|
27
08
2008
|
Are 35MM SLRs not worth it? |
I am a photography student and I am looking for a 35mm new SLR that is not the canon T2 or K2? Have they all died and made way for the rest of the world to go digital? I cannot seem to find a new one anyplace. Is it worth it, Or should I not even bother with Film in 35mm format. I guess fils is still fine in medium and large format, but it has become impossible to find slrs in 35mm not used.
I too have just started a photography course and I'm now forced into buying a 35mm Film SLR(again). I did a course 5 years ago and had to use a film camera for darkroom developing and printing, after the course I didn't use it for 3 years and eventually traded it for a new lens for my Digital SLR. If you really have to get one then take the good advice given earlier and buy a secondhand camera with some good lenses and flash that you can carry over to a digital SLR system. The Canon EF range can be used on all their digitals as well as film slr. There are still plenty of secondhand 35mm film SLRs available in camera dealer shops and even cheaper at car boot sales and through the classifieds section of your local newspaper.
I disagree with comments that you need to understand "film" based concepts to learn photography. The reality is that film media is an outdated technology, the concepts remain the same (ie. light falls on to a focal plane within the camera body) and CMOS sensors are the latest form of focal plane and memory cards are the storage medium. The same concepts are present whether it is film or digital; Aperture f stops, ISO speed/sensitivity, Exposure time, DOF etc. are all present across both formats.
For processing purposes the computer has taken over from the chemicals, enlargers and darkrooms. Photoshop being the choice of many professionals in the modern digital darkroom. The ease and range of effects/manipulations that this gives is far beyond the reach of any domestic film darkroom. In addition, printer technology has also kept up to give us prints that rival and in some cases exceed the longevity of traditionally processed prints.
Learning Photography from using a DSLR is much more effective too, the metadata contained in digital files can easily be displayed alongside your images and will give you shooting info like aperture, shutter speed, iso, focal length, flash info, date and time etc. and this allows you to properly evaluate your efforts and learn from your mistakes. Of course, you could carry a pen and paper if you wanted to capture this info while shooting film but I suspect this would stiffle any creativity flow you might be enjoying and then to be left guessing what settings you used on that great picture you took last week or even worse where you went wrong on the shot that got away. Changing film for differing iso speeds mid-roll and carrying coolboxes to store your film in is also relegated to the past.
Digital has also moved into the realm of medium and large format too, Phase One, Leica and Hasselblad dominate with their digital backs and in the world of corporate and fashion photography where deadlines are soo critical digital workflow is the only way to go. The motion picture industry had no difficulty in making the transition to digital and embraced all that it could deliver, but for some reason people in stills photography still seem to yearn for celluloid, the darkroom and chemicals.
Press and sport photographers can now capture an image in countries almost anywhere in the world and instantly upload to their editors, or appearing moments later on newswires around the globe for sale.
The only downside to digital that I can see is also one of its strongest points, it allows users to shoot hundreds of shots and view them instantly on their computer screens. This tends to give rise to a "shoot anything that moves" style of photography, creating a huge store of dull boring shots that could have been taken by any 4 year old fresh out of kindergarten. Film on the other hand by nature (because of the expense of stock and processing), forced the photographer to think about and compose their shots accordingly. If film photography can teach you one thing it will be the self discipline of composing your shots, checking your focus and settings before you reach for the shutter release. You can still learn this with digital if you shoot raw format and use a small capacity memory card that fills up after 24 shots or so. After a few hours of reviewing and deleting poor shots in-camera you will soon get into the habit of checking your compositions before you press the release.
Terisu
August 31st, 2007 at 3:56 pm
Why not used? You can get some great bargains that way. Look into how much you have to spend for a used Nikon F100. It won't be near what you would have paid new, and that was an excellent camera! My daughter is using my old Nikon FM2, an all-manual camera that's over 20 years old. She just couldn't beat the price. I gave it to her.
References :
fhotoace
August 31st, 2007 at 4:04 pm
Well you may want to buy a used one until you figure out where you are going with photography.
Get a used Nikon or Canon 35mm with the lens you need for class and then when you are ready buy the digital SLR that matches the lenses you have. You should not have to pay more than a couple of hundred for the camera and lens.
Nikon F4's and newer and all Canon EOS bodies use the same lenses that the DSLR's made by those companies.
To get the most out of photography, you really do need to learn all about exposing, developing and printing from film
References :
Editorial, sports and glamour photographer
EE dude
August 31st, 2007 at 5:00 pm
Nikon still makes the F6 and FM10 brand new. I think Pentax might also still have a film SLR or 2 around. Too bad they stopped making the LXs though, those were seriously good cameras.
References :
tigerrrgrrl
September 1st, 2007 at 3:35 am
http://nikonusa.com/template.php?cat=1&grp=6&productNr=1689
This is a great camera. F6 is amazing but a little pricey. They are out there. Why not try used? Selection today is so limited that you may not find a camera/lens combo that suits you needs.
References :
Michael M
September 1st, 2007 at 2:56 pm
If you truly love photography and using film, don't give up. You can still find some places. Here's my favorite
http://www.samys.com
References :
maclover451
September 1st, 2007 at 8:36 pm
It is absolutely worth it to have an SLR 35mm. I have a Pentax K1000 that's 35mm (That I LOVE) and I used to have a Pentax KM, but it was stolen. I develop my own film and print it myself, and it's a lot of fun. Good brands are Pentax, Canon, Nikon, Leica, etc. Good luck.
References :
Derek N
September 2nd, 2007 at 5:39 pm
I too have just started a photography course and I'm now forced into buying a 35mm Film SLR(again). I did a course 5 years ago and had to use a film camera for darkroom developing and printing, after the course I didn't use it for 3 years and eventually traded it for a new lens for my Digital SLR. If you really have to get one then take the good advice given earlier and buy a secondhand camera with some good lenses and flash that you can carry over to a digital SLR system. The Canon EF range can be used on all their digitals as well as film slr. There are still plenty of secondhand 35mm film SLRs available in camera dealer shops and even cheaper at car boot sales and through the classifieds section of your local newspaper.
I disagree with comments that you need to understand "film" based concepts to learn photography. The reality is that film media is an outdated technology, the concepts remain the same (ie. light falls on to a focal plane within the camera body) and CMOS sensors are the latest form of focal plane and memory cards are the storage medium. The same concepts are present whether it is film or digital; Aperture f stops, ISO speed/sensitivity, Exposure time, DOF etc. are all present across both formats.
For processing purposes the computer has taken over from the chemicals, enlargers and darkrooms. Photoshop being the choice of many professionals in the modern digital darkroom. The ease and range of effects/manipulations that this gives is far beyond the reach of any domestic film darkroom. In addition, printer technology has also kept up to give us prints that rival and in some cases exceed the longevity of traditionally processed prints.
Learning Photography from using a DSLR is much more effective too, the metadata contained in digital files can easily be displayed alongside your images and will give you shooting info like aperture, shutter speed, iso, focal length, flash info, date and time etc. and this allows you to properly evaluate your efforts and learn from your mistakes. Of course, you could carry a pen and paper if you wanted to capture this info while shooting film but I suspect this would stiffle any creativity flow you might be enjoying and then to be left guessing what settings you used on that great picture you took last week or even worse where you went wrong on the shot that got away. Changing film for differing iso speeds mid-roll and carrying coolboxes to store your film in is also relegated to the past.
Digital has also moved into the realm of medium and large format too, Phase One, Leica and Hasselblad dominate with their digital backs and in the world of corporate and fashion photography where deadlines are soo critical digital workflow is the only way to go. The motion picture industry had no difficulty in making the transition to digital and embraced all that it could deliver, but for some reason people in stills photography still seem to yearn for celluloid, the darkroom and chemicals.
Press and sport photographers can now capture an image in countries almost anywhere in the world and instantly upload to their editors, or appearing moments later on newswires around the globe for sale.
The only downside to digital that I can see is also one of its strongest points, it allows users to shoot hundreds of shots and view them instantly on their computer screens. This tends to give rise to a "shoot anything that moves" style of photography, creating a huge store of dull boring shots that could have been taken by any 4 year old fresh out of kindergarten. Film on the other hand by nature (because of the expense of stock and processing), forced the photographer to think about and compose their shots accordingly. If film photography can teach you one thing it will be the self discipline of composing your shots, checking your focus and settings before you reach for the shutter release. You can still learn this with digital if you shoot raw format and use a small capacity memory card that fills up after 24 shots or so. After a few hours of reviewing and deleting poor shots in-camera you will soon get into the habit of checking your compositions before you press the release.
References :