Lessons
Class Introduction
11:53 2Why Film
10:59 3Film Vs. Digital Camera Sensor
19:01 4Importance of Metering
04:08 5Reflective & Incident Metering
05:36 6Metering for Color Film
14:31 7Metering for Black & White Film
07:31 8Metering for Outdoor Shooting
17:37Metering for Indoor Shooting
18:39 10The Differences in Film Sizes
11:05 11Purchasing Film & Care
05:04 12Professional Color Film
16:39 13Professional Black & White Film
12:06 14Consumer Grade Film Stocks
06:31 15Pushing Film
18:44 16Know Your Lab
03:41 17What To Look For In A Lab
25:35 18How To Find The Right Lab
13:10 19How To Safely Ship Film
16:46 20Get Started Using Film
06:47Lesson Info
Know Your Lab
We've learned know your light, we know about metering, uh, we've learned about film stocks, know your film. Now we're gonna get into know your lab. And, um, labs are hugely important. Okay, you guys. I always tell people, when you are choosing your film lab as a film photographer, you are choosing a creative partner. The amount of control that a film lab and film technicians, scan technicians have over the look of your film is kind of amazing. It's a lot. So, it's just as important as knowing your light, understanding good metering. It's just as important as choosing the right film stock, that, to create the look that you want. That know your lab part, the film lab, will have just as much influence on the final look of your image as those other things. So, check this out, here's an example. This is what I mean. So this is the same negative, exact same negative, scanned by three different labs. Isn't that amazing? Woah, right? And again, same negative scanned by three different labs. Ye...
ah. Pretty, pretty amazing. So, this is what I'm talking about. So, the lab that you're using, um, the person behind the scanner, all of that has so, like, such influence on the final look of your image. So, with this one here, these were two professional labs and just a drug store. Anyone wanna take a guess on which one was the drug store? (laughter) Just throwing it out there. But even with this, these are three really great, professional labs. And these are all fine scans in and of themselves, but they're really really different. Yeah? Amy? Did you give them instruction, or just let them do their thing? Nope. Yeah, these were just sending in the film, and just seeing. So, somebody asked me here at Creative Labs last week like, how did I do this? Why did I even do this? This is the kind of research I started doing when I decided I was gonna go back to film when I was trying to find my film lab. Um, so what I did was I shot a roll, and I just kept sending that same negative out, just to see the differences. What's really amazing about this, though, is that you could even have the same lab, and get a slightly different look from the same lab each time. So, not only is it important that you choose your lab really well and wisely, but also that you really communicate what your preferences are. Because like I said, these are all fine negatives. This is portrait 800, right? We talked about how portrait 800 can kinda be a little pink, it can be a little yellow, it can be scanned a lot of different ways, and you really see that here, right? Like this one definitely has more yellow tones. This one's cooler. So, what's amazing is it's really up to the person, that scan technician who is looking at your film, it has a lot to do with what they like, what their preferences are, if you don't give them any kind of direction. And they can scan to what their eye likes, which might not be what your eye likes. So, it's a really important decision.
Class Materials
Bonus Materials with Purchase
Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
Sandra is a gifted teacher!!! I've been following her work for years and know what an incredible photographer she is - but to be able to teach the way she does is truly a rare gift! I've been shooting film on and off for years and was amazed at how much I could still learn from Sandra's class. She presented the information in a way that was so easy to follow that you couldn't wait to get started. It's wonderful to learn from someone who is clearly passionate about their craft - but who is also excited for others to succeed at what they're teaching.
pinkparakeets
Amy could not have said it better in her review of this class! I am also a film shooter (have been shooting film personally for 8 years and professionally for 4) and even as someone who understands a lot of what Sandra was talking about, I STILL found this class to be incredibly helpful and learned a lot. Sandra is such a great teacher and an inspiration to so many film photographers. Great class! Thanks Sandra and Creative Live for putting this together for us.
Student Work
Related Classes
Fundamentals