Hi, and can you recc a film camera? :)

flatulent1 · Nov 11, 2010

Welcome Heidi, this is a great place to be.

If your lens is an EF-s type, it will not be compatible with any film camera. If this is the case, then I would recommend a Canon AE-1 or AT-1. Both are capable of full manual control, both use a readily available battery, both are small and light. They use Canon FD lenses, which are as good as anything available today, and much cheaper than lenses that are currently available new. If you're serious about using a handheld meter and not the camera's meter, the Canon FTb is fully operational without a battery, but they came out in the early 1970's and most will need servicing before you can use them.

If your lens is an EF without the 's', then any EOS film body will work. I suggest an Elan 7N or 7Ne over the other Elan models as the others have a mode dial that gets finicky after a while. They're also relatively inexpensive, and relatively new, so they're not as likely to need work done on them. Manual mode on the 7N is very simple to set and use. The 7Ne adds eye-controlled focus, if you're interested in such things. The 7N is also whisper-quiet. It has an add-on battery grip that takes AA batteries.

j-dogg · Nov 11, 2010

Lots of love for the Elan 7Ne which is good, I have one, I see I made a wise decision buying mine two days before I got fired from work

I'll breakdown some EF lenses for you.

Couple of really neat things about the EF lenses is a lot of the older lenses made for the 35mm cameras blow many of the new entry-level lenses out of the water. A few worthy of mention, the ORIGINAL nifty fifty 50mm f1.8 with a metal body, and the 70-210 f4, constant F4 aperture through the entire zoom range and tack sharp optics, the predecessor for the 70-200 f4L. The 100-300mm L is a great entry-level "L" lens and produces excellent optics and can be had for pretty cheap, I have seen them go for as low as 250 dollars.

The original 35-135 is a pretty good walkaround lens for the EF lineup and the newer EF 28-135 Image Stabilized has even better optics and works on all the EOS film cameras, you can still buy them new for around 300 or even lower and they come standard on a lot of the upper-echelon Canon DSLR's

Either way, if you're already shooting a Canon DSLR and are looking for a good 35mm companion, Elan 7Ne is a great semi-professional rig, I shoot one and have fallen in love with it.

Mark Fisher · Nov 11, 2010

Well, seems like this is pretty well covered. The Elan 7 is cheap and insanely good. If you stick with an EOS camera, you HAVE to get a 50mm lens for it...the f1.8 is less than $100 and is a pretty sweet lens. That said, all EOS cameras are not all that well suited to fully manual operation compared to older cameras. If you need auto-focus, it is hard to go wrong with the Elan series.
Personally, I'd go for either an Olympus OM-1 (need battery conversion or use hearing aid batteries), an OM-2 (good full manual option with aperture priority and a current battery), or a Nikon FM2. I'm an Olympus fan, but all the manufacturers had a good manual camera. Just make sure you stick to a prime lens for a bit and shoot wide open. That is where film shines for me!

Mustafa Umut Sarac · Nov 11, 2010

Buy a Rollei 35 from keh with Zeiss optics or a Leica Screwmount. Start with the best and use at your entire life. When you want to change , you can sell Leica to what you paid to buy for.

phaedrus · Nov 11, 2010

To totally shake yourself out of your prior mode, I'd get an inexpensive rangefinder camera, e.g. a Voigtländer. And try that one year, one camera, one lens, one film experiment!

André E.C. · Nov 12, 2010

Welcome Heidi, you're still in time to correct that major mistake, sell that crap and buy Nikon, get the F100!

Have fun!

lxdude · Nov 12, 2010

Welcome, Heidi.
The fact that you can see what film gives says a lot about your potential. I think you'll really like it here, and there is truly a wealth of information here for you.

guitstik · Nov 12, 2010

Mustafa Umut Sarac said:
Buy a Rollei 35 from keh with Zeiss optics or a Leica Screwmount. Start with the best and use at your entire life. When you want to change , you can sell Leica to what you paid to buy for.

I knew it, someone just had to bring a Leica in to the mix.

I reiterate my prior post, see if there is a camera club in your area or a real camera store (one that sells film, and darkroom equipment) and try out what you can as far as film cameras. This is a valuable venue to garner almost limitless information on everything film but remember, when it comes to equipment, opinions will abound ad infinitum. Of course, if you can find a film camera that will allow you to use equipment you already have on hand that is a plus.

There are several resources on the web that can help to give you an unbiased opinion on cameras that you are considering this is one of them http://www.mattdentonphoto.com/cameras/index.html

Remember that as varied the options of cameras, opinions will vary as widely. Do some research and see if you can find an example of the cameras you have decided on and hold them, see how they feel in your hands, are they intuitive and easy to use or clumsy and awkward to manipulate. A camera that you are not happy with will not give you good results because it is an extension of the photographer and will tend to reflect that mood, IMHO.

hpulley · Nov 12, 2010

If you're used to autofocus SLRs you may want to stick with them. It takes some getting used to for focusing manually, with rangefinders, scale focusing. Same goes for meters, if you are used to in-camera through the lens metering you may not want to get into something else right now. You can always try an EOS film camera today for $50 and if you like film you can start exploring all the various designs that are out there. I think it is a bit out there to say you should obviously start with 8x10" large format or even a Leica RF when you have a hankering to try some film. Try what is most familiar first is my suggestion. If you then decide you don't want the automation, you want the advantages of mirror-less designs then by all means go for it!

ntenny · Nov 12, 2010

hpulley said:
Try what is most familiar first is my suggestion.

Well said.

To me this is a "change one variable at a time" situation. You're shooting a Canon EOS system using digital capture; try the same basic system with film capture instead, and you get a clear opportunity to figure out how you feel about the *film* aspect specifically, rather than having it confounded by other changes at the same time. And you minimise the cost of entry (especially since generally speaking lenses are the expensive part).

-NT

Heidia · Dec 17, 2010

WOW! Thank you all so much for all the info!!! I truly do appreciate it!

ignatiu5 said:
Hi Heidi, and welcome to APUG!

As maarten m mentioned, if you have an EF but not EF-S lens, youre golden with any analog Canon EOS body. If thats the case, I concur with several others that the Elan 7 series or an EOS 3 are great cameras (I have/shoot several); highly recommended. I can also recommend shopping at KEH.com. Batteries for pretty much any EOS film SLR are easy to find, at least in the US.

However, if you just want a cheap route to see if you like burning film, I present to you an option in the time-honored tradition of APUGers initiating the addiction... I mean... helping film newbies out:

For the cost of shipping, Ill send you a Canon EOS 650 to play with as you wish. Solidly built, manual control of shutter speed/aperture/exposure compensation with auto options should you so desire. Its a simple EOS camera, no muss, no fuss, but it will get you started.

The catch (theres always a catch, isnt there)? Here, there are two:

1. You promise to send me a darkroom print, at some point in the future. Any subject, any size, any quality, any time. Could be a goof of your thumb in front of the lens; I dont care, I just want you to smell the fixer.

2. You hand the camera off to somebody else when you upgrade (and, oh, you will upgrade. Just search for GAS here on APUG).

If thats acceptable, send me a private message (PM) and well get the details done.

Cheers,

Ignatiu5

You are very kind, thank you for the offer! Wish I had read this before my ebay bid, lol. I do appreciate the offer though! I got a camera on the way now, though, woo-hoo!

So, after starting this, I debated...and debated...and debated...wasted time, stalling, debating...So, finally, I decided to just hurry up and get something so I can try the film. I saw a great deal on ebay for an eos rebel II. I do have an ef lense(35mm 2.0), so this will work. I can use my speedlite with it too. I figure that if I love the film(I have a feeling I will), I will then upgrade from there.

Now, I need to go read all about shooting film...thanks again for all the info!!! It really did help.

Cannot wait to learn more!

2F/2F · Dec 17, 2010

Welcome.

I know you already have Canon EF lenses, but I'd start on film with a 6x4.5 cm medium format SLR. They are cheap, and they are also nearly as easy to use, if not more so, than your average 35mm camera. The technical quality you will see over your digital images will blow you away and make you wonder why you spent so much on your digital. As an added benefit, the film is also easier to load for developing than 35mm is. One more thing; the size of the viewfinder will be very impressive.

35mm might impress you too, but probably not as much on a technical level. As long as you are trying something different, why not also go for something significantly "better," in a technical sense? You will spend about the same amount you will spend on a nice 35mm film camera, or maybe a little bit more. You can get into a quality medium format SLR with a lens or even two for $150 to $300. I suggest looking at Pentax, Mamiya, and Bronica cameras.

There is also a very good Hasselblad SLR copy by Bronica, called the SQ, which is also low in cost and excellent in quality. It gives you a 6x6 cm (square) shot instead of a 6x4.5 cm one.

hpulley · Dec 18, 2010

MF cameras aren't that hard, I just got my first one but the system cameras aren't as simple as 35mm SLRs. Backs, dark slides, separate film winding and shutter cocking are not that difficult to master but it is misleading to say it is as easy as 35mm. With a good one having interlocks you can't take accidental double exposures or blank frames but you need to remember more operations to get it to work.

Hi, and can you recc a film camera? :)

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