Film Choice


Film choice is much easier than you think. First you need to decide on print or slide films. If you plan on making prints or share your pictures with others by keeping them in albums, then print films are better choice. If you like to market your work or project your images, slides are the best way to go. Next, you need to decide on film speed known as ISO or ASA. Faster films are more sensitive to light and let you photograph in dim light by giving faster shutter speeds with slower lenses especially zooms, but they are less sharp and grainy than slower films. Generally speaking, you want the slowest possible film that gives you the fastest shutter speeds you need with your lenses. If you own fast lenses such as f-2.8 or faster models and work under normal conditions, then you can easily use ISO 50 films and take advantage of its sharper results. If you shoot fast action scenes like sports for instance, then ISO 200 or 400 might be the only way to go even if you own fast lenses. There is no right film for all situations. You will most likely use several different speed films for different subjects. The question is which film and which speed?

Film choice is a matter of personal taste. It doesn't really matter which brand or ISO you use as long as you are happy with the results. If you like the colors, sharpness, or grain of a certain brand, then you have found the perfect film. The best way to find the right film is by testing different brands. Slide shooters can do this easier than print film users. Slides are made inside the camera the moment you release the shutter. Print films must first be printed before they can be judged. Even after printing, it is difficult to judge the colors and sharpness of a film since the quality of the paper and the lab that printed the originals play a big factor, and it is very difficult if not impossible to judge the negative itself. Slides being the original and positive images, can quickly be evaluated. Run some tests by photographing the same object under different lighting conditions. Pick an object which includes several bright colors. Use different brand and ISO films. Also, test the films by photographing your favorite subjects (portraits, landscape, still-life, etc.). Take notes as you go along and write down shutter speeds, f-stops, time of day, weather condition, light direction, etc. Once you get the images back from the lab, compare the results. Check sharpness, colors, contrast, and grain. Now your choice is simple. Pick the ones you like most and those will be the perfect films for you.

It doesn't really matter if a certain brand film reproduced true to life colors. What matters is how you like the colors in your images. No film can match the subject real life colors. Some come close, but all films produce false colors. My most widely used film is Fujichrome Velvia. It produces bold unrealistic colors, and that is why I like this film. Others may prefer Kodachromes for their true to life colors. It is matter of personal preferences.

What about specialized films? You have seen films designed for portrait photography for instance. It is still a matter of personal taste. Fujichrome Astia for example, is designed for portrait photography. It produces more natural skin tones, but you can still take portraits with any other types of films as long as you like the results. The most important thing is testing different brands and learning their characteristic. Get to know your films and how each reacts under different conditions. No matter what type of camera or lenses you use, if you don't have the right film, you can't produce good images. Buy quality films and use slower finer grain types unless you have a good reason to use faster films, for instance, you need faster shutter speeds or want to create special effects by using grain in faster films.