My first time using slide film - advice please

[silverscape]

I got a roll of Velvia 100. This is my first time trying slide film, so I really need some advice. If the weather is good

tomorrow, I'm going to try to go up to the mountains to get some pictures, and maybe try some interesting pictures

in my neighborhood. I've heard that slide film is harder to use than regular print film, so can anyone give me some

tips? When is the best time to shoot, if I can't get the exact right exposure, is it better to error on the side of

overexposure or underexposure? Anything would be helpful.

 

I know this sounds crazy, but I'm going to load it in my Argus C4. It's in great condition, and I think it really is the

best 35mm camera I have right now.

 

And here's the other funny thing. When I finally shoot it and get it developed, I'm going to look at it with a slide

viewer, and then I'm going to get a slide projector. I know some people scan slides, but I want to see it on a

projector. If you're going to do something the "old school way," you might as well do it right. How much does

anyone want to bet that I will actually get my friends to look at slides? :)

 

But yeah, I definitely need advice since I've heard and read here that slide film is not as forgiving as print film. I'm not

looking for anything "perfect" since it's my first time, but I just want to get acceptable results.

[SCL]

Meter for the highlights rather than shadows...underexposure gives a more saturated image.

[machts gut]

Welcome to the wonderful world of slide photography, Chris.

 

Your camera is old and although you say it's in great condition you don't know how acurate the shutter is. So you have to get to know it. Take a light meter with you and a note book, where you write down all exposure dates of your photos. Try different exposures of the same picture -1/0/+1. At home with your slides you'll see how "your film" and "your camera" react. In general slide film reacts positive to underexposure (saturated colours) and negative to overexposure (blown highlights). But films react different. With Velvia, you choose a Diva. With the precise exposure (which needs experience) it gives sharp, highly saturated slides. With the wrong exposure the film is one of the least forgiving. For a beginner I would suggest to start with either Kodak Elitechrome or Fuji Sensia. Both are more forgiving, but are still very fine films. Personally I like Elitechrome more, because it is slightly warmer, but that's personal preference and has nothing to do with quality.

 

Stefan

[garethspics]

Chris

 

Welcome to the world of slides! If you get it right there is nothing like a projected slide. You can usually make a good guess for the exposure on a sunny day. There is a rough rule of thumb called Sunny 16 which means on a sunny day you set the aperture to f16 and the shutter to the ISO of the film, in your case 100 for Velvia. Of course any combination to give the correct exposure will work, eg 1/200 at f11. I find in the UK that sunny 11 is a bit closer to the mark ( maybe it's darker over here). When you project the slides you will soon find out how accurate the shutter is. As they get older, shutters tend to slow down so you may notice some over exposure. As previously recommended, take notes with each shot.

[silverscape]

Thanks, guys. I'm definitely excited to try it.

 

Gareth, I'm definitely familiar with the "Sunny 16 Rule." I have some experience with print films already - color and

black and white film. I develop B&W film and pictures myself. I've even gotten to the point now that most times I

don't need a light meter! I just judge the light and guess, and I usually get good results. (Although I still tend to

underexpose too much once in a while). I just read that slide film was less forgiving with exposure than print film.

But I'm anxious to try it. It seems like slight underexposure might be better sometimes? I do that with print film

because it does seem to help the colors a little bit...although everyone tells me I shouldn't underexpose color print

film.

 

Here, where I live in southern California, it's more like the "Sunny 22" rule! The light is getting softer and sun is much

less intense as we get later in Fall (perfect for landscape photos). But I'm sure it's still a lot brigher than the UK. It's

brighter than most of the US, for that matter. The rest of the country has already been in fall for a while, but it's just

barely starting to get cold here and leaves are just starting to change color and fall. The seasons tend to change

slower here.

[Robert_Lai]

Slides in general want exact exposure. Since you're not entirely sure how accurate the Argus' shutter speeds are, you may wish to bracket

in 1/3 stop intervals and then look at the final slides to see which settings gave the best results. Most older leaf shutters which haven't

been serviced recently tend to run slower than the marked speed, so you may need to rate the film at a higher effective ISO setting on

your meter (e.g. 160 instead of 100 ISO) when you've found out which brackets give the best results.<p>I use an incident light meter, but

many people use a reflected light meter (preferably spot) and measure the darkest areas as well as the highlight areas to see if detail will

remain in these areas. If the differences are within 5 f/stops, you'll capture the details. If you are close enough, flash outdoors will help to

fill in the shadow areas. It's for that reason that I keep a flash on my camera almost all of the time.

[rainer_t]

-- "I just read that slide film was less forgiving with exposure than print film."

 

Well, the slide is the final result. If you want it "right", you got to expose it right. Whereas with print film

(B&W as well as color), the negative isn't the final result. Errors in exposure can still be corrected when

exposing the negative on paper. Obviously, this is not the case for slides.

 

Also (as already mentioned), don't overexpose a slide. Overexposed parts become completely clear in the developed

slide. They have no structure at all in them, whereas overexposed parts of a negative/print film still have some

usefull

information stored. Slightly underexposed slides can look really nice (saturation of the colors is bigger), but

you eventually need a projector with a stronger bulb.

 

My personal rule of thumb is, that you should get a slide exposed within a span of +1/3fstop to -2/3fstop

(slightly overexposed to a bit more underexposed). If the exposure is outside of these borders, the slide is

usually useless.

 

-- "But I'm anxious to try it."

 

Why, just note down what you did. As said, take more than one shot (with different exposures) and see how the

results are.

[stephen_schoof1]

If after a couple rolls you decide to pursue slides, get a standardized light box so you can accurately judge your

exposures and color balance. As everyone else has said, bracket your exposures. Personally I have not found the

sunny 16 rule terribly useful because of so much variation in natural light, hazy vs clear weather, reflectiveness of

different surfaces, etc, not to mention that the middle of a sunny day when the rule applies is often one of the worst

times to be making images.

 

Also don't give up if you don't like Velvia 100. I've shot slides for nearly 20 years and find that film difficult to shoot

due to its high contrast and sometimes bizarre color response (especially with reds). Velvia 50 is the one you want

for that 'classic' Velvia landscape look.

[randall_pukalo]

Congratulations! Wecome to the awesome world of slide photography. Getting that projector is going to be one of the best investments you have made in photography. Besides the fact that they can be found for next to nothing nowadays, a projected slide has no equal in either the digital or film realm. Enjoy!

[randall_pukalo]

Just make sure that your camera has a light meter that works decently, or bring another camera (digital point and

shoot maybe?) along that does, so you know what exposure to set. Slide has narrower lattitude than print film (but

more than digital in my experience). .Avoid over exposure, but dont get paranoid about shooting slide. It is not some

esoteric thing that only expert photographers can do, as some would have you believe. A simple Olympus Stylus

Epic or Zoom point and shoot film camera will even give you great results. Anything with a decent meter will, in fact.

So dont be afraid to try.

 

As for what to shoot, I highly suggest a few sunset/sunrise shots. Meter for the sky and let the foreground become a

black silhouette. Put the outline of something interesting in the frame, such as a tree, roof chimney, etc. and try to

keep no more than the lower 1/4 of the image composed of foreground (which will go jet black in the slide). Use AE

lock if your camera has it to lock in the exposure for the sky. If it doesnt, just make sure the reading isnt changing

too much when you recompose. Shots like this can turn even the most mundane neighborhood scenes into

awesome shots.

 

I myself got a few of these this morning before work. The nighborhood was unually foggy today, and I caught the

rising sun and fog together. cant wait to see the shots!

[craig_sander]

Be Careful Chris!

You may stop shooting print film for a while once you see the slides.

 

I shot negative film for my personal used for years before I started shooting slide film again. And once I did, I was hooked. I now shoot both slide and print film any time I got on a trip.

 

Yes, exposure needs to be more precise with slide film, and I didn't believe that until I started shooting it for myself.

I like to error on the side of underexposure, bad thats not the best for scanning. Overexposing slides makes the image appear really dull and desaturated.

 

You'll also have to see for yourself which films handle over/under exposure better.

So difinately bracket. You'll notice a difference in half stops way more than you would using print film.

[d_f11]

Learn to use a polarizing filter.

[robert lee]

Take along a compact digicam. The brightness range these things can record is small, just like Velvia. Look at the histogram on the digicam. It will give you an approximation of what can be expected shooting the same scene on Velvia. Chances are if you blow out on the digicam "polaroid", the same will happen on the reversal film.

 

If the shutter timing on the Argus is still reasonably accurate, the digicam is a good light meter substitute. In general, shooting slide film without accurate metering (and especially narrow dynamic range film like Velvia) will disappoint. In fact, you might seriously consider a more modern film camera, one with an electronically controlled shutter.

[patrick_mont]

Have you got the slides back yet??

[silverscape]

hi Patrick...no, sorry I just finished the roll yesterday. I'm going to send it to get developed (probably to Dwayne's Photo) tomorrow or Monday.

 

It was nothing special. I did take some pictures up in the mountains that should be interesting. But then mostly just shots around my neighborhood. Since this is my first time ever trying slide film, I'll just be excited to get anything. I've never seen what slides look like. It's going to be weird seeing film in a positive image.

[jhshelley]

<p>Chris</p>

<p>Any news on the new arrivals ?<br>

Have followed the thread and still waiting like an anxious parent.</p>

<p>Hope the slides arrived well and happy - if they did, life will never be the same - you'll be hooked. And if they didn't, hopefiully the determination will kick in to get them spot on the next.....</p>

<p>How are the results ?</p>