Grainy???

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callie

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Feb 24, 2017
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hey guys,

Hoping for some help, only just got this camera and starter shooting

Nikkormat FT with vivitar 35mm f2.8

I got this pic developed and scanned locally here in Cape Town but seems a little grainy?

I shot with Kodak 100iso film
 

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Ian Grant

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My question is a possible, developing, exposure, film, scanning issue?

Or processing, it's impossible to tell however 100 ISO colour films from the major manufacturers have been very fine grained since the introduction of C41 type films and current films are the best. Under exposure or poor bleach fix during processing are possibilities.

Ian
 

flavio81

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hey guys,

Hoping for some help, only just got this camera and starter shooting

Nikkormat FT with vivitar 35mm f2.8

I got this pic developed and scanned locally here in Cape Town but seems a little grainy?

I shot with Kodak 100iso film

Your scan is 1000px wide and i can't see any grain there. Perhaps a higher-res scan?

Also, which Kodak 100-iso film? I think the only 100-iso C41 Kodak film currently available is Ektar 100 which has grain as fine as it gets on a negative film.
 
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callie

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Sorry guys, realize my phone must have scaled this version down.

I'll update with the the original when I can get back to my computer

Really really appreciate the help so far.

Can I ask a side question so long,

Should I be getting excellent results with my camera and lens setup? I have the opportunity to upgrade to the f3 now but it's quite a bit more cash, would i notice a difference in quality or is that more lens and film dependent ?

Thanks again,
 

locutus

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The camera doesn't matter in regards to image quality, its only a light tight box with a shutter after all, a nicer lens might give you sharper results but wont reduce grain.

That said your small sample does look kinda too grainy. My guess: underexposure.
 

flavio81

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Sorry guys, realize my phone must have scaled this version down.

I'll update with the the original when I can get back to my computer

Really really appreciate the help so far.

Can I ask a side question so long,

Should I be getting excellent results with my camera and lens setup? I have the opportunity to upgrade to the f3 now but it's quite a bit more cash, would i notice a difference in quality or is that more lens and film dependent ?

Thanks again,

I have the Nikkormat FTN and i had the F3.

Both cameras have excellent mechanical construction. You will not gain image quality by switching to the F3. As long as the camera is of excellent mechanical construction and it's on a great shape (nothing misaligned), then the image quality will be dictated 99% by the lens.

On the other hand, i think the Vivitar 35/2.8 is probably not the best lens in its class. If you feel you want more image quality, try other lens like any of the nikon 35mm f1.4/f2.0/f2.8 lenses, or (a great buy) any Nikon 50/2.0 (two point zero) lens. Another great buy is the forgotten Nikkor-H 28/3.5 lens which at f8 or f11 is very sharp all over the frame.
 

blockend

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Processing marks suggest the development quality wasn't first rate, which may be why you got the extra grain. Could also be underexposed slightly. I find low res scans look considerably grainier that high resolution ones, my 800dpi work scans look miles grainier than 2300 or 3200dpi equivalents. Possibly a combination of all three.

The Vivitar 35mm looks sharp enough, not a Zeiss perhaps, but you'd probably have to go larger than 10 x 8" to see a difference. As others have said, a Nikkormat and an F6 with the same lens will produce identical negatives. The vignetting suggests your 35 has a 50mm lens hood, or you were shooting with the aperture wide open. That degree of illumination fall off in the corners generally disappears one or two stops down.
 
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flavio81

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Processing marks suggest the development quality wasn't first rate, which may be why you got the extra grain. Could also be underexposed slightly. I find low res scans look considerably grainier that high resolution ones, my 800dpi work scans look miles grainier than 2300 or 3200dpi equivalents. Possibly a combination of all three.

Sometimes cheaper (low res) scanners introduce the problem of "grain aliasing", where grain increases on the scan.
 

blockend

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Sometimes cheaper (low res) scanners introduce the problem of "grain aliasing", where grain increases on the scan.
Yes could be. Mine is an Epson V500 so nothing special, and I rarely make prints from scans. However I do scan for printed books at 3200dpi, and any noise has disappeared well before that resolution.
 

Les Sarile

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Should I be getting excellent results with my camera and lens setup? I have the opportunity to upgrade to the f3 now but it's quite a bit more cash, would i notice a difference in quality or is that more lens and film dependent ?

Thanks again,

In terms of deriving "quality", the bottleneck will be the scan first, then film and lastly the lens unless it is really in poor shape. This assumes a proper film processing and functional camera.

BTW, which Kodak 100 film is this, Sitar 100?
 
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Sirius Glass

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Ir is most likely an artifact of scanning. Even just having scanning in the image chain will over shadow anything else.
 
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callie

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HI Guys, apologies for the delay, here is the original scanned picture, I've attached a few more as well.

I'm going to buy a CanoScan 4400u today second hand for quite a bargain and will try the same film in there,

The film I was using was Kodak Farbwelt Sonne 100, I'm going to try something a little better Today and see what the output is,

I just want to thank everyone who has replied, I've gained very valuable knowledge over the past 24 hours!

0011_7A.jpg

0022_18A.jpg

0013_9A.jpg

0014_10A.jpg


0024_20A.jpg


0025_21A.jpg


0026_22A.jpg
 

film_man

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There are two ways to get grain in a photo. Using very fast film or underexposing a shot (on any film). Underexposure can be either a result of
1 bad metering (either you or the camera)
2 a shutter firing at a faster speed (mechanical fault, unlikely, usually they run slower)
3 bad development
4 using very expired film (I mean 5 years+)
5 using heat damaged film (say something that sat on a drugstore shop window for a year or two, it may be in date but it's been baked every summer)

There is also a bonus factor, bad scanning. This will overshadow any of the above (unless we're looking at a damaged shutter or damaged film). The photos above all look underexposed to me. I would first get some fresh good film, Ektar, Portra or something like that, not cheap rebranded or no-name film. That gives you a baseline. Then make sure your development is good (or the lab is a good one). Good luck :smile:
 

shutterfinger

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Do not expect that CanoScan 4400u to produce scans that will print well. A Plustek 7600i, 8200i will run circles around the Canon.
http://plustek.com/mea/products/film-and-photo-scanners/
You might be able to find an older model such as the 7200 or 7400 that will run on your OS. The 7200 will not run on Win 10.
Good scanning requires practice.
 

summicron1

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Sorry guys, realize my phone must have scaled this version down.

I'll update with the the original when I can get back to my computer

Really really appreciate the help so far.

Can I ask a side question so long,

Should I be getting excellent results with my camera and lens setup? I have the opportunity to upgrade to the f3 now but it's quite a bit more cash, would i notice a difference in quality or is that more lens and film dependent ?

Thanks again,

your pictures will improve as your skill in taking them improves -- as noted above, the actual camera matters almost nothing, and the lens slightly more (since it transmits the light). But most of what determines how good a picture is resides inside your skull.
 
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