Film recommendation?

["Matthew"]

Ok sry if this a noob question or in the wrong place.

I have been shooting digital for about 7 years now and have never used film:-( I found a old 35mm camera in the attic and have been playing with that. Other then the standard kodak stuff, can anyone recommend some good film? I did not find much on the net as it seems that this info has been passed by word of mouth.

If anyone could recommend some good B/W and color films to get me started that would be great!

Thanx and sorry for the rambling post.

[milosh]

You don't need to aplogise.

I haven't had much experience with many types of film, but I've used a b/w film Fujifilm Neopan 400CN.
I chose it primarily because it is a b/w film designed for C41 (colour) processing, because nobody here develops true b/w films any more. So, if you're not doing the processing yourself, I would suggest to check what will you be able to get developed. Maybe that's not a problem for you in the US..
I was satisfied with this film, but as I said, my experience is limited.
You can see some examples of it on my Flickr stream (all b/w photos are Neopan 400CN):
Flickr: Milos Kondic's Photostream

[MGP]

I am sure there are some folks on here who can answer this question far better than I can, but I'll give it a punt. I have far more experience with film than digital, being of that age.
It all depends on what you want to do and how you are going to be processing it. Are you going to send it to a lab or develop it yourself?
Indoor, outdoors, subjects that sit still (landscapes, cars, etc) or subjects that move around (pets, people, etc), color or b&w?
Give us more info and we might be able to help.
Why do you even want to shoot film? What are you trying to do that you can't do with a digital camera? Are you after "lomo" effects?

[SwissJon]

I tend to use Ilford for black and white, I'll be ordering some Kodak Ektar for colour fairly soon.. I shoot mainly landscapes.

Careful, film photography is quite addictive, and gets expensive, You'll soon be carrying two cameras around with you.

What camera did you find? If it says "Leica" then it's pretty crap but I can use it for spares ( ), I'll give you a small amount for postage and send you one of my Minolta's in return.

[OsmosisStudios]

Personal recommendations

Real Black and White
Just about anything Ilford will do the trick, though Im a sucker for their PanF 50 stuff. Super low iso, wicked smooth, easy reciprocity curve.

"Fake" black and white (C-41 process black and white)
Ilford XP2. It's a 400iso film, but the grain is consistent. Kodak has one as well (their 400BWCN) but the grain has a really weird shape to it. Ive never liked it.

Colour:
For General use, im a sucker for Kodak Ektar 100. It's finicky on the white balance, so you may have to invest in a filter or two, but its super smooth grain is impossible to beat.
For portraits: Kodak 160, VC or NC (VC is for Vivid colours, NC for Neutral). Depending on the look you're going for.

Slide (Positive):
If you absolutely must, Fuji Velvia 50 is the standard.

You'll notice these are all very low ISO films. I tend to do work with either filters and a tripod, or shallow DoF, so the the filmspeed isnt all that important. The XP2 is a 400-speed film that should be shot 1/3-2/3 overexposed to get the best results. Never underexpose it.

I quickly mentioned filters. Theyre more important with film than they are with digital, because you cant adjust things quite the same way. For general use, you could get a basic warming/cooling pair to adjust white balance (you can also get green/magenta to correct for that, but its a less common problem). For black and white I usually recommend a warm-coloured filter. These block blue and green light and give more contrast in skies and landscapes. They vary in intensity based on colour with a yellow filter being weak and a dark red being strong. I use a B+W Deep Red filter for my stuff because I like the look of it. YMMV.

[jdepould]

I'm a fan of Tri-X for true B&W

Agree with Osmosis on Velvia

["Matthew"]

Thanks for all the responses, now time to go down to the only camera store left in town that still sell a decent selection of film.

Originally Posted by MGP

Give us more info and we might be able to help.

80% landscapes 10% people and my dog, 10% whatever catches my eye.

Originally Posted by SwissJon

Careful, film photography is quite addictive, and gets expensive, You'll soon be carrying two cameras around with you.

Yep two rolls and im hooked

Also I found this which was a bit of help.

Film Types and Examples by Tyson Call | STEVE HUFF PHOTOS