The Subject Is Photography

Discussion in 'Photos & Video' started by Bill Boggs, Dec 2, 2018.

  1. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    Who might offer serious advise on the topic of photography, film photography. I have a couple of digital cameras. They are like most digital cameras I have looked at and/or used. They lack the fine detail of a film camera. There may be on the market some digital cameras that can/could compete but they would be expensive, too expensive for my pocket book. I have an Olympus OM film camera and three good lenses. Digital photography has made this camera and these lens obsolete. Yet I read that some photographers still use their 35mm Nikon film cameras and their medium (120mm) format cameras. Does anyone on the forum still use film cameras?

    It may be one has to spend serious money up front to get a quality digital camera and that these old film cameras are indeed obsolete and useless.

    Of course this is not a life or death issue, but one of interest and curiosity for me. Comments appreciated.

    Post Script: Does anyone in Briton still use film? I see ads for film in both England and Germany.
     
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  2. Shirley Martin

    Shirley Martin Supreme Member
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    Is there any way to get film developed now? I have a 35 mm camera and several rolls of film that I have never used. I was taking a lot of pictures and bought a pack with a dozen rolls of film. The I bought my digital camera and started using only that.
     
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  3. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    Yes, there are a number of developers around the country. The only one I have contacted is the Dark Room in California. I've asked them to send me some postage paid mailers by email and looked over their web Page. There used to be one in Denver I used for slides and because I could get 12X8 inch prints made up and they were really good and reasonable. I don't know if they still exist. I'm going to check as soon as I remember their name or can find it. I'll let you know if I do. Should be one or two closer to your location. I've got a good film camera and some good lens and it seems a shame to depend on a mickey mouse digital when my old camera is here and available. It's a more complicated process. With a digital most of your cost is up front but with a film camera the cosrt is in the processing and the printing and getting that done is no longer easy and more dificult to get a digital disk to put them online. I just hate to let it lay here and go to pot. I don't know what's feasible; I'm trying to find out. Like a professional photographer and friend in west Texas said with these digitals started becoming available, "Digital make a professional out of everybody. That may be so but most of the output is__________. You fill in the b links. All this @Shirley Martin
     
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  4. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    The drugstores that used to develop them still do, although I don't know if they have places in their stores where you drop film off anymore. They may, I just don't know because I haven't looked.
     
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  5. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    CVS and Walgreen's all send the off to somebody and here in Oklahoma local personnel can never answer your questions and don 't really know much about it. The Dark Room is a bonofied processor. The Slideprinter which I used for a number of years has a new division to develop film called

    [​IMG]
    II'm checking on how active is the market and use of film photography. Thought some one on here might have someuseful information, @Ken Anderson
     
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  6. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    Of course, they're going to be sending it off. They've been doing that for quite some time. Unless you're in a large city, you aren't likely to find a brick-and-mortar film processing place because there aren't enough people using film anymore.
     
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  7. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    I Roger that. Heck, we could just drop off our film at Walmart. They might even provide a digital disc now days.
     
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    Last edited: Dec 2, 2018
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  8. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    I resisted digital for a while but I'd never go back to film. I like being able to take as many photos as I want to without spending a fortune in film and developing costs.
     
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  9. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    There's no doubt most people feel the same way and I suspect only professional photographers are the few serious users of film photography.
    I'm just mourning the fact I have12/15 hundred dollars worth of equipment sitting under my desk that's useless. I like digital. I use it. I bemoan I
    have a camera sitting on my desk with a 1:1 macro lens that will take a beautiful sunset or a good rendition of the eyeball of an ant. Anyway this
    s merely useless conversation and is no skin off anyone's nose. Like the old cameras, useless conversation on my part.
     
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  10. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    Oh, I do know what you mean, but I don't believe in useless conversation.
     
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  11. Cody Fousnaugh

    Cody Fousnaugh Supreme Member
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    We love both of our digital cameras as well as taking some photos with our iPhones. Have a cheaper small digital that we bought on a Christmas Sale at Sears. It's a descent digital, for such a low sale cost, and we use that one on our boat. Don't want to take our expensive Canon PowerShot SX530 on our boat and accidently drop into the water.

    I do all of our photo processing, from our iPhones and digitals, at home on our computer. Been doing that since we got our first digital in 2001.
     
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  12. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I'm trying to decide if I want to buy a new digital camera. I've had my old one (Canon Power Shot SX260 HS) for years and taken lots of pics, but never learned much beyond the basics. I've started using it more since there are tons of critters and other country scenery here, and am just beginning going through the lengthy manual. The primary reason I'm considering replacing it is the limitations on its zoom capabilities. It has a 20x optical zoom (high quality) and then a 60x digital zoom (marginal quality.) The new models have 50x optical zoom.

    The long-distance pics I've tried to take with my 20x optical zoom suck...the 60x digital zoom (for 80x total) really washes out. I've tried taking a number of long-distance pics, most skittish birds perched at the end of my field. Other than that, the thing works fine. But if I'm gonna take the time to in-depth learn, I'd rather not do it if I think I'll be upgrading soon and start the learning curve all over.

    Part of my hesitation is that my current camera has good reviews all over the web. I read about the "upgraded" models and people often complain about screen quality and how slow the thing is to recover in between shots...I don't have that issue with my camera. Plus I'm not a camera guy. I might buy something based on superficial features (like zoom) and end up downgrading the quality/specs of the lens, or something stupid like that. Mostly what I want to upgrade is the optical zoom specs.

    Here's my camera on Canon's website. Can anyone recommend a mid-line camera of like-quality and a better than 20x optical zoom? Maybe I'll send Canon an email and ask their advice. I'm still on the fence as to whether or not I really need/want to replace this. It sure would be nice to take clear long-shots...but it's not gonna change my life for the better.
     
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  13. Faye Fox

    Faye Fox Veteran Member
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    I live in a small town, less than 25K, and we still have a place that develops film in 60 minutes.

    I rarely use my Canon Rebel XTi. I have four optical stabilizer lenses for it. I leave the 200X on it so I will be ready in case a distant interesting subject appears with a limited time frame. I used to carry it on my walks, but rarely was there anything that I couldn't capture with my cell. With the big lens, it is front-heavy and not a lot of fun to carry.

    My favorite, but probably the least interesting to most, is the 2007 solar eclipse that I was in a prime spot to capture.

    While digital has opened a new world for photography, it has diminished the fine art of knowing how to get a great photo with just one shutter click.
     
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  14. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I thought that the technology for taking a bunch of pics in rapid succession with just one touch of the button preceded digital. I would think that the photography version of Spray & Pray is what killed it as an art form...or was that only in non-film cameras?

    And I would love to see your eclipse pics. Where were you?
     
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  15. Faye Fox

    Faye Fox Veteran Member
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    Mid central Oregon August 21., 2017 <<<<<<<<< 4 years ago this very day!

    2017 Or Eclipse.jpg
     
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