The Unofficial Official Photography Thread...

It's a long time since I've done any developing, 70's, film and developing by post wasn't cheap. So we took great care with every frame on Kodachrome 25 and 64. Finally three of us clubbed together and got some kit, but producing two A4 pictures correctly in colour was an all evening effort. With three people wanting to print pictures after a weekends photography, it soon led to frustration and claims of "It's my spare room, so I get first priority" that didn't last long!
Even now after 20yrs of digital, I'm still careful of just taking loads of shots. I mostly run the camera in manual mode as I'm in no rush for most things that I point the camera at. Editing, apart from crop is also a rare thing. I haven't used the a6400 in B&W yet but your photos have woken an old interest, when I used a large plate camera to take pictures of the same subject in B&W and then Polaroid sheet colour. The old lenses not being colour corrected gave a softening effect.
 
It's a long time since I've done any developing, 70's, film and developing by post wasn't cheap. So we took great care with every frame on Kodachrome 25 and 64. Finally three of us clubbed together and got some kit, but producing two A4 pictures correctly in colour was an all evening effort. With three people wanting to print pictures after a weekends photography, it soon led to frustration and claims of "It's my spare room, so I get first priority" that didn't last long!
Even now after 20yrs of digital, I'm still careful of just taking loads of shots. I mostly run the camera in manual mode as I'm in no rush for most things that I point the camera at. Editing, apart from crop is also a rare thing. I haven't used the a6400 in B&W yet but your photos have woken an old interest, when I used a large plate camera to take pictures of the same subject in B&W and then Polaroid sheet colour. The old lenses not being colour corrected gave a softening effect.
Thanks for the memories and thoughts and I guess one of the reasons to post here to to try and ignite some interest!
I’d very much like to see Some of your photos especially large format and plate! Something I’ve never used it done.
I only ever shot two rolls of K25 - and had them developed amongst the last batch before the last lab in the USA closed. With the rapid interest amongst youngsters in film photography who knows - someone may resurrect Kodachrome again!!
Many youngsters bored of smartphone and instagram snaps seem to be enjoying film a great deal and there seem to be new emulsions every few months!!
I usually mix both film and digital and choose what when I think appropriate or depending on how I feel. Budget is limited so still using an old 6MP Konica Minolta Dynax 7D dslr which truth be told I’m very happy with - like you I don’t just spray and pray and choose a decent shot amongst hundreds if not thousands as many people do. I’ll only presss the shutter when I’m 100% happy.
Lockdowns killed off my local lab in Walthamstow so now have to post film off to get slides developed - hence shooting more colour digitally and enjoying Film in B&W.
I took a punt with the Kodak Double-X film - relatively ok at £7 a roll. Also took a punt with using Diafine rather than my usual Rollei or Rodinal one shot stuff and pretty much blown away by the tonality and softness
Thanks again
 
Try Ektachrome 100.
I lost all my early stuff in a storage balls up in the 90's when I was working for Kodak, abroad on a digital imaging project, which brought in high speed scanner sensors for documents and then it was developed into camera sensors for the none military and industrial markets. I even remember telling the directors that this sensor will kill your core business and that photographic evidence is dead, due to editing being so much easier than film, with no original! Kodak then got caught infringing a Polaroid patent and were landed with a multi billion fine, that saw them sell off a few other arms of their businesses in 98. Shortly followed by the collapse of film sales in the new millennium. A great company to work for but too many comfortable directors asleep at the helm.
I see many large format cameras that were out of financial reach in my early days, going for beer money today! Such is the digital world of quick change. Might just check to see if Polaroid sheet film is still around 🤔
I sold my old Rollie 35 a few years ago, the one made with a solid brass body! And my Yashica mat 64 😪
I stopped posting films away, after one company lost three rolls shot on commission for Yamaha, by me, at Silverstone Pro am final lc350 class. I was asked to visit the place to see if I could recognise the package. When I arrived, an employee admitted seeing the films go through the machine, simply because it wasn't the usual subjects. When I talked to the manager, he was adamant the films never arrived despite the witness. Nearly lost it with him 🤬

Those older K/ Minolta sensors have great colour rendition and light sensitivity. More pixels isn't always better.

My pc did a balls up last month and I had to reload the system. Lost more pictures that hadn't been copied to other drives but nothing major. I also lost all my scientific papers that I had published in the last 14yrs but recovery is ongoing via the University.
 
Last edited:
Try Ektachrome 100.
I lost all my early stuff in a storage balls up in the 90's when I was working for Kodak, abroad on a digital imaging project, which brought in high speed scanner sensors for documents and then it was developed into camera sensors for the none military and industrial markets. I even remember telling the directors that this sensor will kill your core business and that photographic evidence is dead, due to editing being so much easier than film, with no original! Kodak then got caught infringing a Polaroid patent and were landed with a multi billion fine, that saw them sell off a few other arms of their businesses in 98. Shortly followed by the collapse of film sales in the new millennium. A great company to work for but too many comfortable directors asleep at the helm.
I see many large format cameras that were out of financial reach in my early days, going for beer money today! Such is the digital world of quick change. Might just check to see if Polaroid sheet film is still around 🤔
I sold my old Rollie 35 a few years ago, the one made with a solid brass body! And my Yashica mat 64 😪
I stopped posting films away, after one company lost three rolls shot on commission for Yamaha, by me, at Silverstone Pro am final lc350 class. I was asked to visit the place to see if I could recognise the package. When I arrived, an employee admitted seeing the films go through the machine, simply because it wasn't the usual subjects. When I talked to the manager, he was adamant the films never arrived despite the witness. Nearly lost it with him 🤬

Those older K/ Minolta sensors have great colour rendition and light sensitivity. More pixels isn't always better.

My pc did a balls up last month and I had to reload the system. Lost more pictures that hadn't been copied to other drives but nothing major. I also lost all my scientific papers that I had published in the last 14yrs but recovery is ongoing via the University.
Thanks for the reply! Working for Kodak ? Man!! Must’ve been a good experience and thanks again for the memories!
Posting films is a nuisance - hence me being upset when my local lab closed. Now I wait with baited breath!
Kodak Ektachrome e100vs was my favorite film. It’s been discontinued a while now but I have two precious rolls in the freezer! Kodak did re release Ektachrome e100 a few years ago and I like that a lot, I prefer it to the Fujichromes.
I recently bought two rolls of the motion picture stock a few examples of which I posted above. Many people are using kodaks motion picture colour negative film too.
It’s sad to see the demise of Kodak. Though they released some of the first full frame digital cameras and also made some cracking compact digital cameras (I’ve had a couple) they should’ve done what Fuji did but totally messed up - and as you said and confirmed - by the directors.
A Rollei 35! I’ve never used nor handled one but the higher end ones look like jewels. Beautiful things. Sad to see that Rollei are no more - after the demise of Rollei their tooling and factory was taken over by a management and employee buyout who were producing hand made Rolleiflex and Rollei 35 up until 2018 - the website is still up and you can see some of their cameras http://www.dhw-fototechnik.de/ now sadly all gone and sold off.
Here’s one of their Rolleiflex cameras and their Rollei 35’s
609A0ECB-E7DB-4AA3-8458-87B7DB069740.png
5BD81951-053A-45C3-B7AA-EE5F03BC32FF.jpeg
Talking of hard drive failure - I just backed up my stuff onto another external drive. I tend to make two back ups of digital photos just in case. Luckily with film we have hard copies !!
 
Back
Top