film speed for parks and attractions?

[monalsw]

i didn't know where else to ask this...

which film speed do you use? last trip, i took 400 and 800, using the 800 at night. pics came out great, but the hassle at the airports, with hand-checking, was a bit much.

should i take 800 again, for nighttime photos? or will 400 do? i'm trying to simplify this trip a little, but still want good photos!

tia

 

[cleo]

I take 400 and have very good results, but I think 800 would still be better at night.

I know they tell you to take out all your film at the airport, but I just sent 2 rolls through last month and they were just fine. I don't recommend you do that (I did it by mistake), but my experience showed that film can survive what they're doing to it.

 

[shafke]

Film??? What is this film you speak of??? I remember reading about it in the histort books.

400 will probably be OK. All you are going to lose is one stop on shutter speed (1/250 instead of 1/500 second) or aperture which is ususally not a problem. I ususally have my digital set to equivalent of 200 ASA. I prefer slower speed films because with the longer exposure you tend to get better color saturation.

 

[Cinderella37]

I take about ten rolls of film in eleven days and pack twice that amount of film. Sometimes my 400 speed looks grainy. To get around the film hassle at the airport, at least on the return trip, we get our film developed in WDW (at the GF, but all resorts offer the service). It may be more expensive than at, say Walmart, but the quality is great, it's one less thing for me worry about, and it gives my fiance and I something to do on the plane ride home.

 

[sue Z]

I have always used 400 during the day and 800 at night but this past yr I used 800 for both and it was easier then having to remember to try and change and it also helped having 800 at times then I wasn't afraid to take pictures inside rides etc!

to avoid hassle of hand checking we stayed off site and bought and developed at film at Walmart

 

[monalsw]

i didn't realize how archaic this post sounded until i went back and read it later, lol!

so anyways, am i safe to take all 800 speed, even though it's a little pricier-i wouldn't have to worry about having the right film at night?

please enlighten me!

 

[shafke]

Here is a suggestion... get two rolls of film. One 800 and one 400 before your trip. Go to an area that would lit similarly to Disney, say a small downtown area that has some well it areas and some not so well lit areas. Shoot 1/2 of each roll at night and 1/2 of each roll in daylight. When you send the film out for processing make sure you note which speed is in which envelope so you know when they come back. Comapre the results. If the 800 speed looks acceptable to you then go with it.

 

[KLAIT]

What we did with our 800 film was put it into a clear baggie out of the original containers. All they did was pick up the whole bag and move it around a bit to make sure there wasn't anything else in the bag...took about 2 seconds. Although, do not make the mistake of leaving film in your camera. The guy made my friend open her camera although she told him she had film inside.

 

[gillis95]

Re: film at the airport. I have used an x-ray bag purchased at any camera store for YEARS. Just kept in my carry-on camera bag and they have never asked to look in it. No hassle of hand checking.

 

[XStAnt]

Lisa,

The lower the ASA number the slower the speed of the film. What that means is more color saturation and less grain in your pictures. 200 speed film gets brighter, more vibrant colors than 400 speed. It also is less grainy which really comes into play if you want to make enlargements. However, the "slower" speed film requires more light than "faster" films.

Whether the average picture taker will notice a difference or will care is another issue. I notice the difference, but I'm something of a photo hound. On vacation I take a SLR camera with three lenses (28mm, 50mm, and a 75-205 zoom). I'll take an average of about 1.5 rolls per day, sometimes more. My wife thinks I'm crazy but we get lots of great pictures from our vacations. We've even blown up a few to 8x10 or 11x14 and mounted them. That's when the lower speed comes in handy. I usually use 200 speed film. When it's blown up to 8x10 or 11x14 it still retains it's clarity. 800 speed film will definitley look grainy when blown up that large.

I don't take a huge number of nighttime shots without a flash. If you're just taking family pictures at night using a flash you don't need 800 speed film. 800 speed film is good when you can't/don't want to use a flash (and don't have a tripod or can't use a tripod). If I know I'll be taking nightime pics without a flash (like to take a picture of the castle and main street) I'll load in a roll of 800 film. Even if I haven't used every picture on the previous roll I'll simply rewind that roll and load in the 800 film.

If you're just going to be printing 4x6 pics your pics will probably look okay even with 800 speed film. But you can see a difference by looking at the same picture taken with 200 speed and 800 speed film side by side. If most of your pics will be taken during the daylight or you'll be using the flash at night, I'd suggest going with 200 speed (or possibly 400) film. Your pictures will have more vibrant colors and if you want to blow up one or two, you can.