Category: Film

Back in March I had another go at fixing my 1970s’ OM10. The winding mechanism wasn’t moving properly, but I got it going and popped in a roll of Ilford film I had knocking around the house.

I didn’t invest a lot of time in taking photos with it as I wasn’t 100% sure I’d got it working. So, it’s mostly snaps of the dogs – they’re such good models!

Thankfully, it’s working and this time I got some actual images back. There were some valuable lessons in there. Firstly, the film ISO is important. I didn’t think about that and just assumed something at 400 ISO would suit most situations, but this particular film seemed more suited for darker lighting conditions. There’s a lot of grain where the images are bright. Next, (and this should have been obvious), no RAW for editing means that you really have to get a lot right in camera.

The biggest lesson – film photography is expensive. A 36 exposure film is around £10, developing is anywhere between £15 and £20. That’s up to £35 for a roll of film. Another reason you can’t afford to go wrong.

We’re so lucky to live in a time where digital photography exists. We can afford to mess up, and the only thing we will waste is our time. I have a new appreciation for RAW and being able to come home and change things in Lightroom. Even as someone that isn’t a fan of spending forever editing, it’s nice to be able to.

That said, I like the results. I generally don’t shoot black and white, but I think I’m going to go out a few times and just shoot in black and white. I really, really love this 50mm lens. I’m looking for an Olympus to L Mount adaptor so I can use it on my S9 when it arrives.

So, it’s nice to know the camera works, and I will use it. But, given the cost I can;t see me shooting more than one film a year.

A few years ago I bought myself a second hand Olympus OM10 (1972) with a 50mm lens. Then, forgot all about it, and it’s been sat in a box for around ten years. As it’s coming up to autumn and the best time of year for photography I thought I’d dig it out.

After putting a couple of new batteries in I was pleased to find that everything still works. All I need is some film, which is a lot more expensive these days. With that in mind, I’ll be much more selective about what I photograph. The thing I’m looking forward to the most is not knowing how the images look until the films comes back from the lab.

I’m heading to the Lake District tomorrow, and won’t be taking this with me, but something to look forward to when I get back.