but you have to be much more careful in these situations when using slide film. Note also that my experience is with (fairly old) centre-weighted metering - if your camera's meter is more sophisticated, it may be much less of an issue.

 

I think it also helps to choose the film depending on what you're going to photograph - Sensia or Velvia (high contrast) are great for bringing out the colours in low contrast scenes (misty mornings, overcast days, autumn leaves etc), whereas scenes with very high contrast (like the street i mentioned) may benefit from lower contrast film.

[ben conover]

Hi Jennifer,

 

I'm an amatuer beginner and I only used slide film once last year. I found that guessing exposures is not good enough if you need to get the shot. If you have time on each shot try to use an incident meter.

to measure exactly what you want. I wish I had used a meter!

 

Cheers.<div></div>

[steve_levine]

Slide films have a very limited brightness range. You must seek out scenes of low contrast, or try using graduated ND filters, fill flashes, etc.

 

 

Slide films, like color photo papers, have only a 40:1 brightness range. Color negative films can handle 200:1 ! This is why sometimes our films see things (high contrast), that our prints aren't capable of showing.

[alan_olander1664878205]

Slide films show more contrast than print films, but there are differences among slide films, too. Contrary to something said above, Sensia is less contrasty than Velvia. I would recommend using something like Sensia to start out with. Velvia will be more difficult to use for general shooting. Sensia may not give you the saturation of Velvia, but it will be more than what you're getting with Superia.

 

Bracketing your exposures 1/2 stop either side of the metering reading should give you at least one good exposure. If your best images are consistently frames that are over or under exposed from normal, adjust your meter's ISO setting lower or higher to compensate. Get a copy of John Shaw's book, "Nature Photography Field Guide". It has excellent information on exposure using slide film.

 

Films of any kind can be developed differently to compensate for intentional over or under exposure (it's called pulling and pushing), but that's not something you as a beginner would want to do for general shooting.

[terence_spross1]

Jennifer, you should look closely at Ben's photo. It was taken with a high contrast lighting situation with significant backlighting that would be difficult even if a proper meter was used. One possible cause of the red/purple cast is reflective lighting is the area. A significant amount of a purplish paint or side of a building or flora in the area behind the camera could have illuminated the subject in the shadow areas. Slide film exagerates color casts. (Even if other situations occured such as excessive heat, or a bad scan to make this worse, keep in mind this situation would be a problem area for a slide film.) (Note that some deeper shadows in the photo are more neutral balanced.) So try to limit your subject matter to better lighting situations. You should be aware of exactly how your camera's meter is "weighted" , that means that if the mostly the central area and some of the lower middle area is sensed by the meter, make sure you position the camera while metering so that area is the primary subject area only is metered. Remember the bottom area becomes a side area if you turn the camera sideways for a vertical shot. Example in rural scenery: The sky is bright but the folliage 20 meters away is darker and is the primary subject. Also, in the area is a brightly lit boulder. You should turn the camera to one side to avoid the boulder in the central area of the viewfinder and point to at at an area that is lit the same as the sesired foliage. Hold that reading and recompose.

This might be covered by print film lattitude, but slide film is more fussy. Also, make sure your meter is accurate before shooting something importand. A 1 stop error might be survivable with Superia 200 but not with slide film.

I'm not trying to discourage you from shooting slide film, I think you will be happy with the results.

[cameradude]

I am a hobbyist who used some slide film at a wedding, not the hired photographer, thank god. I shot in aperature priority mode, on an F4s, I found the results to be amazing, of course in detail where the exposure is correct. You can see some examples of contrast on my page. When I had them scanned at Wolf Camera, they used the Frontier machine, did a wonderful job on the indoor shots, but the outdoor shots were extremely contrasty. They used their 'low resolution' scans vs their 'high resolution' scans. The scans of my slide film are absolutely amazing and I wonder what the 'high resolution' scans would look like.

 

I have a post about this in this section and someone mentioned that the technician didn't change the settings on the scanner, which would have helped reduce the contrast.

 

I used the Velvia 100, try it out, get them processed, and you will be amazed! The scans can make or break them, but even some of the poor scans are outstanding.

[roger_smith4]

Start with user friendly Sensia and have fun. It will teach you a lot about metering. Also, consider a decent photography book.

[stephen hazelton]

It may be easier to scan your film if it isn't mounted. But some places here (USA) don't offer that service- you get it mounted whether you want it or not- ask before you drop it off somewhere.

 

Typically one-hour labs here do their own color film, but will send out the slide film- so you may find multiple dealers that all send their film to the same processors (such as Fuji).

 

You can over-expose color print film a bunch and still get prints where you can't tell the difference- not so with slides- if it's critical, either have good metering or bracket.

[bill_tuthill]

Less red, but still too much contrast.<div></div>

[ben conover]

Wow Bill!

 

I gotta get photoshop....amazing, thanks. Did it take long?

She looks so...unreal, but less pink. Stefi is wonderful and I miss her. Interesting toi see how one image can bend your mind when it's changed slightly. I like the colour change, I see how the scene i chose was too wide for the latitiude of the film. I think it was Fuji Provia, could have been Velvia, can't remember.

 

Well, I must say the photoshopping has restored my faith in film!

 

Thanks.

[nullfinder]

oh yes, Sensia is a very nice film. I took some on my trip to Colorado in 2003 and left the Rebel G in Green Box mode, i was blown away at how great they came out

[bill_tuthill]

Ben: Was that Provia 100F?

 

I used GIMP, which is freeware. Removed red/magenta from the

shadows (same as adding cyan/green) and added mucho yellow and some

red to the highlights. Then I reduced contrast. About a minute.

Some areas were still too red, so I selected by color, feathered edges, and reduced their saturation with the HSV dialog. About

four minutes because selection is time-consuming. No doubt

photo(shop).net experts could do better.

[ben conover]

Bill, it is excellent and thanks for taking the time to explain to me. The new version reminds me of the old retouched photos form years back, kinda suits Stefi and her teutonic looks.

 

I think it was Provia 400, but can't remember really. I just remmeber buying a load of out of date slide film and tech pan all of which I used up, with a few photos I like.

 

Cheers.

[snapshot1]

Jennifer:

Slide film, both Kodak or Fuji provides the most detail in shadow & highlights as well as correct color as anything out there. So much better than neg film & overwhelmingly supreme to digital. Just bracket your shots a bit & have the film pro scanned so you can edit in PS.

[snapshot1]

Ben:

If you don't want to spend big bucks for PS get Corel PhotoPaint. Does 90% of what the Adobe thing does for only a fraction of cost. Check it out. PhotoShop is ridiculous in price.

[nancychuang]

Ben: a bit off-topic, but I REALLY love Photoshop. You can save many a print/neg with it.<div></div>

[randall_pukalo]

Dont listen to the BS that slide film is difficult to shoot. Your Maxxun, which has a built in meter will work perfectly. I have used a Canon Rebel, many inexpensive Olympus point and shoot cameras (Stylus Epic, etc.) and now an Elan 7 for my slides, and never any problems. In fact, I found the exact opposite - that slide film has MORE latitude than the typical digital minilab prints from negative film! Unless you pay extra to get the Kodak Perfect Touch processing, and/or pro lab "special" (read:very expensive) processing. Even then, it is only an issue if you shot a scene with extreme contrast. (say, a dim indoor scene with a large bright window in the background)

If you have a camera without a meter, ya, you will have problems, but almost all modern cameras have decent built in meters.

Also, for fall colors and landscapes, there is no question about it, slide film is the best film type to use. That is why all the pros use slides, not negative film. You will get much more color saturation and resolution with slide film.

So, try slide film without fear! Afetr you see the results, you will be amazed!

[jmacneil]

randall, thank you so much! only the odd tree has turned yellow so far, but i'll be sure to get out there with some slide film soon.