Do You Still Shoot Film?

[The Fox]

I know, I make lots of polls that go no where, but I have been wondering this for a while. I still shoot lots of film, and now I shoot more with my new mamiya. How many others are there that still shoot either black and white or color films?
Nick

[Colorblinded]

I have not really shot much film since switching to digital over three and a half years ago with my 1d MK II. That's not to say I wouldn't like to, but for color photography and with my color vision, I find digital to be a lot easier to work with.

I would love to set up a darkroom and get back to B&W photography and there really is nothing quite like a 4x5 transparency or negative.

[PhotoJourno]

Yup. A fellow POTNer traded an Elan for a Lens, and so I always have a few ILFORD rolls in the bag, and the camera standing by. If I want artsy fartsy Black and White, nothing beats the feel of film. Or so I tell myself.

[CyberDyneSystems]

Poll fixed.. ;)

[The Fox]

Thanks for that...
Nick

[The Fox]

Also, I assume that you moved this to the proper section, thanks for that.
Nick

[Persephone]

The only time where I ever shot film on a regular basis was in my H.S photography class, and since then I've just not bothered...digital is just too easy, shots come out perfectly, and i can use Photoshop to make them black-and-white.

[bsaber]

I just got an Elan II a few weeks ago and been going back to shooting film occasionally for fun. Been shooting film since high school with my AE-1 and just missed film so went to keh.com and got the Elan for ~$40.

[sjones]

Only film. As the owner of a 350D, I got tired of waiting for an affordable digital rangefinder and an affordable full frame DSLR. Then, when I saw the results of Tri-X compared with my digital monochrome conversions, that was it for digital.

[DrPablo]

I had gone to almost exclusively film (MF and LF) until we had a baby, now I shoot a lot with my DSLR again (all in JPEG format) because there are so many moments to capture and it's hard to "craft" a winning shot from an infant.

What kind of Mamiya did you get?

[Colorblinded]

Only film. As the owner of a 350D, I got tired of waiting for an affordable digital rangefinder and an affordable full frame DSLR. Then, when I saw the results of Tri-X compared with my digital monochrome conversions, that was it for digital.For B&W I still do prefer the look of film for sure. No problem ditching film for color in most cases however it does still have its place from time to time. I just don't shoot it and I must say I don't miss the scanning, etc.

[Mike R]

I don't have a reason to go back to film. Digital gives me everything film gave me and more. I now feel that I have greater control over my prints since I didn't have a film darkroom but now I have a digital one. The control I have when I convert an image to B&W is great.

[kevin_c]

I still shoot around a couple of rolls a month, mainly Fuji Provia 100F or 400X (colour transparency) or Ilford Delta 100 or 400 (b&w).

I'm just sending off 2 x rolls of 100F as we speak!

[primoz]

I still do, but nowadays only for fun... unfortunately. I still think it feels nicer to get slide film back and see results, then just press preview button on camera. But unfortunately in my job, time is something what matters, so noone wants to wait for hour for slides to get developed :)

[Sorarse]

Not since switching to digital. My PS skills aren't up to much, but they're much better than my darkroom skills ever used to be!

[The Fox]

I don't have a reason to go back to film. Digital gives me everything film gave me and more. I now feel that I have greater control over my prints since I didn't have a film darkroom but now I have a digital one. The control I have when I convert an image to B&W is great.
Reason that I still shoot it is because FF is nothing compared to 6x7. I want to/ sometimes need to capture the most detail possible and medium format is still the best way to go slr wise.
Nick

[Ladylynn]

If I could find a spot in my house and the money for my own darkroom, I'd shoot film B&W in a heartbeat. Last time I pulled my film cameras out, I discovered dead batteries and I haven't got around to replacing them. :o

[jmcder53]

i still like film. you got more exposure latitude IMO. alot of times when i shoot digital seems like loss of detail in shadow and/or highlights. maybe same issues with film just not good enough with film in photoshop to do a true compairson.
on that note, i'm gonna try to shoot 2 rolls of film, with as close to identical settings as possible, send one to the local lab i use, and another to a lab that i've only gotten digital prints from. i shot some of some snow back in the winter, finally got around to getting them developed, but had them put on a cd at hi res rather than 4x6 proofs. seemed to be a bit of noticeable grain, mostly where areas were slightly underexposed.

[DocFrankenstein]

I'm all film. Digital is still in its infancy.

[tim]

I've never shot film with an SLR... just an old P&S. All my SLRs have been DSLRs.

[Jon Foster]

It's been several years since I used my film body and I don't really have plans to go back. My son uses my film SLR now for fun and he's getting ready to take a year of photography in school where he'll be using it too. About the only other thing I may do with the film body is take some IR shots to see what we can get, but I've been planning that for a long time now...

Jon.

[DocFrankenstein]

I've never shot film with an SLR... just an old P&S. All my SLRs have been DSLRs.
You should try it sometime, if you still shoot for fun and not business.

[randomlinh]

I do for fun. Recently got and RF... but I'm finding it's not my cup of tea. I'll go back to my K1000 soon for film. It's just busted at 1/1000, but I can deal w/ ND filters =)

I mostly only shoot b&w film though, so I can develop it myself easily. That is part of why I shoot actually. I never did really shoot a lot until digital. So it's somewhat a fake nostalgia for myself, heh

[sjones]

For B&W I still do prefer the look of film for sure. No problem ditching film for color in most cases however it does still have its place from time to time. I just don't shoot it and I must say I don't miss the scanning, etc.

If I shot color, and for some cosmic reason, I was only allowed to use a 5D for color shots from now until my final departure (repairs and parts provided, for the camera, not me), I would have few qualms.

For black & white, however, I would miss the grain (the very thing that drives other to digital). And then there is the tonal depth…

The scanning can be cumbersome, but the process of shooting film and the results attained offset any drawbacks. As a hobbyist, I have time to muck about with it all, so few external pressures exist to influence my approach.

When I shot with the 350D, a typical weekend could garner between 75 and 200 shots (which is still low compared with others on this site), and now it takes me three to four weeks just to go through three rolls of film. Part of this is due to film's parsimonious demands, but also to my own changing standards, whereby, just before lifting the camera to my eye, I am increasingly saying "so what, move on."

[elysium]

I love shooting film. Usually Iford ISO400 black and white. Just love the dynamic range on the prints and something I cannot seem to get right via PP in the same way. Can get close results but just not the same.

[The Fox]

I shall not let this thread die at 26 replies.
Nick

[JDB]

I like shooting medium and large format film every once in a while. I have to shoot digital for my day job, and I work both days most weekends (weddings, events, etc), also 100% with digital. Shooting MF or 4x5 just makes things a little more interesting when I actually get a chance to shoot for myself.

[neil_g]

i break out my OM-20 occasionally, takes a lovely photo. must get it out more often..