BetterPhoto Q&A
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Film type/speed recommendation

I need some advice on what type and speed film to use for an upcoming event. I will be shooting a graduation in a 15,000 seat arena. I will be using a Nikon N80 with a 70-300mm f4-f5.6 lens. I do not know what the lighting conditions will be. Should I go with a high speed film like the Kodak Royal Gold 1000 or should I stick to a more all purpose 400 speed? Also - is it worth spending extra $$ on a professional grade film?

Thanks in advance for any assistance!

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April 06, 2001

Given your lens speed and focal length range, I recommend Kodak Max Zoom 800 (*not* Max 400) instead of Royal Gold 1000. The grain is about 15% tighter and ISO 800 is only 1/3rd stop slower than ISO 1000; not enough to make a difference in exposure with color negative films.

I don't believe ISO 400 films will be fast enough with your lens. The "Existing Light" exposure wheel in Kodak's Pocket Photoguide (formerly the Master Photoguide) shows exposures for lighting in places like basketball arenas using f/4 or f/5.6 (wide open with your lens) need about 1/30th or 1/60th second shutter speeds for an ISO 800 film . . . more likely 1/60th. I don't recommend ISO 1600 films. These are very grainy by comparison and 4x6 prints will show it. In my opinion it's not worth one stop faster exposure.

In professional films, you can use Portra 800 or Supra 800, but with no advantage in granularity. They're almost exactly the same as Max 800. The only advantage I can think of with Portra 800 might be a slightly wider latitude. Latitude is the difference in how much light creates pure white and how little creates pure black on a film. One with wider latitude will be more forgiving of exposure error. However I see this advantage as very slight. There is a difference in color rendition between the two. Portra is a portrait film with very smooth color tones, nice gradation as a color goes from light to dark, and mild in saturation. Max 800 is a general purpose consumer film and while color neutral, it will be more saturated. If you're thinking of Supra 800, you would gain almost nothing over Max 800.

Film color accuracy doesn't count for much in this situation. Your lighting will not be daylight, but some form of high intensity discharge like sodium or mercury vapor. Whoever processes and prints your film will need to be good at color balancing the prints. If you can, tell the person who processes it that you shot it in an indoor arena, not in daylight.

Force your camera into an "aperture priority" mode, set your lens aperture wide open and leave it wide open. With a likely shutter speed of 1/30th or 1/60th, zoom out only as much as you need to. You will have to be well braced in a very solid stance and hold to eliminate camera shake. It can be done hand held provided you don't try to zoom out past about 180-200 mm, and if you do it very carefully. If you can use a monopod, do so. It will help greatly with camera shake. If you haven't used one before, practice with it first.

-- John

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April 07, 2001

Get up close. Close as they will allow you... That means you are not going to need such a long focal length. It also makes for better composition, as a general rule.

A camera is much more forgiving of a slow shutter speed if your focal length is shorter. Also, the larger the image is on the print, the more forgiving you are of very slight unsharpness. (For example, in a full body shot, a tiny bit of unsharpness means that you can't see their face. In a head and shoulders shot, that slight unsharpness won't be noticeable, as their face and expression is still perfectly visible to you.)

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

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April 12, 2001

I was just in a similar situation at a musical for Easter where I could not use my flash. My pictures turned out great! Get yourself some FujiPress 800. It's a great print film that pushes very well (not bad grain at all on a 4x6 print). Set your ISO to 3200, and bring your tripod. I have AEB on my camera, so I took 3 exposures of each shot, bracketed anywhere from 1 to 2.5 stops. The overexposed photos turned out the best. I couldn't have done it without a tripod, however. DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, TAKE YOUR FILM TO A ONE-HOUR LAB TO HAVE THEM DEVELOPED! Make sure you tell the developer that you shot it at 3200. I hope this helps!

Russ

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April 17, 2001