cameras + film

[peter+lynne]

hi can anyone help me with the bewildering array of film for still cameras i
am a camcorder man myself but have just bought a camera nothing fancy 140 quid olympus zoom 800s and i need info on film most of my photos will be during the bright sunshine of orlando,so which speed and ultra,ultra gold and all that type any help??

thanks peter.

 

[Goofyish]

I always use Fuji Reala 100 iso film. It produces really good colour reproduction and has a very fine grain.

But any good 100 iso film (Kodak or Fuji) would do the job. Try and keep the film cool though, before and after exposure.

I would even take a few rolls of 200 or even 400 iso film. These are as good as 100 iso for normal size photos and give you a bit of extra exposure just in case it clouds over.

 

[peter+lynne]

thanks for your help,so am i right in thinking 100 speed is good for sunny days and 200 for duller days and 100 is good for enlarging,what about ultra and gold and suchlike are they just manufacturers ways of getting you to buy expensive film you dont need?

 

[BevS97]

I think unless you are taking night shots - fireworks, or using a zoom lens, you should be ok with 100 or 200. Basically, the smaller the number the smaller the grain, so you get a better resoultion, but you need more light to expose the film (this is my non techy understanding)
I used 400 for my trip, but I have the Olympus Mju Zoom with the very long zoom lens (I think it's 140 - so not sure what your 800 refers too, is it 80?). I really like the Olympus - we got some lovely photo's with it.

Bev

 

[Goofyish]

Just to expand on the film speed rating - 100 iso is ideal for sunny days. It gives good colour reproduction with fine grain (the light sensitive coating or emulsion on film is made up of tiny silver halide crystals. The smaller these crystals are the better the resolution of the film. The drawback of this is that the smaller the crystals the more light is needed.)
200 iso film is twice as sensitive to light than 100 iso and 400 iso is twice as sensitive as 200 iso etc....
The more sensitive the film is to light the larger the crystals - and so the film grain increases.
The colour is reproduced by having a series of dye layers built into the film structure. Different films and film makes have slightly different dyes, resulting in different responses to colour. Some films are especially designed for giving a good 'skin' colour and are ideal for portraits. Others are designed to give bold, bright colours in sunlight or dull weather - as in Kodak Gold, Ultra etc.

Note that the quality of the prints have as much to do with the quality of the processing as they do to quality of the original film.

 

[peter+lynne]

hi me again thanks for everyones help i am a bit more clued up now.
i have just been looking at the three films i bought with my camera and they are kodak max ultra iso 800. good or bad?
oh and the zoom on my olympus is 80mm.
thanks again everyone.

peter.

 

[Goofyish]

iso 800 film is ideal for low light situations or indoors. It may be too sensitive for outdoor shots in full sun though. Because of the high film speed you may notice increased grain - especially when enlarging the resultant prints. This is not always a bad thing though - visable grain can add an interesting effect to certain subjects

I would use this film for night shots or indoor shots. You may still need the flash though if it's really dark inside. It might be ideal for the Spectromagic Parade though