first paid shoot using film only - some advice

[Nodda Duma]

Interesting, why everybody suggest Portra but not colour slides?

Portra is really good for skin tone. Don't want the bride to look like a saturated lobster.

 

[mweintraub]

Interesting, why everybody suggest Portra but not colour slides?

I did because slide film has very shallow latitude when it comes to proper exposure.

 

[blockend]

As the first respondent to the OP let me be clear. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with using film professionally, for some projects it can lend an aesthetic advantage that adds value which converts into new clients and hard cash. My alarm bells rang when ongakublue said, "last week I sold off all my digital cameras", followed by "my question is about colour film. I have only shot b/w so far", and "I can't afford and don't have time to do all the processing and printing/scanning myself. I must use the local photolab". Taken as a whole, I think we can be excused a certain incredulity, even while our sympathy remains undiminished.

When film was the only thing photographer's used, most large towns had fast turnaround professional labs who serviced the wedding and portrait businesses with high quality processing and client proofs. Unless you're very fortunate, the local photolab does not offer anything like that service. You might get a disc, I have no idea if that's okay with your client, or what plans you have if they want large prints. If you only "think" you'll get negatives back you need to make sure quickly. None of those issues would be a problem if you kept a digital camera and introduced film alongside.

We all have to start somewhere, my first job was a catwalk show with an OM1, 50mm lens and a very underpowered flash, but I came through it somehow. I hope you survive the shoot and you and the client are happy with the results. Professional photography is certainly not all about gear and technique, you may have a human touch that shines through in the images, but I would certainly shoot a test roll of a friend and give the lab a run through with your chosen film. Good luck!

 

[cuthbert]

Portra is really good for skin tone. Don't want the bride to look like a saturated lobster.

Do you think the people I shot look like lobsters? I get the "lobster effect" mostly with Ektar, even if I have to admit Fuji Pro is good with my skintone and eyecolour:

 

[macfred]

Do you think the people I shot look like lobsters? I get the "lobster effect" mostly with Ektar, even if I have to admit Fuji Pro is good with my skintone and eyecolour

Very nice !

--

More lobsters with FUJI Pro 400H :

family snapshot by macfred64, on Flickr

untitled by macfred64, on Flickr
and a Portra Girl :

;-) ( Portra Girl) by macfred64, on Flickr

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

Take a look at this car shooter out of LA.

http://petapixel.com/2015/09/30/bts-shooting-lifestyle-photos-for-jeep-on-35mm-film/#more-184037

 

[cuthbert]

Take a look at this car shooter out of LA.

http://petapixel.com/2015/09/30/bts-shooting-lifestyle-photos-for-jeep-on-35mm-film/#more-184037

I have a different esperience with Ektar...even Kodak says it's not ideal for complexion and recommends Portra.

A lot of people look like lobster but in the case of my complexion I look like somebody with a serious liver disease, that's an example:

Here I am in a pic taken with Portra in the same place, same lighting etc...of course lens and camera are different (Canon vs. Nikon):

Big difference, isn' it? Probably the model in the link being tanned doesn't suffer of the same problem.

 

[removed account4]

OP

good luck with your shoot,
i'd uise any fuji color film shoot it at box speed
and if you can get someone to hold a reflector ( or have one on a stand )
i'd use it, in open shade.

not sure if you cla'd your cameras when you bought them i would have
... since they were used, before i take anything out for a job ( yes i've been shooting professoinally since about 1986 )
i'd have taken the cameras out for a test drive to make sure the shutters all work as they are supposed to too.
and i'd have taken the test roll/s to the lab you intended to take the film to. i've done jobs where all the test rolls to the lab
looked PERFECT and then when the rolls that counted went through, it was like a different lab processed the film,
at least nowadays it is easy for the end user to deal with that stuff since most if not all color flim is scanned and tweeked, not
printed the old fashioned way ..

hopefully you'll enjoy using film for this type of work. if you cook, its like using a pressure cooker, working-blind, unlike cooking with an open pot or in the oven
or grill or smoker or whatever, where you can actually see what is going on ( digital ) with film you don't know until you get the film back ( you can take the lid off )
hopefully your equipment and lab will be working well. when you use your equipment a bit more you will get more acquainted with it, so you will get used to working blind.
if things didn't work out, chaulk it up to experience, and better luck next time.


john

 

[Nodda Duma]

Do you think the people I shot look like lobsters? I get the "lobster effect" mostly with Ektar, even if I have to admit Fuji Pro is good with my skintone and eyecolour:

Ok my comment was rather tongue in cheek and perhaps *slightly* exaggerated. But then again those hands in your pic do look a bit like CLAWS!

I kid, I kid

 

[StephenT]

OP, if you are still following this thread, I'd recommend having both 160 and 400 negative film on hand, one in one body, one in another, shoot at box speed and bracket 1 stop in both directions. I wouldn't use slide film for this event due to its latitude as compared to negative film. Have a flash available in case you need fill. Either Portra or Fuji, just don't mix the brands for the same shoot.

Best wishes.

 

[mehguy]

Another great recommendation is Fujifilm Superia X-TRA 400. Yes, its a consumer film... but it's honestly a very vibrant film and colours pop. Just try out a bunch of films and choose what you like!

 

[wblynch]

If someone hasn't mentioned it yet, take only one roll for processing the first time. Then, assuming the results are good, release the rest to the lab. You just don't want to lose the whole batch if you're not familiar with the lab's quality.