should I still take Velvia?

[brambor]

Last year I undertook a 14 day hike through Wyoming. I hiked all alone and shot Velvia along the way. I like Velvia.

<p>

On August 15th of this year I'm going again to complete sections I missed last year. This time I'm taking my 2 boys with me. I want to only take one kind of film and I'm sure that this time my shots will involve their presence.

<p>

Should I still take Velvia or which film will give me a great color saturation without screwed up skin tones? Or is the skin tone issue blown out of proportion?

<p>

I don't want to do Kodachrome 64. My lab won't develop it and I don't want to send it.

<p>

P.s. To make it LF relevant I used M6 last time with 35mm summicron. This time I'm going to use M3 with Tri Elmar and 50mm collapsible summicron.

<p>

[mharris]

Velvia is the only slide film I take with me but I also never leave the house with some sort of B&W either.

[cdnguyen]

By all means do. I've gone back to film with M cameras. No post processing with film cameras either. LOL !

[Prof-K]

I really like Provia 100 for people shot. Try one to see whether you like it.

[EricM]

I'm on par with Shakil. Are you wanting image continuity with the last trip? Do you have a Cokin blue/yellow polarizer and nd filter(s)? Can't use vlevia without those yuo know :P

[lb-]

Skin tones with velvia 50 can certainly get weird, especially if you're polarizing, but only you can decide if it's acceptable or not.

 

If velvia is what you like, there's really nothing that looks quite like it.

 

you've got a few weeks to try out other emulsions.

 

I think the E100G is a pretty good all around stock. scans nicely too.

[Rob F.]

I'll weigh in, in favor of Provia, for this purpose. I usually shoot Velvia, but when I want a little less contrast and saturation I use Provia 100.

[bob soltis]

Have you thought about E100G?

 

It has pretty good saturation and gives an excellent rendition of skin tones.

[brambor]

Eric. Continuity is very much on my mind. I didn't have to use ND's last time but I'm thinking about taking the large square Cokin and just hold it in front of the lens if necessary. I hate polarizer I won't be taking it. I shot the new emulsion Velvia 100 last time. What a great film.

[brambor]

Eric. Continuity is very much on my mind. I didn't have to use ND's last time but I'm thinking about taking the large square Cokin and just hold it in front of the lens if necessary. I hate polarizer I won't be taking it. I shot the new emulsion Velvia 100 last time. What a great film.

[brambor]

Oops. Sorry. My phone browser timed out on confirm. I did not know it posted.

[EricM]

copy that Rene. Have you tried the blue/yellow polarizer? It's a different animal altogther than a usual polarizer. Kinda cool on some scenes.

[brambor]

Ehm. I don't even know what it is. ;-)

 

Link?

[david_l3]

Rene, you took very good pictures from last year's trip. Velvia is an excellent choice for

high mountains. I've done many trips like that myself. I recommend keeping it simple,

especially while having to backpack and hike all day. Use one film that you think will cover

most types of light. Velvia is a good choice for color, fine grain and sharpness. If you

were taking serious portraits, another film may be better, but Velvia will be fine for people

hiking in the mountains. I have more important things to think of when backpacking (like

fishing or watching a threatening storm) than the nuances of film.

 

BTW, how will you use the M3 with the tri-Elmar at 35mm and 28mm? Do you still have

the M6? Hope you don't have any more boot problems. Taking 2 sons will be a great fun.

Catch more of those cutthroats.

[brambor]

Words of wisdom David.

 

Yes I will use the tri elmar with the M3. 50 is there, 35 is slightly ouside of the whole viewfinder and 28 will be a crapshoot. Heh.

 

For continuit's sake, most likely it will remain the Velvia, especially when last time I started with remaining roll of Provia 400 and did not like the results. (I love Provia 400 but for different settings)

[EricM]

Here's a couple Rene, it's agreat filter at the right time of day.

 

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/b-y_polarizer.shtml

 

http://www.photosig.com/go/photos/browse?sort=rating-d

 

http://www.google.ca/search?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial_s&hl=en&q=cokin+blue+yellow+polarizer&meta=&btnG=Google+Search

[EricM]

When do you go, Rene?

[brambor]

Leaving August 15

Returning August 25

[ronald_moravec1]

I`m an Astia guy as I dislike high contrast and color saturation. But match the slides you did before at the start of the project.

[sprouty]

Maybe it's just me but I can't get good skin tone with Velvia. Of course it could be that I just have too many ruddy-faced friends? I say Provia or Astia.

[icuneko]

Ask yourself which is more important: accurate skin and scenic hues or color saturation. The latter with Velvia may be appealing but not accurate. I too hiked NW Wyoming many years ago and shot with Kodachrome 64 (using a Rollei 35S and the Sunny 16 Rule). Very accurate colors and skins tones, though none were close-up portraits, just full-length or more. Even now the slides transport me back there. Like being there again. Almost uncanny. And you could even underexpose K64 by 1/2 to 1 stop, and it'll saturate a bit. There is still much to be said for K64. And I never had a problem mailing it off for development.

[mark_amos]

I use Velvia and Provia, but I love Kodachrome. I really like Kodachrome 200 for projection because its got grain, but projects beautifully, capturing the lighting essence of scenes even in relatively low light. I can not attest to what kind of print can be achieved from it, but it is so versatile and beautiful. I drop my chromes at Walgreens, and it is picked up once a week and they send it off and I get it back in two weeks at $6.95 a roll. Please do not discount Kodachrome 64. It would be perfect for what you are doing.

[stuart_richardson]

Depending on how ruddy the complexions of your children are, Velvia could be fine or look

odd. If your family is more olive-skinned mediterranean complexioned, Velvia should be fine.

If they are pale English or Scandinavian/Germanic, the rosy cheeks might become too red. If

you are african or middle eastern, then again, it will not make a difference. For a saturated

film with good skin tones, E100G is hard to beat, but Provia 100F is also a superb choice.

[johnmarkpainter]

Shoot whhat you enjoy but as many other people have said...I would use Provia or Astia.

[del_gray]

Consider also that most of your shots of people will most likely be environmental portraits with a great deal of background and scenery in the shots. This will probably make the skin tones less important than usual. Of course if your final output is digital you could also use Provia and bump up the saturation and contrast in the scenery shots to velvia levels. Have a great trip.