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  1. #1
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Look what I just bought...

    http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWN%3AIT&rd=1

    I've been wanting to delve into film for a while but didn't want to pay the price for a new film camera. So I did a bit of researching and settled on an oldie but a goodie, the Canon Canonet GIII QL17 with a Sunpack flash. It's compact, inexpensive, and takes great pictures with its fast and sharp 40/1.7 lens.

    Those of you who have shot film for a long time are probably familiar with the virtues of this little camera, but for those who aren't here's a site that lists all its features: http://www.cameraquest.com/canql17.htm

    And here's a site of some very creative pictures taken with this camera: http://www.flickr.com/photos/heather/sets/1494482/

    I drove all over Banning and Beaumont today checking the thrift and antique stores to see I could find this little camera, but to no avail. I reasoned that I might as well buy one off ebay since by the time I find one I would have already spent that much in gas! All in all, I am only $58 poorer and figure I can't go wrong at this price. Even if the camera only provides me with a few rolls of film before it poops out I figure it is worth the few bucks I paid for it just to get to test the waters of film.

    Now, anybody got any advice for what type of film I should use for this camera (both for b/w and color)?
    Last edited by schrackman; 07-13-2006 at 04:45 PM.

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

  2. #2
    Fluorite Toothpaste poker's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    The photo samples are very nice. I hope the unit works out for you. I've been curios about rangefinders, maybe I'll pick one up. Although I just bought an antique Canon off of Ebay myself.

    Back when I shot weddings, I used FUJI NPH-400. Nice grain and saturation on the cooler side versus Kodak's Royal Gold film which I found to be the opposite. I'm sure I don't have to mention this but make sure you get the film developed at a pro lab or else your wasting pricey good film.

    Nice choice.
    Canon 5D MKII & Canon 7D

  3. #3
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Ray... get some plain old everyday kodak gold 100, the film is cheap ,somewhat neutral, low grain and easy to find. When developed have them add density and you'll be in business I had this camera and gave it to a person who couldn't afford a camera. I still have a minolta hi-matic set up for infrared though That's a great little camera there!
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  4. #4
    Learning more with every "click" mjs1973's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Congrats on your "new" toy! I found Canonet w/flash in a local antique shop last year. I debated buying it for a few days, but in the end I choose not to. I think it was only about $15 or so, but I just didn't think I needed another film camera at the time. At times, I wish I would have bought it, but it's too late now, as that store has closed.

    To start out with, I would either take it to a shop and have all the seals checked for light leaks, or run a cheap roll of film through it and get it developed to see if it's light tight.

    As far as film goes. I really like Kodak Portra 160 & 400 for color print film. I also like the Fuji Supra (I think) that you can pick up at Wal-mart pretty cheap. For slides I love Velvia 50, and Provia 100 & 400. The provia 400 isn't cheap, but it's a great film.

    As far as b&w goes. I like Kodak Tri-X and T-Max when it comes to true black and white film. Those are about all I have ever used so I can't really compare them to anything else. One thing I have noticed with them though is that when I have prints made from them at a lab, the look VERY flat, and it's more expensive than anything else. I think I paid over $13 for a 36 exposure roll or Tri-X 4x6 prints. It's a lot more work, but I think the prints I made at home in my own darkroom looked a lot better.
    Mike

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  5. #5
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Thanks, Paul. I did intend to first shoot a test roll just to get an idea of how the prints will turn out. I still plan to have it serviced as well after that.

    So, you got any old prints from this camera that you could show us? I'd love to see what you did with it when you had it.

    Quote Originally Posted by paulnj
    Ray... get some plain old everyday kodak gold 100, the film is cheap ,somewhat neutral, low grain and easy to find. When developed have them add density and you'll be in business I had this camera and gave it to a person who couldn't afford a camera. I still have a minolta hi-matic set up for infrared though That's a great little camera there!

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

  6. #6
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Good advice. Back in the day when I used to use the old Kodak 110 for snapshots I did what every other person did back then...took it to the photo island in the parking lot and came back a couple days later for the prints. But now, after having been a member of this forum for a few years, I've learned quite a bit about photography itself, and a bit about film and labs, even though I've shot digital all this time. So you can bet your bottom dollar I'm gonna use a quality lab when I bring my prints in.

    Quote Originally Posted by manacsa
    The photo samples are very nice. I hope the unit works out for you. I've been curios about rangefinders, maybe I'll pick one up. Although I just bought an antique Canon off of Ebay myself.

    Back when I shot weddings, I used FUJI NPH-400. Nice grain and saturation on the cooler side versus Kodak's Royal Gold film which I found to be the opposite. I'm sure I don't have to mention this but make sure you get the film developed at a pro lab or else your wasting pricey good film.

    Nice choice.

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

  7. #7
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    I doubt I have any prints laying around from it, because I used it for 2 rolls at most. Being a wildlife shooter mostly a roll lasted 4 months

    I was saying to shoot GOLD 100 as a serious film. That film is a sleeper and when developed by a good lab yields amazing results. I haven't shot film in years, but always love superia(walmart) , supra, high definition and the pro films for serious work.

    I used to work at a lab with a studio. We usually used GOLD 100 and it was amazing up to 16x20's. Sure we used portra 160NC, but the 1/3 the cost film was just as sharp under controlled lighting to me.
    CAMERA BIRD NERD #1




    BIRD NERD O'CANON

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  8. #8
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Thanks for the suggestions mjs! Have you tried Ilford for b/w?

    Quote Originally Posted by mjs1973
    Congrats on your "new" toy! I found Canonet w/flash in a local antique shop last year. I debated buying it for a few days, but in the end I choose not to. I think it was only about $15 or so, but I just didn't think I needed another film camera at the time. At times, I wish I would have bought it, but it's too late now, as that store has closed.

    To start out with, I would either take it to a shop and have all the seals checked for light leaks, or run a cheap roll of film through it and get it developed to see if it's light tight.

    As far as film goes. I really like Kodak Portra 160 & 400 for color print film. I also like the Fuji Supra (I think) that you can pick up at Wal-mart pretty cheap. For slides I love Velvia 50, and Provia 100 & 400. The provia 400 isn't cheap, but it's a great film.

    As far as b&w goes. I like Kodak Tri-X and T-Max when it comes to true black and white film. Those are about all I have ever used so I can't really compare them to anything else. One thing I have noticed with them though is that when I have prints made from them at a lab, the look VERY flat, and it's more expensive than anything else. I think I paid over $13 for a 36 exposure roll or Tri-X 4x6 prints. It's a lot more work, but I think the prints I made at home in my own darkroom looked a lot better.

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

  9. #9
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Aw, too bad Paul. I would have liked to seen a couple photos.

    I will for sure give your suggestion for color film a try. But here's a question or two...what does adding "density" do for the film and how do they do it in the lab?



    Quote Originally Posted by paulnj
    I doubt I have any prints laying around from it, because I used it for 2 rolls at most. Being a wildlife shooter mostly a roll lasted 4 months

    I was saying to shoot GOLD 100 as a serious film. That film is a sleeper and when developed by a good lab yields amazing results. I haven't shot film in years, but always love superia(walmart) , supra, high definition and the pro films for serious work.

    I used to work at a lab with a studio. We usually used GOLD 100 and it was amazing up to 16x20's. Sure we used portra 160NC, but the 1/3 the cost film was just as sharp under controlled lighting to me.

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

  10. #10
    Learning more with every "click" mjs1973's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Quote Originally Posted by schrackman
    Thanks for the suggestions mjs! Have you tried Ilford for b/w?
    Nope, I have never tried anything from Ilford, other than their printing paper in the darkroom. I don't shoot a lot of film and about 98% of the film I do shoot is color. One B&W film I have wanted to try for a while is Scala by Agfa. It's a B&W slide film and I have heard good things about it. It's kind of expensive tho, $8/roll @ B&H and I think there are only 2 labs in the country that can develope it.
    Mike

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  11. #11
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Well it just makes them pop more like adding contrast in a way. To add density the operator of the machine clicks a button

    Ilford films are OK, I liked the 100 and 3200 but hardly shot B&W much. I never liked kodak tri x, but tmax 400 was nice. Might I suggest a few slide films... fuji sensia 100(so close to provia that sometimes I couldn't tell), astia for people because of it's ability to reprocuce colors and skin tones perfectly. Yes, I was a fuji guy

    Scala is very expensive, but does have a unique look and fine grain.Last I heard one lab developed it in the US. I think with the digital age that Scala will go down in the history book with agfa ultra 50(arguable one of the best color print films of years past)
    CAMERA BIRD NERD #1




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  12. #12
    Captain of the Ship Photo-John's Avatar
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    Canonet QL Rangefinder Cameras

    I used to want a Canonet for a mountain bike camera. That's back before I went all digital, of course. The light weight, compact body, and fast, excellent lens made it a great camera for all around outdoor use. I knew at least a couple mountain bikers who used them on the trail.

    By the way, we have reviews here for those cameras. Unfortunately, they're very hard to get to right now. We're having some issues with out-of-production equipment and the new review system. But here's a link to the Canonet QL-Series rangefinder camera reviews: http://www.photographyreview.com/cat...3_3138crx.aspx
    Photo-John

    Your reviews are the foundation of this site - Write A Review!

  13. #13
    mooo...wooh hoooh! schrackman's Avatar
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    Re: Look what I just bought...

    Excellent reviews, John. Thanks for the link!

    Ray O'Canon
    Digital Rebel XTi • Digital Rebel • Canonet GIII QL17 • Agfa Parat-1

    The liberal, socialist politician's nightmare: "What a comfort to the farmer to be allowed to supply his own wants before he should be liable to pay anything, and then only pay on his surplus." - Jefferson to Madison on Taxes,1784

    My Canonet GIII QL-17 photos on flickr.

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