Film Still Photography
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Salzburg, Austria

"No place is boring if you've had a good night's sleep and a pocket full of film." - Robert Adams
​
"Tea first, then photography..." - Philip Lee Harvey

From an Article written by Philip Lee Harvey

Exposure, confusion, fear & lack of trust

2/5/2017

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Picture
Film photography has a handicap and that is the electronics of the light meter. Typically film cameras were made of much better quality than was necessary and will last a few lifetimes if properly kept. Light meters built into old film cameras do not always have the same shelf life. This leaves us film lovers with one of four options.

Option 1: Buy an external light meter. This is expensive but a single light meter will be able to be used with any film camera making it a one time investment. Using them is not as straightforward as one would hope so read the instructions well.  

Option 2: Buy an App that turns our cell phone into a light meter.  I use this method and find it really works well.  I have not missed a shot due to exposure using this App.  The problem is that it requires you to pull out your cell phone to take each reading, something the external light meter would require as well.  You are dependent on another devise to get the first one to work.

Option 3: Stick with cameras that have an internal light meter that works or can be repaired. There are plenty out there but it will largely restrict you from TLR, some rangefinders and large format cameras.

Option 4: Learn, trust and use the Sunny 16 rule.  Everyone knows this rule but few people trust film enough to really give it a go.  All you need is to set your shutter speed to equal the reciprocal of your ISO.  So if your ISO is 100 you set your shutter speed to 1/100th of a second. Then you are left with a single variable to decide on, aperture.  In a sunny day it should be f/16, partly cloudy f/11, no blue in the sky f/8, very dark clouds, f/5.6 and so forth.  

This last option is also one of my goals for 2017...I want to learn how to expose without a light meter.  I found the following video on YouTube where it is explained very well.  Travis also explains that the main reason people do not use the sunny 16 rule is out of fear of the results and a lack of trust in film.

A stop over or under is simple to fix with film. Two stops and you need to work a little more at it but still very salvageable especially in the darkroom.  So human error is corrected through the latitude of film.  

As a recap, if you like film cameras you may as well start learning how to calculate exposure without a light meter. The rule is simple, the fear of ruining a few shots could easily be overcome by trying out on some everyday shots and finally the only way to realize how forgiving film can be is to give it all a go.

This week my goal will be to shoot an entire roll using the sunny 16 rule.  Lets see how I get on...
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    Patrick...confirmed film & digital photography addict.

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Photos used under Creative Commons from left-hand, Ant Jackson, Skley, mikecogh, Helen.Yang, TheeErin, Dean Hochman, CJS*64, DaveR1988, FootMassagez, Loco Steve, dmytrok, Christiaan Colen
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Vintage Cameras
    • Argus 75
    • Brownie Flash II
    • Contax G2
    • Ensign Selfix 820
    • FED-1 (PE0320)
    • Graflex Crown Graphic
    • Ihagee Exa
    • Leica M6
    • Nikon S2
    • Nikon F
    • Nikon F2
    • Nikon F3
    • Nikon FA
    • Olympus OM-1
    • Olympus OM-2 SPOT
    • Olympus Stylus
    • Pentacon Six
    • Pentax Spotmatic IIa
    • Rollei 35
    • Voigtlander 15mm ver III
    • Yashica C
    • Zeiss Ikon Nettar 515/2
  • Learning Composition
    • The Monochrome Diaries
    • Single & Multi Elements
    • Symmetry
    • Keep the Right Strong
    • Framing
    • Color in Composition
    • Deep Dive Bubble Man
    • Photo Assignments
  • Darkroom Lessons
    • Building a Sink
    • Air Ventilation
    • Analyser Pro
    • Development Hints
    • Primer for Film Photography
    • Bulk Loading Film
    • Pushing & Pulling Film
    • Color Development
    • Digital Contact Sheets
    • Stick to One Film Stock?
    • HP5+ Shot at 200 ISO
    • HP5 Shot at 1600 ISO
    • HP5 Shot at 3200 ISO
    • Medium Format
    • Washing Film
    • Split Grade Printing
    • Using Distilled Water in Film Development
    • Darkroom Paper
    • Foma100 EI 400
  • Photography Books & Films
    • Colin O'Brien
    • Lartigue Life in Color
    • Magnum Contact Sheets
    • Top Photography Movies
    • William Eggleston's Guide
    • Helen Levitt
    • Sally Mann Immediate Family
    • Saul Leiter Early B&W
    • Leica 100 yrs
    • Calendar Days of Asaya Hamaya
    • The Decisive Moment
    • Regarding Women
    • Robert Capa in Love and War
  • Single Image Deep Dive
    • Sergio Larrain "A Man After Dark"
    • Colin O'Brien 'Comings & Goings"
    • Erwitt Mother & Child
    • Man Running
    • Samuel Becket
    • Koudelka Wristwatch
    • Dovima with Elephants