Use of X-ray film: technical discussion with example images

[photoevangelist]

Well, it will take me a while to get up to speed. I have been doing half digital, half wet, but my D800 so pissed me off I sold it at a huge loss. I want images, not electronic marvels that don't work. Too expensive playing digital one up-man-ship games that is just getting worse. Now we need 4K video cameras and next week 8K video.

I like your 'look'. To print like that with my Canon Pro 1 printer, I need a lot of black ink. I hope to finish my darkroom and move to all wet.

My shooting studio is small, but I have strobes and led's on wall booms. I'm kinda old and beat up to compete, but I will give it a try.

Big cameras here we come, since big film IS available and affordable.

Thanks for all the inspiration!

I'm so close to selling my 5D M2. Already sold 3 Canon lenses. It just doesn't get used at all. I'll be taking a major loss too. This is why I want to get out of the digital rat race. These 100+ cameras and lenses are still good and beat the quality of my digital. Even when it surpasses its quality, it won't be nearly the fun of saying, "I shoot xray film." It causes so much interest. My students are loving the large reversed images on the ground glass. I got a call from a major Korean English TV channel yesterday. They want to do an interview on me (because I'm a foreign photographer). This will be my chance to evangelize large format, xray film, and darkroom work. If I was using a DSLR, I'd be just as interesting as all the other brother's mother's sister's cousin's friends with one.

Love all the new work here! It's exciting! Just did 5 more portraits yesterday, hoping to develop them all (one at a time) today. I've decided to go with a yellow filter. The green filter is my favorite, but it requires two extra stops, meaning I have to shoot at F8 (lens is F6.8). With the yellow, it's a similar effect, it reduces contrast, but I had to add a filter grade (1.5 to 2.5) to get the feeling I wanted (making it more contrasty than the no- lens filter image. But I do like the look. Green was really nice but my F32 strobe light +2 for bellows extension and +2 for filter at ISO 160 caused me to reconsider. The Yellow is ever so slightly more contrasty when printed with the same 2.5 filter, but only adding one extra stop for filter, so I can shoot at F11. I need to upload some examples - prints are being flattened.

[Tin Can]

Well, I am keeping my D7000 and P7000. I use that little Nikon P7000 more than any other camera for scouting, test shots, and of course pictures of cameras for sale...

Checked your links. Nice. Sounds like you enjoy Korea. A few years back I tried to teach in China, but was somehow refused. Very confusing, as I exceed all requirements. I might be too old.

You are right about the pleasure of saying, 'I am shooting X-Ray film.' Sounds so exotic, if only they knew.

The digital rat race is very appropriate, especially if your interest is portrait. We don't need insane resolution, high ISO's or super sharp new lenses. What we do need is desire, film and a few old things that most people see as junk.

Looking forward to your new prints!

I'm so close to selling my 5D M2. Already sold 3 Canon lenses. It just doesn't get used at all. I'll be taking a major loss too. This is why I want to get out of the digital rat race. These 100+ cameras and lenses are still good and beat the quality of my digital. Even when it surpasses its quality, it won't be nearly the fun of saying, "I shoot xray film." It causes so much interest. My students are loving the large reversed images on the ground glass. I got a call from a major Korean English TV channel yesterday. They want to do an interview on me (because I'm a foreign photographer). This will be my chance to evangelize large format, xray film, and darkroom work. If I was using a DSLR, I'd be just as interesting as all the other brother's mother's sister's cousin's friends with one.

Love all the new work here! It's exciting! Just did 5 more portraits yesterday, hoping to develop them all (one at a time) today. I've decided to go with a yellow filter. The green filter is my favorite, but it requires two extra stops, meaning I have to shoot at F8 (lens is F6.8). With the yellow, it's a similar effect, it reduces contrast, but I had to add a filter grade (1.5 to 2.5) to get the feeling I wanted (making it more contrasty than the no- lens filter image. But I do like the look. Green was really nice but my F32 strobe light +2 for bellows extension and +2 for filter at ISO 160 caused me to reconsider. The Yellow is ever so slightly more contrasty when printed with the same 2.5 filter, but only adding one extra stop for filter, so I can shoot at F11. I need to upload some examples - prints are being flattened.

[ghostcount]

ghostcount - single light. But angles very carefully to desired poi Since i got my modeling lights working properly and track setup - my shooting pace increased dramatically and i also no longer have need for polaroid/digichimping tests, which is brilliant

Those 'points of interests' are desirable indeed. Truly amazing work.

[SergeiR]

iso50 shot, processed 7:30m in 1+100 Rodinal, constant agitation.

old convertible symmar (300/500 one) gives different rendition of tones, and she was a bit too tanned in comparition to most of people i shoot (spray on). And of course - blonde hair.. Worst nightmare comes true right there - hell to light by itself and she wanted that backlit kind of shot..

getting a bit too much details in highlights actually (had to pull highlights up a tad in scan), and shadowed face was a bit on thinning side, not entirely happy how i overlooked hand.. but oh well

oh and no filter. Straight CSG film.


Scan-130331-0005www by Sergei Rodionov, on Flickr

[Tin Can]

Shooting women to their order is very tough business.

Best thing about film, is that they can't chimp.

When digital, I now set up a monitor rotated to portrait right on the studio stand and give them a remote. They can chimp for hours. I even use it for self portraits. Guilty.

I also prefer pale and dark.

[photoevangelist]

iso50 shot, processed 7:30m in 1+100 Rodinal, constant agitation.

old convertible symmar (300/500 one) gives different rendition of tones, and she was a bit too tanned in comparition to most of people i shoot (spray on). And of course - blonde hair.. Worst nightmare comes true right there - hell to light by itself and she wanted that backlit kind of shot..

getting a bit too much details in highlights actually (had to pull highlights up a tad in scan), and shadowed face was a bit on thinning side, not entirely happy how i overlooked hand.. but oh well

oh and no filter. Straight CSG film.


Scan-130331-0005www by Sergei Rodionov, on Flickr

Where do you get your models?? Every single woman is centerfold gorgeous!

[SergeiR]

Shooting women to their order is very tough business.

I am always sticking with advice Eli Reed gave me a few years back. If they hire/work with you - "they work with you for reason of getting your style, even though they might not realize it. So just do your thing or dont do it at all".

[SergeiR]

Where do you get your models?? Every single woman is centerfold gorgeous!

Well.. Not every, lets be honest there. Its like not every photo makes it out of dark room 8)

[Jim Noel]

So far I've read 364 of inches in this thread. The discussion goes back and forth between stripping and not stripping. My overall observation is that the more experienced workers like Jim Fitzgerald prefer not to strip. I agree with him. The only reason I can see for stripping is careless handling of the film.

Perhaps workers won't and began using large-format film the last 20 or 25 years never learned how to handle film without scratching it. Those of us who go back to the 1930s well remember how easy it was to scratch the film, and this film had no emulsion on the base side.

I presume that most scratches, or at least many of them, a curve while sliding the film into the holder. I was taught at a very young age to never do that. My method involves removing the dark slide completely then slipping as much of one long edge under a lip as possible, then by putting a slight bow into the film pop the other edge under the other lip. Then it is necessary to all slide the film a fraction of an inch in order to have it seated correctly. Frankly, I'm at a loss to understand how people slide 8 x 10, 7 x 17, or other large film into the holder. I've never tried to do so.

I realize that some scratching occurs during processing, but also notice that the careful experienced workers don't have a problem.

Think about your film handling and how it might be improved.
I hope this helps.

Jim

[Jim Noel]

The tubes for the film in Expert drums are not cylinders, they are barrel shaped, thus allowing chemicals to flow on the back side of the film.