US based online shops for film?

/dev/null · May 30, 2013

Hi,

I'm looking to order some Kodak Portra and Ektar 120 format and 4x5 Ektar. I read some horror stories here about Adorama shipping expired film

In a couple of weeks I am planning a roundtrip in the US and was wondering what would be a good webshop to order some film. I have a US postal address. I found the http://www.freestylephoto.biz shop and of course http://www.badgergraphic.com/. Any other options for a reliable shop, seems like freestylephoto.biz has quite good prices, and a changing bag .

Thanks!

Ian Grant · May 30, 2013

B&H in New York. Just be aware that they shut early on a Friday and all day Saturday.

Ian

markbarendt · May 30, 2013

Truly surprised to hear that rumor about Adorama, I have bought short date products from them but they were exactly as they were described on the web site and priced appropriately for its age.

bdial · May 30, 2013

If shipping time is a concern you may want to pick according to what's close to your US address. Ground shipping is 5 - 7 days coast to coast. Shipping by U.S. priority mail will be a little faster which is a choice for B&H and some of the others.
Aside from the vendors mentioned, there are also Calumet and Hunt's photo.
Best pricing is usually B&H or Freestyle, but not always.

removed account4 · May 30, 2013

adorama has a customer service czarina who does a wonderful job.
if you ever have trouble with adorama contact her ( helen oster ) and
she will FIX THINGS. years ago they "issues" but i think they have
come full circle. i swore i would never buy from them 10 years ago ...
but i have come full circle, as well, and have bought from them,
even recently, and haven't had troubles,
just pleasant, experiences.

have a great trip!
john

Marc B. · May 30, 2013

In a couple of weeks I am planning a roundtrip in the US

It might help if you tell the forum which city or cities you will be visiting while here in the USA.
Members may have suggestions for film/photo retailers in areas where you will be visiting.

Marc

rjs003 · May 30, 2013

Never bought anything from Adorama , that wasn't a complete nightmare. Defective goods to having a battle royal to get a refund.

L Gebhardt · May 30, 2013

rjs003 said:
Never bought anything from Adorama , that wasn't a complete nightmare. Defective goods to having a battle royal to get a refund.

I've never had a bad experience with Adorama, and I've bought tons from them. Even the few returns I have made have been processed without issue.

I also recommend Freestyle, B&H and Amazon as places I have found good prices on film. But I usually stick to B&H and Adorama since things arrive here quickly with standard shipping, and without issues.

/dev/null · May 30, 2013

Marc B. said:
It might help if you tell the forum which city or cities you will be visiting while here in the USA.
Members may have suggestions for film/photo retailers in areas where you will be visiting.

Marc

I will be flying into Chicago and then drive to Denver, Colorado. I have an address in Denver where my first batch can be shipped to. Then I will be heading to Seattle (I found a shop there that sells film too).

So would be nice to have a reliable US webshop where I can order my film online and have it shipped to Denver. Problem is that I cannot jerk around too long in Denver and call Adorama's customer support if something goes wrong. Of course, people make mistakes, but I rather put my money on a more reliable shop and don't take the risk for a few Dollars less.

I could go to Dead Link Removed (was there last year), but they are quite expensive and they did a pretty lousy job on my film development, tons of dust everywhere...

So I could go ahead and order from http://www.bhphotovideo.com for instance and have it shipped to Denver, right?

Dave Krueger · May 30, 2013

/dev/null said:
Hi,

I read some horror stories here about Adorama shipping expired film

I've not had that problem with Adorama, but yesterday I shipped a recently purchased 100 ft roll of TMax 100 back to B&H because the expiration date was November 2013 which is only 2 months past the expiration date of the same film I bought from them in 2011.

I've been dealing with Adorama and B&H for decades and have had very few problems with either of them.

zsas · May 30, 2013

Amazon is worth checking out too, free shipping if you are a Prime mbr or if not I think $25+ orders ship free. Also Adorama is top notch, not sure what you've heard, but I love em.

Jim Noel · May 30, 2013

/dev/null said:
I will be flying into Chicago and then drive to Denver, Colorado. I have an address in Denver where my first batch can be shipped to. Then I will be heading to Seattle (I found a shop there that sells film too).

So would be nice to have a reliable US webshop where I can order my film online and have it shipped to Denver. Problem is that I cannot jerk around too long in Denver and call Adorama's customer support if something goes wrong. Of course, people make mistakes, but I rather put my money on a more reliable shop and don't take the risk for a few Dollars less.

I could go to Dead Link Removed (was there last year), but they are quite expensive and they did a pretty lousy job on my film development, tons of dust everywhere...

So I could go ahead and order from http://www.bhphotovideo.com for instance and have it shipped to Denver, right?

Freestyle is your best answer. They ship quickly and I have never had a problem with them. If shipped to Denver, it will likely get there in one day even w/o asking for one day delivery. I'm lucky in San Diego, I call or order one afternoon and it shows up the next morning.

Marc B. · May 30, 2013

Then I will be heading to Seattle (I found a shop there that sells film too).

Glazers, in Seattle, is a great shop to check out while you're there...or maybe you already know that.

An earlier thread here on APUG speaks of some other camera/photo/film shops in Seattle, and the Pacific Northwest.
(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Marc

BradleyK · May 30, 2013

jnanian said:
adorama has a customer service czarina who does a wonderful job.
if you ever have trouble with adorama contact her ( helen oster ) and
she will FIX THINGS. years ago they "issues" but i think they have
come full circle. i swore i would never buy from them 10 years ago ...
but i have come full circle, as well, and have bought from them,
even recently, and haven't had troubles,
just pleasant, experiences.

have a great trip!
john

+1 or either Adorama or B&H. I have dealt with both for a number of years and can give an unequivocal "thumbs up" to both. Ethical, great selection, wonderful customer service, some of the best prices around and Really Quick Shipping (Right to Left Coast in less than 72 hours!!).

whowantstoast · May 30, 2013

rjs003 said:
Never bought anything from Adorama , that wasn't a complete nightmare. Defective goods to having a battle royal to get a refund.

I had two problems with them last year that soured me on them, including disinterested customer service and haven't ordered from them since (and I think I'm a pretty easy-going and forgiving guy). B&H have had great prices, and Freestyle has the best customer service anyone could hope for. And if you're on the west coast Freestyle gets to you fast, fast, fast.

Chris Lange · May 30, 2013

I've bought online and in-store countless times from adorama and b&h and never had a problem, from Leica M mount lenses to an extra roll of tri-x to shove in my pocket.

Order without fear. I actually prefer going to Adorama in person over B&H simply because it's less crowded and I can be in and out in less than 10 minutes.

Sirius Glass · May 30, 2013

http://www.freestylephoto.biz
http://www.samys.com/

I have had no problems with either.

Vonder · May 30, 2013

Oh kewl! If you are driving through Iowa on interstate 80, there's a shop in Iowa City that's literally 5 minutes off the highway. University Camera. They have lots of film, sell used items, and have the usual darkroom, digital, and related accessories. Exit on Dubuque Street going south. When you pass under a green enclosed walkway over teh road (between a couple university buildings) you are there. Ask any passer-by to point you there.

/dev/null · May 31, 2013

Thanks all for the help!

@Wolfeye, thanks for this one in Iowa. Cause after Seattle I will be heading back to Iowa for a reunion and stay there for about a week. I am planning to do a photography project on farmers, so happy to hear there is a shop in Iowa too!

TimFox · May 31, 2013

Ian Grant said:
B&H in New York. Just be aware that they shut early on a Friday and all day Saturday.

Ian

I have had excellent results with B&H, with one caveat. Besides their holiday schedule, they will not ship to a hotel address. Calumet will ship to hotels.

Vonder · May 31, 2013

/dev/null said:
Thanks all for the help!

@Wolfeye, thanks for this one in Iowa. Cause after Seattle I will be heading back to Iowa for a reunion and stay there for about a week. I am planning to do a photography project on farmers, so happy to hear there is a shop in Iowa too!

There are a few shops around. Photo Pro in Cedar Rapids is nice, but film stock is limited. They too also sell used gear though. And they're a great pro lab; whenever I have film I want prints from and don't want to develop myself they are my first choice. We used to have Porter's up in Waterloo, with a Cedar Rapids branch, but they inexplicably closed their doors entirely two months ago.

As far as photo opportunities, Iowa is farm country. Any project involving farmers has a good chance of success here. We also have tons of small museums. There's a booklet called "Silos and Smokestacks" which points out the stuff like that. If you PM me a mailing address I will send you one. I only have the 2012 version right now but if I see the latest around (they're free) I will send one.

/dev/null · May 31, 2013

Thanks, Wolfeye. Sent you a pm. And many thanks to all for these great tips I got!

US based online shops for film?

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