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  #11  
Old 21st January 2021, 05:37 PM
Terry S Terry S is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Quendil View Post
I may have to set up another temporary darkroom until I can get my proper one built.

David
I reckon that the majority of us on here have been there at least once in our lives David.

Mine was the 'cubby hole' just outside the front door, and partially under the stairs. My uncle put an electric plug in there for me. There was no heating of any kind and my initial equipment was re purposed, but I had great fun in there for a good few years.

Terry S
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  #12  
Old 21st January 2021, 05:52 PM
John King John King is offline
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I agree with what has said before and in my mind it is composed of many members of the Photrio Forum. The mess about with all sorts of witches brews and when it goes wrong they turn to the keyboard asking where they went wrong.

Top of the table of catastrophes at the moment appear the be processing colour negatives and prints in developer that is too cold or too warm or for too long or not long enough, then they wonder why the colour balance is way off the chart.

The firms that make this stuff will have spent a lot of time effort and money in testing their chemicals and film so that we can get the optimum results. But no, they think they know better and make a right B+++s Up with it and blame the materials.

The with B&W they develop Tri X in Rodinal and complain when they get grain the size of pebbles and too dense to print easily - and they complain!

I wonder if they actually spend all their time in a darkroom like a mad scientist trying to make the elixir of life for perfect pictures and when they do take photographs, it is with a digital camera. A lot of questions are just simply pointless. I feel like just shaking my head and shuffle away. Oddly enough most of their members seem to be from over the pond...........Read into that what you like.

Last edited by John King; 21st January 2021 at 05:56 PM.
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  #13  
Old 21st January 2021, 06:56 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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I don’t think there’s anything wrong with newcomers trying a selection of equipment and materials. They are coming into film photography at a very different time from most people here. For many of the older members, one camera and lens was likely all that could be afforded. It certainly was for me until relatively recently. I know we are seeing an increase in equipment prices at the moment, but for several years it was possible to acquire great gear for very little outlay. Its no wonder that the new generation of film photographers can own, and use several cameras.
I, personally, have always liked trying different films. For me, seeing all the different types in a well-stocked shop was a bit like going into a sweet shop. I would like to try them just to see what they were like. Nowadays, the shops are mainly online, but the temptation remains. I have around 4 B&W 35mm films in stock at the moment, and 3 C41, as well as various 120 and 4x5. I’m less interested in trying new developers, although I have 4 B&W types currently available.
I agree that limiting your variables can be a good approach, but a bit of variety can maintain interest.
The thing that annoys me when listening to, or reading posts from newcomers is the use of ‘non-standard’ language. Film photography, like many other disciplines, has a technical language of its own that has developed over many years. It helps photographers understand each other. So, my advice would be to acquire and read books about film which were written when film was the only photographic medium. That way the new photographer will learn the peculiarities of film photography much more quickly, and be able to converse with those who have been doing it for years.
I hope that doesn’t sound too grumpy!
Alex.


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  #14  
Old 21st January 2021, 07:45 PM
John King John King is offline
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I am well over the experiment stage with my photography. For B+W a medium speed film a proven developer (ID11 or Rodinal) and I can do what I want within my skills a capabilities. I like new darkroom materials such as the new Ilford MG5, that has made things easier.

Colour, well more or less the same. No slide film though, that is too expensive now.

It takes years to realise that with film photography, a lot of the skill needed for success is via experience, not the kit you own. In theory, although I rely upon my cameras meter almost exclusively you should be able expose a film with knowledge that you succeeded without outside help.

Someone starting now using just film has a long uphill struggle because the vast knowledge of active Photographic Society or club members was the fountain of knowledge for beginners. Today you would be struggling to find even one in even large clubs.

It is much the same with car drivers, they struggle to even check the oil and water, no mechanical knowledge. No matter how little you know can help at times.

Last edited by John King; 21st January 2021 at 07:49 PM.
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  #15  
Old 21st January 2021, 09:11 PM
Nat Polton Nat Polton is offline
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A big shortage of cash kept me from flitting from one product to another when starting out in the hobby.
A bottle of Johnsons Universal Developer for prints and negatives. Bottle of fixer and a packet of Ilford paper. Film was a bulk tin of Ilford FP3 and a loan of my brothers Fed 2 camera.
I didn't have the money to splash out in those days, but It made me confident in my developing and printing skills.
Simple beginnings served me well.

Cheers.
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  #16  
Old 21st January 2021, 09:32 PM
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skellum skellum is offline
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Some bedtime reading:
https://www.largeformatphotography.i...ic-bullet.html

A few years back I had a clear out and passed on some film I realised I was never going to use. I had built up a stock of things I knew I had to try- 35mm, 120 and 5x4. FP4, Delta 100, HP5, Fomapan, Fuji and Kodak colour neg and transparency in all sorts of speeds and flavours, Ilford SFX. Every one was purchased with the serious intent of trying something new, but two things were wrong. I simply didn't have time to dabble with so many things, and I realised that those photographers who made the most memorable images tended to have a recognisable style.
Working with fewer formats, fewer lenses, fewer films means you know the limitations of your materials better, but I suspect more importantly the photographer is less distracted by the process of deciding how and with what he will photograph his next project. I know a couple of painters, and their studios tend to be crammed with brushes, knives and paints. I wanted to see that as a model for photography: having a full and complete selection of tools meant you would be ready for any eventuality. In reality it didn't work for me, and on one occasion I found myself with 8 (yes eight) different cameras loaded and no idea what I'd been shooting with them.
I'm looking forward to something of a change in circumstances soon, and hope to become involved in photography again. Whether I can stick to it or not, my intention is to use mostly one 6x6 camera with HP5, but allow myself 5x4 when appropriate. One developer, one paper. Hopefully I can focus much more on content.

Those new to photography do need to experiment. Only by using a few different films can you decide what suits your vision. Something as simple as finding a camera which really fits your hands can make a huge difference in how confidently you work. I still remember seeing my first ever print from a 6x6 negative come out of the developer. What a revelation after shooting only 35mm, which had satisfied me right up to that moment.
Perhaps some folk actually take more pleasure from testing and experimenting than they do from the expressive side of photography, but I also suspect some of us (even after many years) can be seduced into trying some new film, or paper, because we've seen someone else's stunning results made that way.
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  #17  
Old 21st January 2021, 10:52 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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I have often decided to try new materials as a result of others success or recommendations. I have recently been working through a batch of Foma 200 35mm for that reason. I tried basic development, but have ended up rating it at 400 and over-developing. That approach has given me a new ‘look’ to work with.
I also have Delta 3200 in 120 waiting to try at night (there’s nothing moving here after dark at the moment), again because someone here mentioned it.
Alex


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  #18  
Old 21st January 2021, 11:24 PM
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MartyNL MartyNL is offline
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One of the things I've failed to do adequately is being scrupulous in note keeping at every stage of the photographic process.
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  #19  
Old 22nd January 2021, 05:36 AM
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Uwe Pilz Uwe Pilz is offline
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I have the feeling, that at least some of the newbies have their pleasure if they get an image at all. And not an exposition print.

They enjoy the old style process and that they get real images of it. There is nothing wrong with that. And I started there as a boy of 14 years in the seventies.
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  #20  
Old 22nd January 2021, 10:24 AM
John King John King is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nat Polton View Post
A big shortage of cash kept me from flitting from one product to another when starting out in the hobby.
A bottle of Johnsons Universal Developer for prints and negatives. Bottle of fixer and a packet of Ilford paper. Film was a bulk tin of Ilford FP3 and a loan of my brothers Fed 2 camera.
I didn't have the money to splash out in those days, but It made me confident in my developing and printing skills.
Simple beginnings served me well.

Cheers.
Spot on!
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