Welding Teacher Loc: Greeneville, TN

I picked up a Mamiya 645 and 80mm lens today for $150.00 Don't really care what it cost today as back in the day I always wanted one.

I was wondering how people Hale their processing. Are the services that include scans of the film the way to go or its it best to get it processed and invest in a scanner. From what I've seen the recommended scanners that do quality scans are out if the question for me. I'm just looking for something above the APS-C image.

Thanks for any info. Of course if I am as shutter happy with this as I am with digital I would have been better off with a full frame camera.

Maybe it will make me think a little more about what I am shooting and quit spending so much time ”correcting".

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

I do shoot quite a lot with Medium Format. I usually shoot slides (Fuji Velvia) and yes, I do watch slides still on the big screen (and I love it). You are probably getting the highest quality scan by doing it yourself, but you need a good scanner (and you're already said, that is out of the question). You should try out ScanCafe, their prices are really down to earth and the quality is rather nice. Definitely worth a try. Oh, Congratulations on your new camera, have fun!!!

ArgusSnap1 Loc: Indiana

Hi--you can have your film developed through "The Darkroom" mail order processing service and they include a cd for a very reasonable price. You can opt out of having prints, or have a contact sheet made--but the cd is included with the film processing. This includes color and b/w film processing. I have used them once and was pleased. They also will email your photo's to you before you get your mailed package--then you use facebook with an easy link--but I do not use Facebook. If you do not want your photos posted on the internet you can call them an talk to them about that. I believe they just send thm to your email and what you do is up to you. They also have a contest-but then you risk photos on facebook--I do not use. This HOG site is the only site I participate in so far and I like it'small town feel to it.Thanks

Kuzano

That's a great price on a very good Camera. I owned and shot a bunch of the Mamiya 645 camera's until I went to a bigger 6X9cm 120 roll film. (Don't spend money for a 220 back, as 220 film has largely disappeared. Lots of emulsions still available in 120 as pros still use MF a lot) The 645 format and Marijuana are much alike. 645 is a gateway format to larger and more refined film sizes. I now shoot 6X9 and 4X5... a lot.

Processing/scanning... probably going to have to use a mail process lab.

However, I discovered that my local Walmart super store and the lesser store in another nearby town, both SEND OUT (KEY WORDS HERE) 120 roll film to Fujifilms professional processing labs. They ship on their trucks at no cost. They never open the envelope or touch your film IN THE STORE. All handling and processing is done at the Fujifilm labs. Negatives and Prints have never cost me more than $10 per roll. I pick up Fuji Envelopes and write my instructions on them and Drop Them In The Fujifilm kiosk usually in the photo department or electronics.

This is not a well known service within Walmart. They often do not know what you are talking about. So, I don't talk to them or ask questions about the service. The store employees simpy do not know, nor are they trained in this. In fact, sometimes the Fujifilm kiosk is not out on the floor. I have actually informed some stores of a program they do not know they have in certain stores.

I seal the film in the envelopes, drop the envelope in the kiosk, it goes in a send out only bag on a Walmart truck, to a Fuji lab where it is professionally processed. Fujifilm puts the results in a sealed envelope..the one you used originally, Shipped back to the originating store free. Walmart calls you to tell you your film is back. They do not unseal the envelope.

My experience in three different Walmart Stores over 15 years has been.

Great results but they don't do scans. Superb processing.
Never a lost roll
Never a bad image that was their fault... only mine
Never more than ten business days out and back
Never over $10 in all that time. Often on just process and roll in a card board tube $2 - $4.
Never touched in the store.

In spite of the fact that Walmart (and most other stores that used to process film) has changed markedly the way they do 135 (35mm film), this Send Out Only program has never changed on me. Did my last roll this way a month ago.

I understand that some stores in the Walmart chain don't do this for geographical reasons like Fujifilm lab locations, but there are also many stores that profess that they don't do it, but a persistent method of follow up has proven that many stores do it, but employees are not aware of the program. Even the photo department managers. I persist. I even located the Kiosk in the back room of one store and got them to put it out in the store.

Refreshingly, I found a young lady who was the photo department manager, and she even knew what medium format film was. After I got off the floor we had a nice converstion. She's not at that particular store any more. Moved on.

Anyhoo, if you have questions on this, please feel free to PM me. I have pics of what a filled out envelope looks like, and I keep a dozen or so fresh envelopes handy at all times.

Again, otherwise, I buy most of my 120 roll film on eBay. I've been buying and selling film camera's on eBay for fifteen years. It's both thriving and growing and prices for quality film camera's have been going up. (You got a super deal... if it's nice, you could probably double your money on eBay with a well thought out listing and proper auction scheme)

I have no problem buying out of date film as much as ten years as long as it's been refrigerated. I do not often encounter color shift or degraded images because of expiration. I occasionally buy fresh, but save so much money on recent expire film. There are some very good sellers on eBay with lots of positive feedback. So much feedback in fact on some that you know they can't be selling cooked expired film.

Have fun with it. It's always nice to shoot a medium that will still create better images than the best digital camera's yet made... often.

And your last comment is a KEY consideration for one of the big advantages of film over digital. You will NOT be doing Spray and Pray, or Chimping that Mamiya. Also no pixel peeking until after the scan. The scanned files will be big. Lost of headroom on 645 and up.

As far as scanning is concerned I am wet chemistry. In fact my current film processing chemicals are Folgers Instant Coffee, Vitamin C (crushed) and Washing Soda. The process is called Caffenol... very popular niche market. You can process both film AND prints using Caffenol processing.

GC likes NIKON Loc: East Greenwich, Rhode Island

Take a look at these prices on refurbished scanners direct from Epson. No sales tax and sometimes free shipping !!

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/BuyEpson/ccProductCategory.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&oid=-13268

I bought my V500 here for $99.00 and couldn't be happier with the quality.

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

I think you can't compare the scans from a flatbed to a dedicated film scanner.

Welding Teacher Loc: Greeneville, TN

Thanks for the responses everyone. I am really looking forward to trying some film with a little more forethought going into the image.

I did out the options at the darkroom site and the scancafe site so I see I have somewhere to start. The prices on some of the refurb epson scanners look good too. They may be an option for me to look closer a my images and then if needed ,send the negatives/slides somewhere else f they seem worthy of something more.

I am even thinking about trying some of my own processing. I did it for awhile many years ago but only E6 and b/w. But a few messed up rolls of 120 loading film reels discouraged me from that film and processing myself. But now-Maybe I'm more patient.

Need to just get the camera 1st.

Again-I appreciate the comments. And Caffenol, COOL. I like some of the effects on many of the images I just looked at on flickr.

Have a good day

Gerald

pete-m Loc: Casper, WY

Hi Kuzano,

quote
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As far as scanning is concerned I am wet chemistry. In fact my current film processing chemicals are Folgers Instant Coffee, Vitamin C (crushed) and Washing Soda. The process is called Caffenol... very popular niche market. You can process both film AND prints using Caffenol processing.
----------------------------

Is this a joke? Is this for Tri-X? Does it really work? Does Photographers Formulary have it? Never mind, I Googled it and it's for real!!!! I may have to break out my 4x5 again. Does it work on fiber paper?

Pete :D

GoofyNewfie Loc: Kansas City

Endorsed by Juan Valdez!

olcoach Loc: Oregon

I have the same camera and it has been a lot of fun learning how to use it. It's more expensive to process film than digital but the camera was a hell of a lot cheaper. As long as it's fun you have to try it.

Kuzano

Absolutely legit... a couple of great blogs on caffenol on the net. Lots of very exciting info on the net.

There was an extended..VERY extended... thread on www.rangefinderforum.com a couple of months ago with a vast range of suggestions, questions and so on. In fact, i copied and pasted all the good posts and I collected 146 pages of information posted by a ton of people who are really wringing out Caffenol for all it's worth. I have a Caffenol favorites list on my browser, and I think I have about 25 to 30 sites earmarked. Crazy stuff.

And if you think I may be pulling a leg, I have the five inch thick Photo Lab Index by Henry Lester, published in 1947 and have been wading through that since the Sixties.

Caffenol is one of the fun things I have done with wet processing in all that time. I love that it's flexible enough to do both film, and print processing out of the same jar marked Folgers that you walk past in the grocery store every time you are there.

NO SCANNING NECESSARY.

Also, I have had three of the Epson V500 scanners. Buy, get frustrated, sell.... try it again later. Worst part of the conversion from film to digital...Scanning. Not working for me. But I am a very critical pixel peeker.

houdel Loc: Chase, Michigan USA

I have a Mamiya RB67 and encountered the same problem. There is no place anywhere near me to get 120 film processed so I asked the same question here and on a number of other sites. I came up with a lot of mail-in places and put them all in a big spreadsheet. You can access it with the following link:

http://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgxzTdaSqIyndGlPNkhzV0c0S2E3Q2VmUXZqeUtOeWc#gid=0

problem child Loc: Kingman AZ

Welding Teacher Loc: Greeneville, TN

The spreadsheet is great. Thanks.
Gonna try some side by side to my d5100 and see what I think about this whole film thing.

Alan1729 Loc: England UK, now New York State.

I used to process my own B&W colour neg and colour slide when I had a very nice Roliflex twin lens with the best lens I've owned the zeiss planar 80mm 2.8, I could enlarge with a half frame lens a small part of a neg and still read a notice. I am so sorry I parted with it. I've used the Epson V500 it's OK and Many times cheaper than a 6x6 film scanner. Anyway have fun all you medium formatters.