Film vs Digital: A Comparsion

Wednesday, April 17, 2013


So this is less "versus" and more of a comparison. This was taken during this shoot with the beautiful Stephanie Neiheisel.

All film photos were photographed on my Mamiya 645 (*edit: digitals shot on 5D MKIII) and I actually used TWO different kinds of films. One of them was the Fujicolor 400H which is a pretty popular film and the other was Ektar 100 which came with my Mamiya. I was super curious to see the kind of results the Ektar would create...

Bottom Left: digital photo of the PRINTS. Prints, prints, prints! If you have never held a set of film prints - do it. Completely different experience to see and touch film prints. Bottom Right: Ektar 100 Film.


So the photo on the left down here is Ektar 100 film. It has this sort of maroon tone to it.

Now let's get into the comparisons: 


Do you notice the difference in skin tones? Especially the warmth/slight pink with Fujicolor film? But you have to keep in mind how I asked my lab to process it AND how I process my own digital images. 

These two are a little bit closer in regards to warmth, but you can still see the difference in skin tone. I love both.
Ektar. YES.
Ektar film. My thoughts: I think this film works SO great on Stephanie. I specifically wanted these to feel moody. The funny thing is that I TOTALLY thought the Ektar film was a black & white film! So here I was, shooting them for a black & white look. Anyway, I don't know how this tone would work for a different mood. I think it suits Stephanie's look - her tattoos, her dark hair, and her beautiful cheekbones.  There's a hint of darkness about them that suits this Ektar processing..
Ektar: 
Fujicolor:

Thoughts?! Like I said, the Ektar came with my Mamiya because the guy I purchased from had a half-used box he threw into the package. Now I'm curious to try it more.  Do you like Ektar or Fujicolor more? Would love to know which you connected with most!

14 comments:

  1. Ektar! Definitely. I find the fujifilm to be a bit too washed out for my preference. I think if you wanna go film, you gotta deep and rich!

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  2. these are exquisite! I have been dying to try film, never have!

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  3. I am in love with Ektar!! Those shadows are beautiful. Out of curiousity, how do you ask your lab to process your film?

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    1. Regan - what lab do you use? I use Richard Photo Lab and you can select the color profile of a well known photographer like Tec Petaja or Jose Villa for your processing.

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  4. um, i vote you send the ektar ones to vsco and get them to make an emulation. these are awesome and i adore them :0)

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    1. Haha, I'll need to get on that! ;) No but seriously, I love everyone's connection to Ektar! Fun surprise.

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  5. Ale...I'm loving Ektar! This is the first I've heard of this kind of film. I only know Fuji and Kodak. But the Ektar just give the photos a kind of depth that is not present in the Fuji. I thought Fuji was great when looking at other film photographers, but definitely keep playing with Ektar... :)

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    1. Me too!! It was such an unexpected surprise! Actually Ektar is a Kodak brand. But yeah, I googled it while I was waiting for the scans to come in and I wasn't really thrilled with what I saw on google. Guess it was a different experience for me!

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  6. So are some of those digital prints? Where were they done?

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    1. Tonie - are you talking about the image of the prints I have scattered?

      Those are all film prints. Basically when you send in a roll of film to Richard Photo lab, you can check a box for "proof prints" and they will mail you your negatives AND these film prints! I selected the 4x6 option with 1/4" border. Since it's a medium-format camera, the border is thicker on one side.

      I believe you can send it digitals to Richard Photo Lab (RPL) to use their printer. Check out their site: http://www.richardphotolab.com

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  7. Hi Ale... Stunning pics! I wish to try film too and I was wondering if you could tell where you found your Mamiya 645? Was it Ebay? Thank you! :)

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    1. Hey Valerie! Thank you! I actually purchased mine from a site called Fred Miranda - a photography forum.

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