I'm interested in the thoughts of rail photographers about the pros/cons
of 400 ISO film. I've
been photographing trains seriously for about 7 years, with a variety of
cameras, generally with Kodak
100 ISO film. In more recent times, I've been using 400 ISO, but have
been generally
disappointed with the results.
I find it difficult to produce consistently good results in dull
lighting conditions with the 400.
My prints are always grainy, often muddy, and generally lack 'sharpness'
and contrast. I've never had problems
consistently focussing on my subject, be it moving or stationary (I'm
one from the old school
who likes to use a manual focus SLR, and focussing has never been a
problem), but with 400
film I find my prints rarely have the 'pin sharp' look - I think this is
largely due to the
graininess of the film. In dull lighting this is really noticeable, and
the results are poor.
Looking back through my earlier photo's, I have photo's in bright sunny
weather, dull
overcast weather, and even many time exposures with 100 ASA film - all
are sharp and clear.
The dull days produce dullish prints (but they are still sharply
focussed), which are a
reasonably reproduction of the lighting of the day.
But with 400, I generally get reasonable results in good weather (still
lack sharp edges and
look out of focus), and poor results in dull light, with lots of grain,
poor colour, and no contrast.
Do any other photographers have any suggestions/experiences they can
share with me? I
expected to be getting generally better results with 400 ISO film, but
am very disappointed,
and will be trying 100 again next time! Note that all my work is in
colour, with Kodak film.
While on the subject of photography, Bacchus Marsh must surely be the
best place for
photographing trains in Victoria (in terms of location - pity there's
hardly any worthwhile trains
passing through these days), and yet the worst place in terms of railfan
behaviour. The
number of railfans who walk in front of you and show total disregard for
others seems always
be worse at 'the Marsh', which is a real pity because the large yard
area and semaphore
signals are perfect for photography.
Cheers,
Craig.
-- Craig Haber albatross@harnessnet.com.au Manufacturing Systems Engineer (almost) Web Page Designer, Harness Racing, Railways, and Essendon Football Club fanatic http://www.harnessnet.com.au/