Should I ditch the last of my film kit?

[Joe]

The time has arrived.....

The time to face reality....

The F5 simply isn't getting used how it should. the processor is being cranked up even less, and the enlarger....well, I can't even remember the last time I peered through the darkness at those colour filter wheels!

The D1 series stuff wasn't enough. I used almost exclusively, and very happy with them I was, but still felt I had that film kit to rely on if I needed some 'finer' quality stuff.

It wasn't that long ago I was quite happy using my manual focus lens collection....but that got swapped out for some faster auto focus. That 'pain' was easier to swallow, and the high speed focus success hit rate thanked me for it.

Now, with a D2h I have that speed, (and finer quality than the D1h stuff), and a very light, very compact D70s (similar results to the now sold D1x, but less scary in a studio environment! lol)

Some quick calculations....with all the film kit gone, camera kit, processor, odds and ends sold for what it seems to fetch online via auction, I'd be looking at seriuos funding on a s/h D2x......

It seems more of a 'no-brainer' writeen in black and white here.

I can see it, and it makes perfect clinical sense, even though I'm simply not using film much, I can't bring myself to leave an old friend.

Head says...ditch it, ditch it quick.

Heart says...but you might want to use a roll once in a while.




help me make it easier?

what do others think?

[gordon g]

I didnt have such a large investment in film kit - my lenses were all EOS mounts, so just went on the 1DsII when I switched from the 1V. But I still felt a bit reluctant to let the 1V go. I hung onto it for about a year without using it, then finally chopped it in against a 70-200 f2.8. My old EOS 300 is still going strong in the hands of my nephew.
On the whole, I have been very happy with digital - even when I was film based, I spent so much time scanning films and working with the digital version instead. The thing is though, every now and then I'll come across an old image taken on negative film, and think 'I couldnt have got that on digital' or something similar.
I think that's just nostalgia though - if I did go out and buy a secondhand 1V, it would just sit in the cupboard like the old one did. I'd do better upgrading my back-up body if I really cant resist the urge to buy some kit.

[yelvertoft]

It all depends on where you want to go with your photography. I was never able to do home developing or printing but I do still put a reel of mono through one of my film cameras now and again - usually the Rolleiflex or K1000. Prices for D&P are eye wateringly high now as it's so far off mainstream you have to seek out specialists to do this now. IIRC, last year I paid £18 for a reel of 36 B&W D&P (6"x4") from 35mm film. i haven't put a reel of 120 through the Rollei for a few years now, so shudder to think how much develop and contact sheet would be, probably about the same as above I suspect.

I do enjoy using my film cameras now and again, it slows me down, makes me think, think hard, about the picture I'm taking. And despite the fact the "printing" is now done on an inkjet - unless you go handprinted - there really is something "quality" about mono film.

I'd say keep a film camera, not necessarily the F5, ditch the D&P kit.

[Don Hoey]

If you rarely use film then I would say D2X. Knowing fast action is a major part of what you do then recognise that the D2X best quality is in the ISO100-200 range. If you are happy with that then you cannot go wrong. If I had still been using 35mm film when I got my X then that would have been the end of it for me.

Duncans comment on pricing has put me right off getting a roll of 120 to put through one of my other cameras.
Resetting up my darkroom would mean loosing my workshop.

I see you now have a D70s, and Foxy who has used his fathers D70, is best for commenting on image quality between the two to help in the decision making process.

Don

[Joe]

Thanks chaps.
I'm now asking myself how my photography would benefit from ditching the Processor, enlarger and last nikon film camera....now bitten the digi bug, and addicted to the ease and speed, it's a logical progression.
My plan.
Sell processor, enlarger, and nikon F5. Buy cheap film nikon to make me feel better...and probably put it on a shelf (F55 seem to be had for less than a tenner on ebay! lol)....then get a D2x
The D2h is great for speed. D70s is working out great for a walkabout (though I'm terrified of breaking it...i've even ordered a protective 'skin' for it).....but I want to do more and more studio and portrait pics....the D2x hopefully fits that bill.

[Don Hoey]

Originally Posted by Joe

.....but I want to do more and more studio and portrait pics....the D2x hopefully fits that bill.

Joe, I read the word 'hopefully', and had a good chuckle. The D2X is perfect in that environment and that is why I have one.

Don

[Joe]

I thought as much!
thanks Don

[Canis Vulpes]

D2x is perfect for sports / fast action too....

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Super...ire/1457137/L/

http://www.airliners.net/photo/De-Ha...89A/1426134/L/

http://www.airliners.net/photo/UK---...oon/1371676/L/

[yelvertoft]

Originally Posted by Joe

Buy cheap film nikon to make me feel better...and probably put it on a shelf (F55 seem to be had for less than a tenner on ebay! lol)...

Thought you had a display case full of old cameras? As long as you have the capability to use film, are you gaining anything photographically by having another camera such as an F55?

The two film cameras that get some use by me, sit on the shelf as ornaments 99.9% of the time. The z50P which is technically far more capable, sits in a bag in the cupboard 100% of the time. I doubt if it's even worth a tenner on ebay, so isn't worth selling.

If you want an F55 for aesthetic reasons, to sit on a shelf and be admired, then fine, go ahead and get one with some of the revenue raised by selling the F5. If you want a film camera primarily to look at, but want to be able to use now and again, then pick a model with a bit more of a classic look and feel, even if it's not one of the models that attracts premium prices. You're buying it because it's pretty, not a financial investment.

Duncan

[Joe]

Thought you had a display case full of old cameras? As long as you have the capability to use film, are you gaining anything photographically by having another camera such as an F55?

Ah, thanks Duncan......I've been rumbled! lol

Unfortunately, none in the cabinet have full compatability with the lenses I now use. The one I just bought last night wasn't much more expensive than the battery it takes! (fortunately comes with a 'new' one...hmm).
I'll still have a bulk roll of mono in a loader (so feel I can't sell), loads of empty cassettes and a small dev tank with the scanner. So, in theory I might just use it....

However, yes, you'll probably be correct....99.9% of the time it's gonna sit there!
I'm treating having a nikon film camera as a comfort blanket I guess!