Lars Michael wrote:
>
> "Pro" film tends to be "better" than cosumer grade film,
> either in grain, sharpness, color rendition, contrast,
> reciprocity response, or a combination of these. Perhaps
> the film choice doesn't matter so much for "consumer"
> applications, E.g. occasional projecting or for 8x12 or
> 12x18 enlargements. Provia F slides hold up very well
> at 40x and higher maginifications.
Yes, if we define pro film as "Velvia and Provia F", I agree.
These are IMHO the slide films with the smallest grain and
- especially Velvia - best resolution. While I like Provia F,
both in ISO 100 and 400, the Velvia colors are "too much"
for my taste, so I rarely use it. But other consumer grade film,
be it Fuji or Kodak, still project quite good and are sufficient
for my needs - and probably for most professional applications
as well, although people are kind of spoiled by the widespread use
of Velvia and nowadays also Provia F. ;-) Still, other films
project still better - and much cheaper - than any digital 3MP
file. So, as long as I compare them to digital and not against the
best films available, they are still quite good and much cheaper.
> Are you in Germany? I thought slide film was more like
> $35 for ten rolls. Of course that's still just a third
> of what I have to pay in the US.
Sensia 2 is about $3 (or even less with the current exchange rates,
in German money it's about DM 6 or 6.50) per roll including
processing. This is no pro lab processing of course, but they do
a very reasonable job. Pro lab processing will about double the
price per roll.
>
> Let me exagurate a little bit. If you shoot using a coke
> bottle it doesn't really matter what type of film is used.
> I noticed a world of difference when I switched from "plastic"
> and consumer lenses like the 28-80 and 75-300 IS to L glass.
> And I noticed some more improvement when I started using
> Provia instead of Sensia II.
>
There is a difference, but it's not like coke bottle vs L glass.
Also not like consumer glass vs L glass. Not even like 3MP vs 6MP.
It's noticeable, though.
> Of course, emulsions improve all the time, so a consumer
> emulsion today might perform better than a "pro" emulsion
> from yesteryear. But today's "pro" film will have been
> improved, too.
>
> 1GB Microdrives sell for approx. $350 nowadays.
>
Sounds quite reasonable.
> As far as resolution goes goes, Digital probably isn't
> quite there yet, but as image quality go, it compares very
> favorably:
>
> http://www.luminous-landscape.com/d30_vs_film.htm
>
There has been discussion about this topic here on the list
and elsewhere. Personally, I think the comparison is a little
skewed. Maybe not for the purposes of the articles author, but
as a general statement.
> Output slides from my D30 look like shots taken on 200 ASA
> film, the grain is certainly more pronounced than Provia
> 100F. (This might be more of an issue of the emulsion used
> for film recording.)
I'll just have to believe you.
>
> At this rate I'll reach the break-even point by the end of
> this year - at which poing I'll consider an upgrade to the
> EOS D1v (or whatever it'll be called).
I don't doubt that. Still, the focal length / angle of view
problem persists, which is a BIG problem for me.
Thomas Bantel
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