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What is the optimum film for macro-photography of flowers?


A miller

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I don't know which coolscan you have but I have the Nikon 5000 and 8000 models and they most certainly will give what you want. I have scanned Portra 400 and printed it to approx 2 metres x 2 metres. The image was an aerial pic shot at altitude of 2000ft. In the print it was easy to read the numbers on the jumpers of football players that were in the picture, which was a landscape to illustrate the proximity of a particular school to the city, which is about 30 metres away. The real limiting factor is your skill.

 

It is impressive in any event but, out of curiosity, was that with 35mm film?

 

I would have suggested slide film too. Or Portra 400 which I prefer over 160. I guess it also depends on the DOF you want.

 

Ektar and I don't get along and I wouldn't have used it for flower photos because I find the colours way too pastelly.

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It is impressive in any event but, out of curiosity, was that with 35mm film?

 

I would have suggested slide film too. Or Portra 400 which I prefer over 160. I guess it also depends on the DOF you want.

 

Ektar and I don't get along and I wouldn't have used it for flower photos because I find the colours way too pastelly.

 

It was with 120 roll film in a Hasselblad and 110mm Planar lens. Film I thought was Portra 400, but on reflection it was a predecessor, Commercial VP or something like that. I had waited three months for the right weather to coincide with the footy match on a Saturday morning. Suddenly, a cloudless sky happened, I rang the airfield and ordered a plane and pilot. By the time I got over the target, there was only one cloud, sitting right above the target, flattening the light. In desperation I loaded the VP film (I had planned to shoot Portra 400) into another magazine and shot it, hoping the saturation would 'bump up' to look like a sunny day.

 

The result was magic and I laughed all the way to the bank.

 

P.S. Slide film was too slow and the brief was primarily to provide large prints. A significant part of my income, at that time, was from prints that I produced in my own lab.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks to all again who participated in my thread.

 

I spent the entire day last Monday at the botanical gardens in Dallas with my M3 and 50mm "dual range" summicron. I shot flowers all day with some portra 160, portra 400, fuji Pro 400H negative film, Fuji PRovia 100F slide film and Ilford Delta 100.

 

I shot 8 rolls and have started scanning the film. IT was crazy sunny with some raindrops in some areas from the storm, so I used a polarizing filter most of the time.

 

Here is a sample from what I have scanned so far. Each of these shots was taken at close range with the DR "goggles".

 

The first two were shot with the Ilford Delta 100

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This last one with Portra 160

 

 

Many more to be shared from the other films in the "Wildlife" section of the photo forum. Thanks again to all for helping me improve my experience!

 

Adam

 

 

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Thank you, the b&W pics are beautiful, you remember how far you stopped down the DR for these shots?

I don't want to sound smart-assed, but the tones and colors of the color shot looks a bit weird as they are and would profit greatly from some simple levels adjustments, setting white and black points alone will turn it into a completely different pic (then you can actually see it was a sunny day!) ...

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Many thanks for your comment. I haven't made any adjustments from the color; it came straight from the scanning. I kind of liked the slightly washed out look from the portra. But I agree that it doesn't look like a normal vibrant flower from a sunny day. I am not a LR expert, but I will have a go at making some adjustments and will report back if successful.

 

Given the polarizing filter and 160 film, I think I was shooting pretty open. Somewhere between 2.8 and 4, I think...

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I'm coming back to this thread to share some of the results from the fuji 100F pro slide film, which I wouldn't have thought to buy (b/c I'm such an amateur) for my trip to the Dallas Arboretum two weeks ago. Here are a few taken with my M3, 50mm summicron (dual range) and a polarizing filter.

 

You guys were right about this film! It aint very forgiving when it comes to exposure. But if you can nail it the film will reward you generously!

 

Thanks for looking and once again for all of your helpful comments and suggestions. More Portra and Fuji negative film samples to come!

 

Adam

 

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Super! Glad that worked out with Provia 100F. I thought it might be good but that is really good. The polarizer seemed to do the trick as well.

Makes me want to get and use a few rolls as well again.

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Hi Peter - thanks very much. I believe that you were the first on this thread to suggest this particular film. So I am particularly grateful that you took the time to do so b/c it was the first time I had ever used slide film and I really needed guidance. I believe Doc Henry summed it up in the Wildlife section of the Photo Forum (where I also posted pics) by saying that what distinguishes this slide film from regular negative film is the consistency of colors and vibrancy throughout the image. Now I can't wait to try slide film with my old Linhof medium format camera! [but we'll have to discuss these on Instagram! :) ]

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Cheers Adam!

I remembered Provia 100F because I used that a lot in South America in areas with rich vegetation (for what I do now I prefer b/w film and Kodak Elite Chrome). I never really warmed up to color negative films, for consistency (Ektar is the worst) and a lack of that sparkle that only slide film can have.

I personally would very much like to see your results with the Linhof here!

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I am now sharing some shots from the Fuji Pro 400H negative film that I tried out. To review the gear used:

M3

50mm dual range summicron

polarizing filter

tripod

sweat towel :)

Coolscan 9000/Vuescan

 

Thanks again for those who suggested this film. I found the saturation a strength. The grain could have been a little finer, but I think it still rendered acceptable results.

 

The slide film is a winner in my view for this type of project...

 

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Now sharing some results from the Kodak Portra 160

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And finally, a few from the Portra 400...

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