Advice for newbie

[akdwivedi]

Hi, I have been mostly shooting using the color film rolls... I now want to shoot slides and have no idea about the processing and developing the slides..

Need some advice from your experience, on the best practices, which films to use (starting up) and where to develop the slides.. How much does it cost to develop the slides and making prints.. Also do I need some additional equipments to view my slides/results - like a projector, a loupe etc or a scanner..

thanks for your time in advance..

 

[ericp]

First of all, what do you normally shoot ? The kind of subjects and situations will determine which types of slide film best suits your needs.

I'd advise getting your slides developed at a pro lab ... RGB is good and fast, on a slower day (not Monday) you can get your slides back in 3 hours or less, most of that time is probably waiting for the film to dry to a point where it can be handled. I think the cost is $4.80 per roll, and if you want them mounted onto plastic frames it's another $4 per roll.

Personally, I prefer to have them sleeved, and I buy Gepe mounts from Cathay and mount the good ones myself. I do a lot of action shooting, and sometimes, my horizons are not quite what they should be, and mounting the slides yourself allows a degree of flexibility.

You will need a loupe and light table ... I'd recommend a loupe like a Cabin 4X (about $120 from Cathay). As for the light table, it's best to get one with color-corrected lamps, but mine has plain fluorescent tubes and I'm ok with it. I think I paid $50-60 for mine.

I've always projected my slides at a friend's place, so can't advise you on a projector, but the first time you see your slide, projected on a big screen in a darkened room, you will wonder why you didn't do it earlier.