How to Shoot Film in 2025

[@MarcoRoepers]

Good you brought the storage up. Negatives should be stored in the dark for long livety. I had some bad experiences with plastic sleeves. They were already falling apart when I put the film in it. I could very easily rip the 2 sides apart. Then I decided to go back to the first kind of sleeves I used: Hama glassine sleeves, 100 pieces 260X 310 mm. I Also use the Hama negative binder with slip case. 11 years ago I returned to film photography. I bought a cheep scanner: The ION Pics2SD. When I scanned my color negatives I was disappointed. But when I shifted to black and white photography the results of this scanner were acceptable. Black and white is easier to scan because there are less parameters. I have shifted now entirely to B&W because I have made my own dark room. I use an old Meopta entlarger which can only handle 35 mm film but I am totally happy with it. I use 10,5x14,8 foto paper. No inspirations for shooting larger format. That would it make more expensive. With 35 mm the costs are totally mangeable if you don't buy the expensive stuff.

[@lucky_luke4785]

Been shooting film for about half a year and my key takeaway is really talking to people. Relatives, friends, stores, all of the above. A lot of people handed me down their gear. Going to flea markets i learned a lot about the mechanics (seeing a working lighmeter in a 60 yo camera ist still crazy to me) and at shops they talked about how they repair the cameras. Learned about negative storage from my great uncle when he showed his collection of negatives. Basically bought everything as you pointed it out here and film has been a pleasure for me so far.

[@merlinmendoza5177]

Biggest advice I can give is shoot Fujicolor 200 a 3 pack costs around $18 which is $6 a roll

[@RompingBronco]

I was thinking about that while I was editing and completely spaced mentioning it in the video so thank you for the comment!

[@VivaEZLN1]

I recently found some at my local Walmart for 15.98, got 1 pk. The next day I went and they were $3 a pk so I got the last 3. They haven't stocked anymore 😭

[@bobchuseby]

Up until just a few months ago, you used to be able to rely on Walmart for competitively priced Fuji 400 3-packs. With no film stores in my area, that was my go to. Same price as online retailers but without the shipping cost. Based on my recent conversation with one of the employees though, I get the impression it's being phased out. Processing your film with chain stores is a no-go, because they don't give you back your negatives. If they mess up your scans, you're out of luck.

[@CMCSenior]

Excellent advise, very informative, with great options.

[@RompingBronco]

Many thanks! I hope it helps folks!

[@UncleDon226]

Another reason for a beginner to get lab developing is so you know what it SHOULD look like. I also heard a lot of horror stories about flatbed scanning, and I didn't want the hassle of setting up a scanning rig with a DSLR so I got a plustek dedicated 35mm scanner. Costs more than a V600, but I dont need to worry about focusing or fine tuning the scanner- it does that itself. I wish it could do 120 film, but I dont shoot enough of that to justify the $2k for their multi-format scanner

[@MateusDeMello-m6e]

Same thing here ! I’m really happy with my plustek.

[@UncleDon226]

@@MateusDeMello-m6e Me too! It's a remarkable little machine.

[@Awayne429]

At my local film store ultra max 3 pack is $30 and Fuji superia 400 3 pack is $24. They usually have expired film for sale which I buy for experimentation. It’s all about what you can afford, the most affordable and best quality is kentmere Pan 400 and develop with cinestill all in one black & white developer.

[@MrGamer90210]

Where I live a great affordable colour film is Vision3 series - i can get for about 10$/roll or even less. Since my lab develop it manually anyway, it doesn't cost extra. Of course, you should know if your lab allows that. And in terms of image quality I like it much more than your average Gold 200 or UltraMax, but that's just me 😁

[@lukehenderson5097]

I'd suggest most people start by looking at M42 bodies, they're probably the cheapest SLRs with a full range of lenses.

[@then_comes_dudley]

honestly, if it wasn't for bulk loading fomapan 400, i don't think i could afford to shoot film. been really lamenting the fact that high-school-me was paying $5 for a roll of tri-x back in the day...

[@jw48335]

I'm full hybrid - I create 36mp composite digital conversions. Time is money, and I don't care to burn my limited time sleaving and cataloguing. I barely get time to develop and digitize. I had 10 years of negatives in the basement I did re-scan and then dispose of. I shoot film for the look and the shooting speed, the negatives are just a step, not a goal 😁 Spot on for the rest though chief.

[@LaskyLabs]

>Budget >Shows Fujicolor 100 in the thumbnail. Which is an expensive export from Japan. >Budget? ProImage btw, that's for the color shooter on a budget. A very nice film indeed. But color plus/gold aren't that expensive either. Not my favorite, but they're good.

[@LaskyLabs]

I'm just so weary of Kodak gold... I've shot too much of it.