Completely new to medium format - advice please

[grain elevator]

Thank you for a pointer for where to get the battery adapter. Do I need one for each battery or just the one for the bottom battery? There are some marks on the focusing screen, will this affect the image?

All this kind of adapter does is make sure the smaller modern battery stays centered. You can use an bit of cardboard to the same effect, cut a strip and wrap it around the batteries/ into the battery chamber. Usually the spring in a battery compartment is springy enough to make up for the little different in thickness between the different types of batteries, if not you can gently bend it a bit.

 

[hankchinaski]

The cat was shot on Portra 400.
Flowers were shot on Agfa Scala.

If you want to be absolutely blown away, try ortho 25 (it’s 25 iso, so add the price of a tripod and a release cable…)

You can train yourself to load film with an expired roll, I would categorize it as difficult as learning to open a can.

Re. Price of postage: maybe try a local shop and accept that it might take weeks and screw up the scanning - but - do talk to owners of shops, they might have wonderful tips for you, like the fact that they still develop b/w in house etc.

 

[GregY]

Keezly, the rewards of processing your own film in cost saving, time saving, consistency....... and learning far outweigh any disadvantages. I doubt whether it would cost you even 50 GB £ to get set up.

 

[MattKing]

All this kind of adapter does is make sure the smaller modern battery stays centered. You can use an bit of cardboard to the same effect, cut a strip and wrap it around the batteries/ into the battery chamber. Usually the spring in a battery compartment is springy enough to make up for the little different in thickness between the different types of batteries, if not you can gently bend it a bit.

Correct unless the meter is one of the items that relies on their being electrical contact between the side of the battery housing and the item being powered.

 

[grat]

I consider changing bags to be the worst thing ever, unless there is absolutely no option.

The photo tents are somewhat better.

 

[Keezly]

All this kind of adapter does is make sure the smaller modern battery stays centered. You can use an bit of cardboard to the same effect, cut a strip and wrap it around the batteries/ into the battery chamber. Usually the spring in a battery compartment is springy enough to make up for the little different in thickness between the different types of batteries, if not you can gently bend it a bit.

Ah, right, thank you! I thought it might be having some other effect.

 

[Keezly]

The cat was shot on Portra 400.
Flowers were shot on Agfa Scala.

If you want to be absolutely blown away, try ortho 25 (it’s 25 iso, so add the price of a tripod and a release cable…)

You can train yourself to load film with an expired roll, I would categorize it as difficult as learning to open a can.

Re. Price of postage: maybe try a local shop and accept that it might take weeks and screw up the scanning - but - do talk to owners of shops, they might have wonderful tips for you, like the fact that they still develop b/w in house etc.

Sadly there are no local shops: the nearest to here are over an hours drive away. The only place to buy film, possibly is a chemist, but as I haven't been in any of the local ones I don't know. As for the tripod, I already have one, and the camera came with a release cable! The gentleman that gave me the equipment was so generous in his gift! Thanks for the info on the film. Is this the Ortho one you mean as I notice that other companies also call film Ortho: https://analoguewonderland.co.uk/collections/all/products/rollei-ortho-film-120-b-w-iso-25

 

[Keezly]

Keezly, the rewards of processing your own film in cost saving, time saving, consistency....... and learning far outweigh any disadvantages. I doubt whether it would cost you even 50 GB £ to get set up.

Thanks everyone for the tips on processing and what to buy. I think I will do a couple of films via developer and then at least I know what I am aiming for when developing.

 

[Keezly]

The cat was shot on Portra 400.
Flowers were shot on Agfa Scala.

If you want to be absolutely blown away, try ortho 25 (it’s 25 iso, so add the price of a tripod and a release cable…)

You can train yourself to load film with an expired roll, I would categorize it as difficult as learning to open a can.

Re. Price of postage: maybe try a local shop and accept that it might take weeks and screw up the scanning - but - do talk to owners of shops, they might have wonderful tips for you, like the fact that they still develop b/w in house etc.

Just looking at the old roll of film that came with the camera and that is 160vc Portra. What does the vc stand for?

 

[Sirius Glass]

Just looking at the old roll of film that came with the camera and that is 160vc Portra. What does the vc stand for?

VividColor with more saturated color. At that time there was NC, NormalColor, VC, VividColor, and UC, UtraColor. I have a stash of UC in 35mm and 120 that I ran around Los Angeles buying up all that I could to keep the hoarders from getting it. The UC is safely stored in my freezer and some of it will be used in Kauai soon.

 

[Keezly]

VividColor with more saturated color. At that time there was NC, NormalColor, VC, VividColor, and UC, UtraColor. I have a stash of UC in 35mm and 120 that I ran around Los Angeles buying up all that I could to keep the hoarders from getting it. The UC is safely stored in my freezer and some of it will be used in Kauai soon.

Of course, and so obvious now you explain it! Thank you.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Of course, and so obvious now you explain it! Thank you.

Only if you have been around long enough, but if not then one needs to learn the secret handshake.

 

[Keezly]

Only if you have been around long enough, but if not then one needs to learn the secret handshake.

 

[hankchinaski]

Yes, that’s the ortho (orthocromatic) I was talking about.

My experience with Kodak film (this really changes from person to person, you need to try for yourself:

- portra 160: quite strange color rendering, but skin tones are perfect. if you are doing portraits, you will get a “modern” or “minimalist” or “neutral” look. I have no use for it.

- portra 400: balanced, saturated. It can warm up winter scenes. In my opinion, it does not render scenes in the southern emisphere well - it should be very nice in the UK, winter or summer.

- gold: as saturated as portra 400, but shifted toward gold, warm tones.It will make your photos “happy”. I load it when I go on vacation and cannot get Fuji film.

- ektar: portra 400 on LSD. Quite unrealistic. Sometimes I use it at the seaside.

My personal preference is Cinestill and Fuji.

 

[Moose22]

One other thing related to reading the manual. The lenses for Bronica ETR (and the other modern Bronica SLRs, SQ and GS) all mount/dismount the opposite way from what you expect. They are righty-loosey, not lefty-loosey. Like Nikon SLRs, and unlike nearly all other cameras (with a few exceptions). This is related to the lens cocking mechanism, IMO. Just do it their way and nobody gets hurt.

LOL -- You just gave me a revelation.

Been shooting 35mm SLRs on and off for freaking ever. Since I was 6 or 7 years old and my dad showed me how to use the leicameter on his camera.

And I have an ETRSi that I absolutely love. One of the best bang for the buck lens lineups around right now. Never once thought it was backwards. But I used my Jr High teacher's F2 in 1981, various other Nikons from 1990 to today.

Likewise, I never changed the lens on my dad's Leica or the other cameras I was allowed to use when in school (I vaguely recall the art class had K1000s, around 1981-82, but I was allowed to use the F2). My other MF is a C330 which is two lenses on a plate. Literally nothing that twists in but the Nikons and the ETR.

Last year I got my M3 and thought: Oh, that goes on backwards!

40 years I've had the distorted view of the world. But for me the ETR series goes in just like I expect.

 

[Keezly]

Yes, that’s the ortho (orthocromatic) I was talking about.

My experience with Kodak film (this really changes from person to person, you need to try for yourself:

- portra 160: quite strange color rendering, but skin tones are perfect. if you are doing portraits, you will get a “modern” or “minimalist” or “neutral” look. I have no use for it.

- portra 400: balanced, saturated. It can warm up winter scenes. In my opinion, it does not render scenes in the southern emisphere well - it should be very nice in the UK, winter or summer.

- gold: as saturated as portra 400, but shifted toward gold, warm tones.It will make your photos “happy”. I load it when I go on vacation and cannot get Fuji film.

- ektar: portra 400 on LSD. Quite unrealistic. Sometimes I use it at the seaside.

My personal preference is Cinestill and Fuji.

Many thanks for the explanation. The gentleman that gave me the camera showed me some photos he had taken with it and one was a colour photo that did have a strange colouring so perhaps that was with 160, especially as that was the unopened roll that came with the camera. I had put the colouring down to the fact that it was taken in a mine, but perhaps it was just the film.

 

[MattKing]

I had put the colouring down to the fact that it was taken in a mine, but perhaps it was just the film.

It was the mine.
hankchinaski's observations are probably more subtle than the problems you would see as a result of the sort of lighting you would find in a mine.
FWIW, I much prefer the various Kodak colour emulsions to almost anything I see from Fuji.
Portra 160 in 6x4.5 and interesting light:

 

[Keezly]

It was the mine.
hankchinaski's observations are probably more subtle than the problems you would see as a result of the sort of lighting you would find in a mine.
FWIW, I much prefer the various Kodak colour emulsions to almost anything I see from Fuji.
Portra 160 in 6x4.5 and interesting light:
View attachment 317632

Ah, yes, definitely not the sort of colour I saw in the photograph. Thank you for the example.

 

[hankchinaski]

Just to be clear: these are all professional emulsions and will give wonderful results, but I look for special atmospheres so I make these distinctions.

Plus, when shooting portraits, I usually go straight for b/w film, so my judgement applies more to non-portraits.

This is an example of Fuji Acros, expensive but…

 

[lxdude]

One other thing related to reading the manual. The lenses for Bronica ETR (and the other modern Bronica SLRs, SQ and GS) all mount/dismount the opposite way from what you expect. They are righty-loosey, not lefty-loosey. Like Nikon SLRs, and unlike nearly all other cameras (with a few exceptions). This is related to the lens cocking mechanism, IMO. Just do it their way and nobody gets hurt.

And the aperture ring and focusing ring turn the same direction as the Nikon lenses. Makes it easy to go back and forth.

 

[Keezly]

Just to be clear: these are all professional emulsions and will give wonderful results, but I look for special atmospheres so I make these distinctions.

Plus, when shooting portraits, I usually go straight for b/w film, so my judgement applies more to non-portraits.

This is an example of Fuji Acros, expensive but…

Thank you for the extra example. I have been asking round to see if there is anyone locally that shoots medium format so that I could see images in person as I had been thinking about the influence of monitors on images posted online. Hopefully I will find someone. Thanks for your help.