c/film-photo-newbies

First roll back from the lab and I had to pick between two very different cameras

I got into this a few months back with a hand-me-down Pentax K1000 and a cheap point-and-shoot I found at a yard sale. My first roll of film was done, and I had to choose which camera to load the next one into. The Pentax is heavy and makes me think about every setting, while the point-and-shoot is just aim and click. I went with the Pentax for a walk around my local park, forcing myself to use the light meter and actually focus. Got the scans back today, and out of 24 shots, I have three that I really like. That's a win for me. The others are blurry or too dark, but those three good ones feel earned. Has anyone else stuck with the harder camera at first and been glad they did?

I loaded my film backwards for an entire month

I kept getting blank rolls back from the lab in Denver and thought my camera was broken. The guy at the photo shop finally asked to watch me load a roll and just started laughing. Has anyone else made a mistake that obvious when they were starting out?

Vent: I blew $80 on a 'vintage' light meter that was totally busted

Honestly, bought it off a guy at a flea market who said it was 'untested'. The needle just sticks at zero, so it's a fancy paperweight. Anyone know a decent budget model that actually works?

I shot a whole roll of Portra 400 at box speed in my basement and wondered why it looked so flat

For months I kept getting these dull, muddy photos indoors, and I just blamed my cheap camera. Then a guy at the local camera shop in Spokane asked if I ever pushed the film for low light, which I'd never even heard of. Has anyone else had a lightbulb moment about pushing film that fixed their indoor shots?

Warning: my first try with expired film was a total surprise

I shot a roll of Kodak Gold that was 5 years past its date, expecting just faded colors. Instead, the whole roll came back with these wild, grainy red and green tints I never planned for. Has anyone else gotten cool mistakes from old film they liked?

Bought a $25 light meter app and it saved my whole roll

Shot a roll of Portra 400 at a friend's indoor party last weekend, lighting was all over the place. My phone app gave me perfect readings when my camera's meter was confused. Ended up with maybe two usable shots without it. Anyone else rely on an app, or do you stick to the camera's built-in meter?

Just picked up a $50 Pentax K1000 after debating between that and a Canon AE-1 for months.

The K1000's fully manual controls forced me to learn exposure basics way faster than I would have with the AE-1's auto mode, so what other beginner-friendly cameras should I look at next?

Vent: Loading my first roll of film took me 45 minutes

I got my first camera, a Pentax K1000, and the film would not catch on the take-up spool. I kept pulling the leader out and trying again, thinking I was lining it up wrong. After about 30 tries, I finally saw a tiny metal hook inside the spool that I needed to slide the film under. I felt so silly for missing it. Has anyone else had a simple step that totally blocked them when starting out?

Rant: I picked the wrong film speed for a whole day of shooting and it hurt

I was in Seattle for a weekend and had to choose between shooting my last roll of 400 speed film or pushing a 100 speed roll to 800. I went with pushing the 100 because I wanted the higher speed for indoors. I set my camera to 800 and shot the whole roll in mixed light. The lab just sent back the scans and everything shot outside in sun is completely blown out and washed out. Has anyone else messed up a push this bad and did you manage to save any shots?

My friend said to always bracket shots on film and I thought it was a waste

For my first few rolls, I just trusted my light meter and shot each picture once. My friend kept telling me to bracket, which means taking the same picture at different settings, but I thought it was silly with film costing so much. Then I shot a whole roll of my niece's birthday party in Portland last month, and the indoor light was really tricky. The whole roll came back too dark because my meter was fooled. If I had bracketed even just a few key shots, I would have had something to keep. Now I bracket any shot I really care about, usually taking one at what the meter says, one a stop brighter, and one a stop darker. It uses a bit more film, but it saves the shot. Do you all bracket often, or do you have another way to deal with tricky light?

Showerthought: My dad told me to stop counting frames and just look

I was visiting my folks in Ohio last weekend and showing my dad my new-to-me Canon AE-1. He asked how many shots I got from a roll, and I said I was trying to make each one count. He laughed and said, 'When I was your age, I just looked for the light. The camera counts for you.' For some reason, that simple idea hit different. I've been so focused on the technical stuff, like getting exactly 36 photos, that I miss good moments while checking my frame counter. It made me put the camera to my eye more often without overthinking. Has anyone else had a simple piece of advice that got you to relax and just shoot more?

Just realized I've been overthinking the whole 'perfect shot' thing

I was at the camera shop and heard a guy say he just points his old Pentax at stuff he likes and hopes for the best. It made me think I should stop worrying so much about every single setting. Has anyone else found that just shooting more rolls, even with mistakes, helped you learn faster?

I finally spent $40 on a changing bag for loading my film and it saved me from ruining three rolls in my bright apartment.

Has anyone found a cheaper or better way to load film without a darkroom?

My dad called my film camera a 'hipster toy' and I almost lost it

He said 'why waste money on old tech when your phone takes perfect pictures?' I was showing him my shots from a roll of Portra 400, and he just didn't get it. It hit different because he used to shoot film himself back in the 80s. Now I'm wondering, how do you explain the point of film to people who think it's just a fad?

My $40 light meter app turned out to be the best thing I bought

I got into film a few months ago and kept messing up exposures, especially indoors. My camera is old and the built-in meter is broken. I was about to drop over a hundred bucks on a handheld meter, but a guy at the local camera shop told me to try an app first. I was skeptical, but I got one called Lightme for my phone. It cost about forty dollars. I used it for a shoot in my dimly lit apartment last week, and my photos came back perfectly exposed. No more guessing or wasting film. It's not perfect for every situation, but for starting out, it saved me a lot of money and frustration. Has anyone else had good luck with a specific meter app, or should I still plan on getting a physical one down the road?

A guy at the film lab in Portland told me to shoot my whole first roll at the same setting

I dropped off my first roll of Kodak Gold 200 at a lab last week, feeling pretty lost. The guy at the counter, Mark, saw me looking confused and said to just set my camera to f/8 and 1/250 for every shot on my next roll to really see how the film reacts. It made the whole thing feel less scary. Has anyone else tried a method like this when they were starting out?

Trying to load my first roll of 35mm took me 45 minutes

The film leader kept slipping out of the take-up spool, and I was too scared to open the back to check. Any tricks to get it to catch on the first try?

My first roll of film came back with a weird green tint

I shot a roll of Kodak Gold 200 in my grandpa's old camera last week. The pictures from the start of the roll were fine, but the last ten shots had this strong green color cast. I realized I'd left the camera on a sunny car seat for an hour after finishing the roll, and the heat must have messed with the film. Has anyone else cooked their film by accident?

I finally got my night shots to come out right after trying a trick with my old Pentax K1000

I think the advice to always shoot expired film is wrong

I was at a camera swap meet in Portland last weekend and saw a lot of people selling old film. They kept saying it's fine to use and gives cool colors. I bought a roll of Kodak Gold from 2005 to test it. After I got my photos back, half of them were flat and grainy, and two shots were just blank. I wasted about $15 on developing for pictures I can't use. I know some people like the look, but telling new folks it's always okay feels like bad advice. Have you had a roll that just didn't work at all?

Just realized I've shot 12 rolls of film and only gotten 3 photos I actually like

That's about 288 frames for maybe three keepers. I'm using a Pentax K1000 with mostly Kodak Gold 200. Is this a normal ratio when you're starting, or am I doing something wrong?

My uncle told me to always check the film door before loading

He's been shooting film since the 70s and said, 'If you don't see the take-up spool move when you advance the lever, stop.' I loaded a roll of Portra 400 last week, shot the whole thing, and felt that sick feeling when I rewound it in three seconds. The film never caught. I lost 36 shots of my kid's birthday. Has anyone else had this happen, and how do you make sure it's loaded right?

My film got stuck in the camera at a friend's wedding

I was trying to rewind my second roll of Kodak Gold 200 after the ceremony in Portland, and the rewind knob just spun freely without pulling the film back. I had to wait until I got home, open the camera back in a dark bathroom, and manually wind the film into the canister by feel. Has anyone else had a film advance gear fail like this on an old SLR?

My film choice disaster at the county fair

So I went to the fair last weekend and only had one roll left, a 36-exposure roll of Kodak Gold 200. I had to pick between shooting the whole thing on the rides at sunset or saving half for the animal barns and food stalls. I went all in on the rides, thinking the moving lights would look amazing. Big mistake. I forgot how slow that film is in fading light without a flash. My shots of the Ferris wheel are just dark blurs with a few weird light streaks. I got the roll back yesterday and my friend just said, 'What were you even aiming at?' Has anyone else totally misjudged the light with a film they thought they knew? I need better low-light tips for next time.

My uncle, a lifelong darkroom guy, insisted I always use a tripod for 400 speed film and I finally saw why when my first roll of Portra 400 came back blurry from hand-holding in low light.

Has anyone else found a specific speed where you just can't trust your hands anymore?