yes another film question....please help!

[Shawna]

Please help....I love taking pictures and want to make sure mine turn out!!!
I will be using 800 speed film for the first time while in Disney. I will be bring a Kodak Advantix camera and a canon 35mm (nothing fancy about either of them). My 35mm will be just for the 800 speed and my advantix for the rest (it has mid-roll change so that is a bonus). Okay, here is my plan....what do you think??
For:
Illuminations & Fantasy in the sky - 800 speed No flash

Mickey Very Merry Christmas Parade/Spectromagic Parade - 800 speed with flash

Osborne Lights - 800 speed No flash

Any show that does not allow flash - 800 speed

Will this work? What should I change?
My pictures are my best souvenirs, so I want them to be perfect. Any advice would be greatly appreciated...Thanks so much!

 

[DVCajun]

I don't know where you're planning to set up for Illuminations, but any of the night shots will probably require a tripod. The higher the speed of the film, the better the film will capture fast action, which pairs well with the shutter opening and closing really fast. That means that 800 speed film would be really good for action shots, like sports, because the camera can "freeze" the action. For night shots, the shutter needs to stay open longer to allow what little light there is to make an impression on the film. So I'm really not sure if 800 film is the best bet for that. Regardless of what film you use, I believe your camera shutter will stay open longer at night (if you have it set on automatic), which will probably blur your shot unless you use a tripod.

Hope this helps!

 

[Shawna]

I didn't really plan on bring a tripod?? Would I be better off using 400 speed film instead?
I've heard good and bad things about 800 speed.......now I'm confused
I know 800 speed is for fast action but I also thought it was for low light also? So, if it's not fast action I have a pretty good chance of them becoming blurry ???

 

[DVCajun]

I think you're running a high risk of blurred shots if you use a camera at night without a tripod. The 800 speed film would be a better bet than the 400 though because you're right-- it is better for low light.

I'm not an expert, though-- so it's worth a try!

Good luck!

 

[Poohbear123]

I was in Epcot on Nov. 2. I used 800 film and NO tripod and my Pics came out pretty good! No flash either. I found out about the 800 film from a post a few months ago about Fuji film or kodak film. I used Kodak!

 

[Shawna]

Just curious.....what exactly did you use the 800 speed for? Fireworks? Parades?

 

[tink2dw]

inkbounce: up

 

[Glinda]

I have used 800 many times without flash for the parades, fireworks and shows. I use a Nikon FE with a Nikkor 50mm 1.2. What lenses are you using? Without pushing the 800 film you should get some great pictures.

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by Shawna
Please help....I love taking pictures and want to make sure mine turn out!!!
I will be using 800 speed film for the first time while in Disney. I will be bring a Kodak Advantix camera and a canon 35mm (nothing fancy about either of them). My 35mm will be just for the 800 speed and my advantix for the rest (it has mid-roll change so that is a bonus). Okay, here is my plan....what do you think??

Since you don't mention it, I assume the Canon is a P/S, not an SLR where you have control over everything.

The question of 400 vs. 800 really comes down to how big you plan to blow up the photos.
If you're only going to do 4x6's, then go with 800 for your low-light shots. For larger prints, it would be more grainy, but for smaller ones, the difference isn't so noticable. The faster speed of the film means (all things being equal) a faster shutter speed, which means less camera shake and less blurriness.

I shot the MK fireworks from atop the contemporary on our last trip with 400 speed APS film, no flash, and just kept pushing the shutter button. They turned out fairly well. The year before we shot the VMChristmas Parade at night, and they turned out bad.

BTW, there is an 800 speed APS film put out by Fuji. It isn't everywhere but I did manage to find it at Wallyworld. I think it was the one in Centerpoint Alabama. I didn't see it up north, but maybe they're test marketing in in the south-east.

The next issue is flash/no-flash. All flashes have a limited effective range. On most point and shoot cameras have a range up to 10 feet. Beyond this range, the flash is useless. So unless you're right on a curb with no-one in front of you (to upset the ranging), the flash should probably be off.


I shot the MK fireworks from atop the contemporary on our last trip with 400 speed APS film, no flash, and just kept pushing the shutter button. They turned out fairly well. The year before we shot the VMChristmas Parade at night, and they turned out bad.

In terms of which film brand to use, well, for most snapshots, don't bother to worry too much. Buy what you can find on-sale for the best price. Just be sure to check the expiration date on the film.

On a side note, we got our APS based on it's mid-roll change capability. I think we used it once. When I take snapshots, I go with the fastest speed available since we don't enlarge snapshots. When I need good quality photo's, we go with our 35mm slr with the slowest appropriate speed film. Especially since there isn't a true APS black and white film.

Hope this helps,
Joe

 

[jmminarik]

Howdy,

One other thing...pick up a book on point and shoot photography or go to the Internet (kodak has a nice site) for tips on how to improve your snapshot photography. Perhaps the single biggest mistake with 'snapshots' is the 'we were there' pose where the people are teeny-tiny in the frame. Fill the frame with your subject(s) and you'll make a better photo.

Hope this helps,
Joe