{"id":19591,"date":"2014-07-22T02:00:18","date_gmt":"2014-07-22T09:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=19591"},"modified":"2014-07-22T03:13:51","modified_gmt":"2014-07-22T10:13:51","slug":"10-tips-on-shooting-street-photography-on-film","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/07\/22\/10-tips-on-shooting-street-photography-on-film\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Tips on Shooting Street Photography on Film"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Leica
Leica M2 of Callan Tham<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I have learned a few things about shooting street photography on film from my own experiences (and the advice of others). If you want to read the full list of things I learned shooting film– read more!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1. It is better to slightly over-expose than under-expose your photos. This is because it is easy to pull out details from highlights in film (while very difficult to recover details from the shadows). I have also discovered that slightly over-exposing color film brings out more saturated colors (around 1\/3-2\/3rds of a stop).<\/p>\n

2. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re pushing your film, mark what ISO you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re pushing it to directly on the film canister with a sharpie. I generally prefer doing this before I put the film into the camera, as I often forget to do it afterwards.<\/p>\n

3. If you are curious to shoot film and never have shot it before, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t splurge money on a Leica. Rather, start with the cheapest film camera you can find (eBay, flea market, your parents\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 closet) and experiment. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve shot with film for several months and really like it\u00e2\u20ac\u201d then invest in a better film camera.<\/p>\n

4. When shooting film on a rangefinder on ISO 400 film (during a sunny day) here are some good settings: f\/8 at 1\/1000th of a second in extremely bright sunlight, f\/8 at 1\/500th of a second when it is slightly less bright, f\/8 at 1\/250th of a second at the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153golden hour\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, f\/8 at 1\/125th in uncovered shade, f\/8 at 1\/60th when in darker shade.<\/p>\n

5. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be afraid to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153waste\u00e2\u20ac\u009d your film by only taking 1 shot of a scene. Rather, work the scene and even shoot an entire roll of film on a scene if you think it is interesting enough.<\/p>\n

6. When experimenting with a new film or camera, do the following: take a series of photos of a friend in different lighting conditions with different apertures and shutter speeds. For each shot, write down the settings you used in a notebook (and the lighting situations). Once you get the film developed and scanned, cross-reference your photos with your notes. Then you will get a better sense of the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153ideal\u00e2\u20ac\u009d settings to use on your camera for the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153look\u00e2\u20ac\u009d you want.<\/p>\n

7. I think it is good to experiment with a lot of different types of films\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but once you find a film you are about 80% happy with, I recommend sticking with it. It helps you have a more consistent aesthetic look \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and also helps you better understand the nuances of each film (how resilient it is to over\/underexposure, how it looks during the day or at night, and the color or contrast of it).<\/p>\n

8. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re shooting ISO 400 film, you won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have any problems in airport x-ray scanners. ISO 800-1600 might pose a problem.<\/p>\n

9. I generally get 1 photo I am proud of in every 50 rolls of film. Use this as a guideline\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you will rarely take good street photographs. Of course, your mileage will vary.<\/p>\n

10. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel bad about \u00e2\u20ac\u0153wasting money\u00e2\u20ac\u009d shooting film. Rather, see it as an \u00e2\u20ac\u0153investment\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u201d that will bring you boundless amounts of joy (more than any digital camera ever will, imho).<\/p>\n

Learn more about film<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Kodak
Kodak Portra 400<\/a>, my film of choice for color.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n