Photography Trail | Which Film Stock Suits Me Best

Digital photography has been the norm for the past few decades, however, there are still some spaces remaining for those who prefer to use film. While digital cameras are simple for photographers, using a film still holds that charm and texture that can’t be replicated.

Film is unique from digital photography as it is a physical medium. This would mean that you will have a different experience while working with film as compared to digital. You will need to consider the exposure your film allows and whether you should under- or over-exposed your film.

Each stock comes with its own way of rendering colour and film grain which might affect the final image. Therefore, you should keep in mind what is the final image you have in mind before selecting which film you want to use.

When you have set your mind to continue shooting film, you would have to then choose between black & white film or colour film. There is no correct answer in this question as they each have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Black & White Film

Brands such as Kodak, Fujifilm and Ilford carry quite several options for black & white film. With Black & White film, you must figure out how deep the final image will be as some black and white film will lean towards gray. The most important thing to take note of is panchromatic film stock, which has been in use for a long time and is a basic starter for most film enthusiast.

Panchromatic film is unique in how it renders black and white imagery such that it mimics the way we see things. Black & white film looks decent when you follow the recommended ISO however, some photographers would prefer to overexpose it by one or two stops. This is because, most of the time, it might look too grainy when the image is underexposed.

Purchasing black & white film stock would set you back about $11 and onwards while developing it will generally cost about $14 on the lower end as manual washing is involved.

Colour Film

When it comes to colour film, Kodak and Fujifilm are crowd favourites. It is very important for one to understand how different stock will render its image especially when it is being under- or over-exposed. Different films will either bring out the greens more or the reds more. Some films will even make the skin tones look saturated.

Within the realms of colour films, there is Tungsten film. Brands such as CineStill give off a cooler blue look and it is suitable for low light settings. In general, a colour film stock can cost you around $7.50 and above. However, for a professional film stock such as Portra 400 and 800 will cost you around $16 on the low end. Whichever film you choose, it is very important to find which film you are comfortable shooting with to solidify the look that’s best for you.

After shooting with your preferred film type, get your film developed at your local lab or online developing lab such as Hands on Film and Grains & Such with prices from $11. Some local labs such as Triple D Minilab, Konota Digital Imaging Services and Whampoa Colour Centre, do sell film stock as well such as Kodak Gold and Kodak Colorplus so you can start your film photography journey with ease.

This process does not exist in digital photography at all. After the film is being developed, the film will be scanned onto a computer. From there, you will be able to see which camera setting and film will produce the image that you like. Even if the film does not come out as the one you have imagined, you can learn from your mistakes and improve your technical skills. Enjoy the process and for those who are looking for a place to develop your films, here are some places that I visit to get my photos developed:

Development Labs: