Any Old Canon Camera enthusiasts here?

[Turin]

I now have a couple of 50 Year old 35mm cameras. The first is a Canon F1 and the second is a Canon FTb. Assorted lenses and some accessories. This is going to be a new hobby. Go ride, stop and take some nature pictures, bike pictures etc.

Why are there two cameras in this set up? Do photographers usually bring a back up? Maybe one is for black and white film?

Anyone have film recommendations?

What are the different lenses for? Website recommendations to learn how to use the things?

Thanks!

[John A]

I found some info here https://youtu.be/r5pced0-PbM?si=P0dyswVkD9VtGigF

[normzone]

I wore out a couple of A1 bodies, using 20mm, 50mm, and a long lens (memory gap).

Good times - shot so much 35mm film I had to roll my own. I still have the muscle memory, could probably operate one in pitch darkness, even though I moved on to diving and spearfishing circa 2000.

[Turin]

I've figured out how to open them and watched a video about loading film. Thank you Youtube. I like that these are all mechanical.

Norm, film recommendations?

[chuck peterson]

I suggest a long visit to the , gasp, library..check out the photo/art section. Not the how to section…find an artist you like and try imitating for a week or two…pick another and fool around w their style of fotos. When you walk out of the house w a camera in hand you’ll have some direction to shoot….some focus, shall I say?…

Great fun

Film choices…

Color Slide, or transparency film..
send the exposed film away…it comes back and you hold up a thumbnail sized piece of film to see the image after it’s come back from processing ..if you want a bigger print you need to go out into the world. Pharmacies usually have this service tucked away in the back, or go boutique w a quality lab (very rare and getting rarer)

Black and White..
send the film away for processing, machine auto prints come back. You have film negatives and a 4 x6 print. Same as color slides to printing

Color negative, to make prints..machine prints w color film negatives and 4x6 negatives. Same as above for larger prints

Film speed, or ASA, denoted as a number from 25 to 2400..the higher the number the gritty-er things get…you can generally buy any film choice above in any speed. Slow 25-64-100 speed films are smoother and carry more details, used more for artworks…higher film speed can capture the instantaneous under low light conditions, more for photojournalism and news

Let’s see….(flips thru notes from 30 years professional fotography…)

Less is more…i never understood taking ‘a lot’ of pictures..try one at a time. One practice is to take one ‘arty’ shot a day. A month later you have 36 genuine attempts…it makes you think ‘do I want this on my wall, or a gift to someone, or am I just snapping and moving on?’

If you’re shooting film, the end result is an image, as a print, held in your hand or up on a wall…Not the collection of tools it takes to create an image…

Class dismissed..see you next week. Chapters 2 and 3 test questions are due…read up on critical exposure adjustments for color slides..review the major film manufacturers and their film types…handle the camera adjusting up and down shutter speed and aperture…

Start visiting John Paul Caponigro website for way more information than you can absorb

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Paul_Caponigro

[AJ Huff]

I send my film to thedarkroom.com. You'll get your negatives backs and jpg scans on a disc.

-AJ

[LowRyter]

film is an expensive hobby

[slowmover]

Used this AT-1 for years. Still in perfect shape. The plastic case not so much.

[Turin]

Chuck, Great Stuff! Artsy /B&W and slow speed is the direction I want to go. I used to love libraries, shame I haven't been in one since college. What's the difference between color slide and transparency film?

[AJ Huff]

Slide/transparency same thing.

Slide film going to run around $25/roll.

Color negative around $15/roll.

B&W negative around $10/roll.

I buy from Adorama or B&H depending on supply and price.

-AJ

[guzziart]

Gave my AE1 to my daughter 20+ years, probably collecting dust at her place somewhere.

[Tom]

I still have my FTB.  Heavy because of the aluminum used for the body.  Most of my slides are with that camera.  Loads of hot air ballooning Chandler, Fountain Hills & Scottsdale area. 

[MerleLowe]

I have no experience with the F1 but I have a few FTbs and they work well when right.  The first thing I would do is make sure the cameras are working correctly.  You want to test that the aperture and shutter speeds change when you change settings.  Do this before loading film or you film becomes your test :)  Test the light meter too. 

I would use inexpensive film while you are learning.  Fuji for color and Kentmere for B&W.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1759047-REG/fujifilm_600022184_400_color_negative_film.html
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/601035-REG/Kentmere_6010465_Kentmere_35mm_Black_and.html 

Learn the basics around aperture, focal length and shutter speed and how that affects the look of the photo before composition.  That way when you know what you want your end result to be, you know how to make it happen with the tools at hand.

a FTb will get the job done...

[normzone]

I liked ASA 400 for it's shoot in any light capability, but shooting ASA 100 all the time and going with whatever shutter speed you had to use to get the shot led to some interesting results.

Some people shoot carefully arranged moments and conserve film, I liked to blaze away and see what was captured. Of course, I had a darkroom, so that helped. I prided myself on catching people in the moment before they became bored and adapted their "photo face". Also, people ... everybody wants to do a different kind of art, and that's cool, but for me if there were no humans in the picture it was just wallpaper.

It's different now that everyone carries a camera (phone), people are used to being photographed.

And film is an expensive hobby, digital allows for more experimentation at lower cost.

[chuck peterson]

(Don’t tell anyone, but freeprints.com will give you 85 4x6 prints per month)

(Free.)

And, they are beautiful prints..just download from your digital camera phone

The hook is they figure you will order more larger prints.

[MerleLowe]

What lenses did you get with the cameras?

[Turin]

I have a few. I guess the 230 is for spying on sunbathers from the roof? 
A Tokina 230mm
A Canon 135mm
A Canon 100mm
A Canon 50mm
A Canon 28mm
A Samigon cf1auto teleplus 2x

[Turin]

got my film on the way!

[normzone]

Very cool - I've heard film geek tales.

Sometimes I used whatever brand I could get a good deal on, but there were photogs with brand loyalty, or connoisseurs who liked one brand for a particular use, but approached it as one would wine at other levels.

The emulsion that goes on the plastic media ages, and some folks would buy batches and store them in temp control zones, waiting for the emulsion to mature to the optimal level.

It's kind of like an oil thread ...

[Chuck in Indiana]

I prided myself on catching people in the moment before they became bored and adapted their "photo face".

this

[MerleLowe]

I have a few. I guess the 230 is for spying on sunbathers from the roof? 
A Tokina 230mm
A Canon 135mm
A Canon 100mm
A Canon 50mm
A Canon 28mm
A Samigon cf1auto teleplus 2x

Stick the 50 on it and read the book in the background.  That's all you need to get started.

[s1120]

When I was younger I got one of the first EOS Rebels that came out. It was a nice more simple, more affordable EOS, and was perfect for someone just starting out playing with auto SLR cameras. Took a lot of pictures with that thing back in the 90's, then one ill fated new years eve, and a lapse of judgement made me leave it behind at a bar, and it was gone for good. Replaced it a year or two later with a vintage K1000, that I still have, but havent used in almost 20 years.

[fotoguzzi]

Low light and or slow shutter speeds you will need a tripod. You can’t hand hold anything under 1/30th of a second.





From the 1970’s Bonus if you can ID the artist.

[steven c]

 The photographer I worked for for to many years Number one rule for taking a photo was, ask your self what are you taking a picture of?

[fotoguzzi]

from the 70’s.. I had Minolta and Nikon.

[antmanbee]

Low light and or slow shutter speeds you will need a tripod. You can’t hand hold anything under 1/30th of a second.





From the 1970’s Bonus if you can ID the artist.

I'm going to guess Gato Barbieri.

[bikeridertim]

I started with a Minolta SRT-101 in June of 1980 that I bought with my High School Graduation money. Then a Minolta-XGM, X-700 and then went to Canon when it was stolen. I've had a Elan IIE, film, then Digital 10D, 30D, 60D and now a 80D. Lenes have come and gone. I've probably taken 10,000+ pictures in film and digital. I had hopes of going into Photojournalism out of high school, but money wasn't there. Have not shot film in years, miss the darkroom smell!

[fotoguzzi]

I'm going to guess Gato Barbieri.

winner!

[Bulldog9]

Not really an enthusiast or collector, but I have an old Olympus and Minolta 35MM in a box somewhere, and also have a 35 MM Canon Elan with the belt drive that we used and loved for years. All were set aside when they started with the Digital 35MM, and bought a Canon EOS Rebel. We used that for a few years, and keep it for family portraits, important events and such, but cell phone cameras have gotten so good, it is hard to justify the inconvenience. I do carry a dust/waterproof digital camera in work situations where cell phones are not wise.

[MerleLowe]

Once you have the exposure worked out a bit, you could use Italian film. 

https://www.filmferrania.com/pages/p30