personalize exposure index for color negative?

[ahock]

Hi all,
Do you guy do the test of personalizing exposure index for color negative? Do we need to do this test? How to do that?

Thanks!!!

Best,
Ahock

 

[Q.G.]

Just put a film in your camera. Find a few subjects/scenes to take pictures of.
And just do so. Take a small series of each subject/scene, varying exposure in half stop steps.
Put a marker (a bit of paper on which you write the particular exposure and ISO speed it represents) inside the scene, to keep record of what each frame and print represents.
Study the prints, and choose the one you like best. That will be your personal ISO speed.

 

[Ian Grant]

Unlike B&W there's no real developer variable as good C41 lines use process control strips, so it's a case of a simple exposure test, most people shoot at box speed or give 1/2 to a 1/3 stop extra exposure, any differences will be more noticeable on big enlargements. As Colour films have a straighter line very slight overexposure makes little difference.

Select a scene with plenty of shadows & highlights and bracket exposures see what gives good overall detail in the shadows.

ian

 

[BetterSense]

I usually assume all print films are half box speed. Although they usually work at box speed it seems like their overexposure latitude is greater than their underexposure latitude so one might as well err on the side of overexposure. I don't really like the way XP2 looks if you underexpose it, because it shows grain, but it's not nice grain.

 

[Photo Engineer]

Having run extensive tests on a variety of C-41 films, I find it best to over expose based on the rated ISO value by as much as 1/3 stop and so a 160 film is given 100 and a 400 film is given 320 in my cameras.

PE

 

[nicefor88]

Yes, overexpose your color negs by 1/3 stop, expecially in the summer.
In special conditions like at the beach you can overexpose by 1 to 2 stops.