NEW TO FILM.

I've got a MX you can have for £55 including shipping. Had new seals only thing wrong with it is that the little black bit at the end of the on-off switch is missing. Drop me a message with your email address and I'll send you some pictures.

Thanks edbray but I have a P30n on the way. Maybe someone else will pick you up on that offer?

I have a couple of questions please.

I have the 50mm 1.7 and the 28mm 3.5 lenses. Are they each suited to particular pics? e.g. landscape, portrait e.t.c.

And secondly, I would like b&w film to start. Are there any brands or particular issues I should look for?

Deryn

Hi Deryn,

As far as the lenses go, traditionally the 28mm is ideal for landscapes and the 50mm is a great all-round, fast lens. Portrait lenses are traditionally longer than 50mm (75mm+) because shooting too close to the subject (i.e. frame filling with a 50mm) doesn't look too flattering. These are the traditional uses, but many shoot landscapes with 50mm and 28mm is a generic wide-angle.

To get an idea of the coverage, your kit lens on digital at 18mm is about equivalent to 28mm on film, likewise 35mm on the kit lens is equivalent to 50mm on film.

Film wise, you need to make sure it's DX coded (almost all will be). Black and White film is a good choice, the most common film is probably Ilford and you should probably be thinking about ISOs of 100-400 initially. Those I'd suggest are FP4+ (ISO 125), HP5+ (ISO 400) - both of these need to be developed with black & white chemicals/lab. The other option is XP2 (ISO 400), this can be developed at any C41 colour lab (it usually has an orange colour cast if printed - should be easy to correct this digitally on a scan). Traditional black & white printing can be quite expensive these days.

Make sure you understand how to load the film before doing it, it's not difficult but if you haven't done it before it can seem daunting. There are several videos on youtube showing how to do it. The most likely hickup is the film falling out of the take-up spool after you close the back - the film then doesn't advance. In order to check this, turn the rewind knob to take up any slack just before closing the back - when the film advances, the rewind knob should then spin as you wind on. Before loading film, check there's no dirt inside the camera back or on the pressure plate of the door to minimise the risk of scracthing the film.

Regards,

John.

Thanks John very much appreciated.

I shall check out film prices and developing prices.

I'll also look out for an 80mm lens as portraits are something I would be interested in with film.

And thanks for the practical info regarding loading film e.t.c.

Deryn

As a corrollary to Johnha's post above Kodak BW400 is another c41 process black and white film and is worth checking out too. I've had lots of fun with this film in many different conditions! It should still be available fairly commonly.

I've enjoyed my forays into film though I often go older to my Spotmatic F's rather than my Super A these days. But it's a nice choice to complement the digitals!

If you are looking for an inexpensive portrait lens, consider the smc PENTAX-M 135mm f3.5. Cheap as chips and easily sourced on ebay. The 85mm's vary from expensive to astronomical in price, nice though they are. At a quick glance I counted six 135mm's up for auction and not one with a bid against it. Also noticed eight on buy it now, but best buys are usually obtained through auction. £30 should be more than enough. The 100mm and 120mm are quite a bit more costly than that. You could also consider a W.T.B. post on this PU Classified Adverts - my first choice of where to buy from.

By the way, your 28mm 3.5 is more highly rated than the 28mm 2.8; it's sharp and sought after.

Careful now, this could be the start of something that's difficult to kick.

Hi, yes I might try and place an ad' in the classifieds for a lens. A lens suited for portraits up to £50 perhaps? I'm always nervous about buying secondhand gear but as long as guys are honest with descriptions I should be okay.

Thanks again to all for help and advise. Just need the camera to arrive now.

Deryn

I've never had problems buying here on the forum.

The M 135/3.5 is a decent lens, but even on film it's long for most portraits. Unfortunately, a 100mm will cost a lot more, and an 85 even more than that.

I've never understood why nobody ever made a more economical 85mm prime, an f/3.5 for example.

As previously stated (possibly in the other thread), a 2x teleconverter makes a 50/1.7 into 100/3.5, and is useful to have anyway. For portraits, the loss of quality shouldn't be an issue when used with a sharp prime.

Hi, I know nothing about converters!

So fitted with a 50 1.7 you get a 100 3.5. £20 seems to be the common price. Lots of example, not sure I would sure a good example.

On a 28 3.5 it wouldn't be much use I guess as the 55/56 would become a f7!
Is that correct?

Deryn

Hi Deryn,

A 2x TC loses two stops of light, a 1.4x only one stop. Using one with a wide-angle may not get good results, a 50mm would usually be better (on a 28/3.5 with a 2x TC you'd be at f/6.7 - the half stop between 5.6 & 8 ).

Ones to look for are the 7 elements versions which are better than those with only 4 elements - but I doubt you'd see much difference with a 50mm f/1.7 - with longer primes and zooms you'd probably notice the difference much more.

John.

Hard to go wrong with something like this:link

John.

Thanks again, interesting info regarding the TC.

As another question, will my digital kit 18-55 work in manual on the P30N ?

Deryn

It won't work because it is designed for a much smaller digital sensor, so it will be a bit like looking down the wrong end of a telescope at the wide end

Hey Ken, isn't that called vignetting ?

Only joking.

Deryn