Hi,
I see from one of the other replies that you don't want to get into
processing your own at the moment. In this case I would recommend you
to try Agfa Scala, which is a b&w slide film. It's nominally rated at
EI 200, but you can pull it to 100 or push it to 1600. I like the
results at EI 200 very much, and it's the film I generally use with my
rangefinder camera.
For me, in London, buying the film from the Guernsey in the Channel Islands
to avoid VAT, the price of a roll of Scala with prepaid processing, is
slightly less than the cost of a roll of Tri-X plus processing and contact
sheet.
One of the great benefits of using it is that you eliminate printing
errors and can see exactly what you've got on film. When other people
do your processing and printing you're relying on them to do it right,
and unless you pay a real master £50-/hour you'll probably never get a
satisfactory print.
If you need a print from Scala the best option, imo, is to have it
scanned and then print it on an inkjet.
This could also be an option with films like Tri-X if you don't want
your own darkroom. Processing is relatively easy and quick if you do
small volumes and use a changing bag. If you already have a film
scanner then all you need do is batch-scan the negs to give yourself a
thumbnail/proof sheet, and for the ones you want to print large you
can do a better scan and use the inkjet printer.
If and when you want to get into darkroom work you should look around
where you live first of all for rental darkrooms or photography
societies that have darkroom facilities. That way you can get a taste
of it without having to spend gazillions of dollars, pounds, marks or
yen.
It seems to be cheaper to set up a conventional darkroom than it is to
set up a digital darkroom, if you're doing both from scratch, but a
conventional darkroom is very annoying if you have to share the space
with eg a bathroom. A digital darkroom is a lot cleaner and a lot of
the equipment has multiple uses, not just photographic.
---
Bob
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Il faut être toujours botté et prêt à partir.
One should always have one's boots on and be ready to leave.
- Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592)
Sunday, August 26, 2001, 2:41:36 AM, you wrote:
> I just got my new rangefinder, and I want
> to start using it to shoot black and white
> print film. Is there a particular brand/type that
> is better than others? I don't want to sound like
> an idiot when I go to the camera store to ask
> for it. :)
> Thanks,
> Amita
-
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