35mm photography for climbing

Any tips other than "go digital?" Have 2 lenses (35-80mm & 75-300mm telephoto). Shooting with a canon Eos rebel ti. Thanks in advance,
Mackley

get a wider lens and DIAL in your carrying system. Camera in a backpack never gets used!

What sort of tips are you looking for? Shooting tips? Carrying tips? Gear tips?

Robbie Mackley wrote:Any tips other than "go digital?"

Go medium/large format???

35mm is antiquated and I don't buy the whole "film has soul" thing unless you're shooting large or medium format.

What's 35mm?

20 kN wrote:What's 35mm?

Legend has it that 35mm is responsible for driving millions of sane people into seclusion, hiding away in dark, dank, blacked-out rooms with nothing but a dim red light, huffing noxious chemicals and staring at blank pieces of paper for days on end waiting for pictures to appear.

Brian Hudson wrote: driving millions of sane people into seclusion, hiding away in dark, dank, blacked-out rooms with nothing but a dim red light, huffing noxious chemicals and staring at blank pieces of paper for days on end waiting for pictures to appear.

Throw in some dubstep and it sounds like a standard experience at Ministry of Sound.

+1 for dialling the carrying system. Lowe pro makes a decent lumbar pack that allows quick access and works well even with a harness. Ortbieb (sp?) makes a great waterproof system.

I liked to carry one primary wide lens (14mm), and an 18 to 70 f2.8 zoom that took me through most situations. More powerful zooms are nice if you find yourself shooting from the ground but for the best shots you should try to get up close and personal.
Just my opinion though.

I always found it useful when the climbing mags would print the shooting data when they published photos. As I recall it helped me narrow my lens choice.

If you're developing your own film... Good for you... But I have discovered that building a good relationship with a professional developing shop saves time, mess, and produces good results.
A couple thoughts:
Have you thought about or used slide film? Great colors and sharp images but harder to dial in exposures
Do you digitally archive your images? If so the method of scanning is key. Even perfectly sharp images look lousy after bad digital transfer

ACR wrote: Do you digitally archive your images? If so the method of scanning is key. Even perfectly sharp images look lousy after bad digital transfer

What do you recommend?

That's where it gets tricky. A really good scanner costs a lot. I've been lucky and had a friend with access to professional grade equipment. I think it was an Epson. The scans came out crisp and sharp but the files were huge.
Ask at your local processing shop what kind of scanner they use and how big the files are. I'm no expert on pixel count and dpi and all that. Some basic research would probably keep you safe and produce great images.

What it boils down to is what end result you want. Enlarged images require sharp focus, good scanning, and good professional printing. Wal-marting any of these steps hurts the end result.
Images for use on websites and whatever... You can get away with less quality. But it's nice to aim for the best.

Sorry I can't suggest actual models or services but I usually farm out this stuff.
Hope that helps

ACR wrote:That's where it gets tricky. A really good scanner costs a lot. I've been lucky and had a friend with access to professional grade equipment. I think it was an Epson. The scans came out crisp and sharp but the files were huge. Ask at your local processing shop what kind of scanner they use and how big the files are. I'm no expert on pixel count and dpi and all that. Some basic research would probably keep you safe and produce great images. What it boils down to is what end result you want. Enlarged images require sharp focus, good scanning, and good professional printing. Wal-marting any of these steps hurts the end result. Images for use on websites and whatever... You can get away with less quality. But it's nice to aim for the best. Sorry I can't suggest actual models or services but I usually farm out this stuff. Hope that helps

Nowadays the benefit of that process over digital only makes logical sense if you're shooting medium or large format for the detail. The turnaround time and costs associated with lab trips and digitizing fees make a dSLR a smarter investment of time and money IMO.

tl;dr: go digital. :P

Also, you may be able to use your lenses on a mirrorless digital camera, which is something I've been thinking about. The newest sony is supposed to offer fully manual control without going through a menu.

dylanfllr wrote:The newest sony is supposed to offer fully manual control without going through a menu.

So does my Canon 20D. and it was made in 2004.

Brian Hudson wrote: So does my Canon 20D. and it was made in 2004.

Your 20D doesn't have focus peaking or other manual focusing aids, nor will it take a huge variety of old manual focus glass. It's also gigantic compared to a NEX or m4/3 mirrorless system.

I found a 35 roll in an old point and shoot...I wasn't even sure you could still develop it. Sell all the 35mm gear, buy a digital.

If not that then get a lens that is wider than 35. Get the correct speed film for what you are shooting.

Spend money on glass. Good glass.

Alex McIntyre wrote: Your 20D doesn't have focus peaking or other manual focusing aids, nor will it take a huge variety of old manual focus glass. It's also gigantic compared to a NEX or m4/3 mirrorless system.

Good point. I was thinking manual exposure control.

I also agree with Josh. Put your money in good glass.

Yep. Good lenses make the most sense for any format. I went digital a long time ago. I agree that processing is way too expensive, thus the switch to digital format and self editing/processing. Now, all I pay for is the occasional enlargement.
If I had not had a friend with a great pro scanner I never would have converted many of my old slides.

If your fixed on 35mm format you're going to spend money somewhere... It's up to each shooter to figure out where. The unfortunate truth is that you keep having to spend on processing. That really never goes away, and with good labs closing all the time, it's getting harder and more expensive.

Digital has high up front costs but usually pays for itself pretty quickly.