Transparency Film Problem

[brooklynkid]

My transparency have been coming out lately looking kind of washed out and the color has no saturation. I have been using Fuji Provia for a long time but I just noticed this of late. Should I try shooting at a higher ISO rating or a lower ISO rating? Thanks.

 

[PHOTOTONE]

If your film is "washed out" or "too light" with weak colors, then you need to shoot at higher ISO rating. I have found that Provia is just fine at box speed, so if you are noticing this issue getting worse with time, I would suspect your light meter.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I agree, transparencies must have the exposure right on. There is very little exposure latitude. Expose for the highlights for slides. If the highlights are not washed out the exposure will be correct for the whole slide.

Steve

 

[Ektagraphic]

Try a new film. Drop the green box

 

[nickandre]

Provia is a very nice film. I was impressed with my first 4x5 slide today using it. Even though Provia isn't a specifically "saturated" film it's still relatively saturated if you compare the original and the slide. It's still going to give great colors, but it's going to give you what was there, not an exaggeration. Find great colors and you'll like it.

If your pictures are washed out I would check all options. Is your camera meter overexposing? Is the lab butchering your film? You would need to reduce exposure or raise the effective ISO.

 

[mts]

Don't forget to check that your aperture is closing properly. Changing to a different lens is a simple way to determine if perhaps the aperture isn't closing fully. To test your meter, try shooting some frames using aperture and/or shutter priority, or compare it with the reading from a different camera or meter. I have one lens with a stuck aperture (open). That's the one to use for existing light shots with aperture priority, or maybe it should be the one I use for a paperweight instead.

 

[glbeas]

I've seen that when the color chemicals were not up to snuff. If the color developer is weak or the film ran through too fast the saturation is mushy. Where are you getting the processing done?

 

[DWThomas]

A sluggish, dirty shutter could overexpose also.

DaveT

 

[Sirius Glass]

Weak batteries?

Steve

 

[markbarendt]

Does your camera have exposure compensation? Is it zeroed?

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

Provia is one of Fuji's true delights, and will handle exposure errors gracefully, unlike its Velvia brethren. It's not too contrasty (shadows and highlights are well balanced), nowhere near as overtly saturated as Velvia and handles very long exposures with ease (excellent for star trails). So I'm pointing the finger at the guy behind the camera and also at that camera!

I would be checking the following critically:

• Exposure compensation
• Av / Tv values: are they accurate? Alternate lenses to check this
• Meter accuracy or meter type: what have you got engaged, spot, eval/matrix, partial, CWA? A meter inadvertantly set to spot and aimed casually (i.e. without proper consideration of tonal values in the scene) is a common blunder.
• Battery(ies)
• Bracket 100, 125, 160 (0.6 stop will be very noticeable on Provia 100/100F)

It is unlikely Provia will be washed out with normal metering unless something in that area is throwing the meter off. Even more unlikely with evaluative/matrix.