Film photography

les1

Member
Feb 1, 2007
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After having had a few digital cameras and never got on with them I want to go back to using film cameras and I'm looking around for a good Nikon FE2. Is it possible to get 35mm film, including high ASA and B&W. And also are there any good developing/printing places left?
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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My best friend worked at Kodak. He and I were both into film photography and when digital came on he got into it very heavily. Much more than I ever will. As a part time gig he does weddings, sporting events and big concert photography. He has gotten quite good at it as a part time professional.

BUT, he found that he needed to move up to a very high end model of camera (in his case a Canon) before he was "satisfied" with the results like he would have been with film.

That said, he recently got the bug for larger format film cameras and does some buying and selling as well as taking pictures using film. He now works for a company from Taiwan that has products for scanning of documents and film, so he can take any negative or positive image into the digital domain when needed. He is probably one of the top experts in the world on that topic.

I am guessing you are looking for DR based film processing, but if you have further questions on what is still possible, I can find more out from my friend.
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
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Polanco in Santo Domingo, maybe. They are on Avenida Mella near the Mercado Modelo Tel. (809) 689 3727.
 

les1

Member
Feb 1, 2007
310
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Yes film and processing. Scanners are pretty high reg these days so making a print digital should be pretty straight forward. Scanning colour negatives is a bit more complex and needs colour correcting, slides are pretty straight forward with a photograph scanner.
Anyway, Yes both film and processing. especially fast and B&W film.
I tried a Nikon SLR and hated it. Why do they make them so ugly and clunky and f..ck..g big. Also tried a Lumix G3 system camera which I liked better but didn't have the quality. the only digital camera I think I may like is the Fuji x Pro, styled like a rangefinder and with analogue controls and apparently great in low light. But it too expensive at around ?1500 with a couple of lenses.
 

CaptnGlenn

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Mar 29, 2010
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for b/w processing, I'm guessing you'll have to do it yourself. even before the (largely) demise of film based photography for mass market, b/w processing was hard to find ... and quality b/w processing was only available through professional labs and insanely expensive, and still not as good as you could do for yourself. if you're serious, putting together a workable darkroom is perfectly doable and worth the effort for serious shooting.
 

les1

Member
Feb 1, 2007
310
15
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I suspected that may be the case, re B&W processing. Still no film suppliers apart from possibly Polanco?
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
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Why not phone Polanco and check? - My husband, a professional photographer, recommends them because they catered for users of film after most switched to digital.
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
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thanks, chiri. you made me learn some new words in spanish today :) revelado de las peliculas fotograficas...
i called the phone you posted and it's a private number now, btw.
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
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It's "rollos" rather than "pel?culas." Maybe Polanco have gone out of business - all I could find online was the Yellow Pages entry.
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
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see, i learn something more, rollos.

the lady who picked up a call politely said it was a long time since it does not belong to the business...
 

Hernandez

Banned
Feb 9, 2009
875
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I shoot film but I send my films to a lab in US for processing and scanning. I can process films at home in my kitchen sink, but it takes a lot of time if it's more than 2 films, and I need professional scanning anyway.