Help with Holga 120 GCFN

[IsaacJL]

I'm currently helping a friend figure out why her Holga 120 GCFN isn't performing as she wants it to. That is - to shoot images that look retro or vintage-y, as a toy camera such as the Holga or Lomo should.

The photos that she has recently shot produce very normal and subdued colors and have no color casts whatsoever after processing at a normal photo shop, which I find very strange since the photos that I've seen online produce such wonderful colors after being processed.

The film that she has been loading into the camera is the Fujifilm Superia 400-36 400/26* (if anyone could kindly explain what this even means to me would be great). It's a standard 135 film and the camera has been outfitted with an adapter in order to slot this film type in, since the 120GCFN uses 120 film by default instead.

Can someone please help explain and clear my little brain of all its doubts on why the photos being taken do not come out as expected and suggest what kind of film should we use instead? I've heard that the 120 automatically helps achieve the great saturated colors in toy camera photos. Oh and please do let me know where I can find the film too..

[foxtwo]

Those high contrast images are likely to be cross-processed. Read here and here for more info. Please take into account that the colours could have been bumped in photoshop after scanning to enhance their look.

Superia is the consumer stock film. Try Fuji Pro instead. Expect to pay more.

[IsaacJL]

Thanks a lot for the help, but I still don't know where to go to process the film.. Will any regular photo lab do or are there specific ones that specialize in cross processing?

And FujiPro can be found at any shop, right?

[foxtwo]

FujiPro is a professional film, it won't be found in normal shops. Go Ruby Photo or Cathay Photo for it.

Refer to Qn6 here. I don't know if neighborhood labs will do x-processing, never bothered to ask. You're better off doing business with a professional lab. Personally I frequent Fotohub at beach road.

[J-Chan]

haven't tried 35mm on my holga yet, but you can find 120 film at places like Triple D at Burlington Square they also do x-pro.. something like Velvia 100 cross-processed gives quite funky results..




Something like these..

[Hirata]

You should use 120 film on Holga. That'll give you the vignette effects and if you want funky colours and unexpected turnouts, use positive or slide films. Thats different than those normal film sold in neighbourhood shops cause slide films process in E-6 chemical.
But you should cross process it. Process slides in C-41*normal film chemical*. The chemical reaction cause the colours to be saturated or over thus its called the lomo effects.
35mm films cant get vignette on holga cause its dimension is smaller than 120 dimension.

[cabbySHE]

years ago when people try to save cost on photogaphic materials, they buy roll films in bulk container ( 30 metres ),actually these films are meant for movie cameras. So they would have to load these films into the empty film cannister and cut a leader at the end of it. All these done in a pitch dark room. The loader will have a counter for nos. of exposure loaded and there will be a click sound to indicate. it can be set to 12, 16, 20, 24, or 36 exposure. One snag is, the film being loaded has to be in the correct empty cannister. So there goes one day when some one made a mistake by loading a chrome (slides/postive) film into a negative film container, and hence a wrongly processed film result occured. It was term a mistake by then but now as an art/fashion. As the film is manufacture for movie shooting, its film character is biase towards more contrasty. There were also B/W high contrast film, lith film, IR film, copy film etc.
As for the vignette effect, lens manufacturer has been trying ages to perfect their lenses resolution to produce edge to edge sharpness for all corners,because technically, it is very difficult to produce the glass element to transmitt enough amount of light to be able to focus sharply at the corners of the film plane, only inferior lenses will soften out or darken off at the four corners, especially lenses made of plastic. So if you've got lenses like Rodenstock, Schneider or Carl Zeiss which cost about $3-4 k each, you will never able to produce vignette effect. And they have many layers of special coating. But now , this plastic lens effect have given a new life which is called artistic.

[IsaacJL]

Thanks guys for the help in answering my questions.

I'll be trying out my holga once more soon to shoot using slide film. I've yet to find out the exact location of Fotohub at Beach Road though..

[ndroo]

Originally Posted by cabbySHE But now , this plastic lens effect have given a new life which is called artistic.

It's for people like me who can't afford those cool lenses you mentioned and also can't take sharp super incredible photos like what the others do. So we hide behind the crappy lenses and call it artistic lo.

[ndroo]

Originally Posted by IsaacJL I'm currently helping a friend figure out why her Holga 120 GCFN isn't performing as she wants it to. That is - to shoot images that look retro or vintage-y, as a toy camera such as the Holga or Lomo should. The photos that she has recently shot produce very normal and subdued colors and have no color casts whatsoever after processing at a normal photo shop, which I find very strange since the photos that I've seen online produce such wonderful colors after being processed. The film that she has been loading into the camera is the Fujifilm Superia 400-36 400/26* (if anyone could kindly explain what this even means to me would be great). It's a standard 135 film and the camera has been outfitted with an adapter in order to slot this film type in, since the 120GCFN uses 120 film by default instead. Can someone please help explain and clear my little brain of all its doubts on why the photos being taken do not come out as expected and suggest what kind of film should we use instead? I've heard that the 120 automatically helps achieve the great saturated colors in toy camera photos. Oh and please do let me know where I can find the film too..

The GCFN has a glass lens and thus it gives a sharper output. I 'downgraded' to the plastic lens version and it gives 'better' dreamy feel. You can try finding expired film (yeah, as old as possible) and that gives some pretty crappy cool results too.

[carling]

hello im new at holga! means tt 35mm film cant produce nice effects?
when u took these 2 pic is it with color flash?! [;

[foxtwo]

Originally Posted by IsaacJL Thanks guys for the help in answering my questions. I'll be trying out my holga once more soon to shoot using slide film. I've yet to find out the exact location of Fotohub at Beach Road though..

Premier Centre, the pink building opposite Shaw Tower on Beach Rd. It's also opposite the old DHL Balloon site.