Topic: How meticulous are you with your photography?

[Late Developer]

As with anything that requires a degree of "craft", there are some basic / threshhold levels of knowledge / control required to deliver something that achieves our goals - if not pass muster for those who might see the end result or even may have commissioned / paid for it. 

So, how far do you go to ensure that (just a few examples below - add your own, as appropriate):
- you have film that's in date / stored properly / as per manufacturers' guidelines?
- exposure is correct (for the effect required)?
- the film is developed exactly as required?
- scanning / printing is done exactly as required?
- your camera and lenses are clean, serviced and up to the job?
- you keep records of location, weather, time, aperture, shutter speed.....for each shot?

Does your preparation vary between a "serious" shoot and a day out - or is the fun for you in just loading the film and pressing the shutter?

[02Pilot]

I'd say I'm fairly meticulous (or try to be) in most of the areas you list, excepting exposure and note-taking. I don't take notes at all unless I'm testing something. As for exposure, it depends a lot on what I'm doing. Street photography is pretty much set-and-forget - everything gets the same settings (usually f/5.6 or f/8 @ 1/125 on HP5+ for daylight). Other subjects may or may not get metered. I tend to take a reading or two when I set out and just use Kentucky windage from there. The latitude of negative film makes this approach viable, of course, and the ability to digitally correct after the fact adds further leeway.

[Francois]

I'm pretty rigid when it comes to certain things while totally loose on others.
For instance, I don't often use film that's in date but I always keep it in the freezer.
I often consider the manufacturer's guidelines more of a suggestion than anything else, especially when it comes to ISO sensitivity.
My film is mostly always developed as required, but it's for the non standard sensitivity at which I rate my film.
Scanning and printing are where I'm most picky, these things must be done right or I'm not happy with myself... I'm trying to learn to be more loose on things like that.
Gear wise, it's gotta be perfect... Or at least as perfect as possible. But my criteria change with the age and quality of the camera. I often live pretty well with slowe than normal shutter speeds and things like that. I also don't clean my glass too often.
I never ever take notes and just work by feeling and knowledge. I feel like they are a hindrance to the fun of shooting.
I also admit to being seriously perfectionist when it comes to sorting my negs. If anything deviates from my method, I get seriously p*****. So that means that I'm usually the only one who can sort my negs even though my sorting method is so simple it could be written down in just a few lines...

[Kayos]

Definitely varies between serious shoot and a day out, and 90% of my film is fresh, in date and in the fridge

Most of my cameras have working meters, and if not or I want an incidental reading I use a seperate meter, I also shoot at box speed (except Tri-X) and develop "correctly" (whatever that may mean.....)

For the day out I usually grab a simple camera with one lens that has a working meter (Canon EF mostly) and colour film, serious shooting is my EOS 3 with a range of lenses, both "proper" lenses and older stuff adapted to fit, along with tripod and remote release

I also have a kit in the van, that consists of a couple of Praktica bodies, one with colour and one with black and white film with various lenses, in case I come across interesting stuff while I'm working.

If I can find specific time to go shooting it will be planned, time, location, camera(s) and films etc often even with notes

[jharr]

Most of the film I shoot is expired (some more than others). I keep it in the freezer, except for instant film. I shoot them at varying ratings, and stand develop (b/w).
Most of my cameras are not equipped with a meter, and most of those that are, do not have a battery available or the selenium meter is non-functional. So I usually meter by hand, and sometimes by sunny 16.
I almost always have a film camera with me. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. So most of my shooting is informal.
I wouldn't characterize my scanning as meticulous, but I will adjust a level in Epson Scan since it is thrown off by film borders and high contrast scenes. I label film holder sheets with date, camera and film, but that is usually the extent of my 'notes'.
I suppose if I thought anyone (even future me) would be interested in the technical details, I would be more meticulous and take better notes, but it disrupts any spontaneity I might be experiencing and the ROI just isn't there for me.

[Bryan]

- you have film that's in date / stored properly / as per manufacturers' guidelines?  I have a mix of expired and fresh film.  I do store most of it in the freezer.
- exposure is correct (for the effect required)?  I'm usually pretty careful about exposure, I think I got that from shooting 8mm cine reversal film which has less latitude.
- the film is developed exactly as required? I send color film to a very trusted quality lab for processing.  Black and white film I usually do Semi-Stand development in Rodinal or Caffenol, so no, it's not developed as required.
- scanning / printing is done exactly as required?  For color film the lab I use does a fantastic job scanning.  For black and white film I use a digital camera and a light table to scan and I think I get pretty good results. 
- your camera and lenses are clean, serviced and up to the job?  I have sent a few lenses out to be properly serviced but most I try to keep clean.  A little dust doesn't hurt the image so I'm not too picky about it.
- you keep records of location, weather, time, aperture, shutter speed.....for each shot?  I almost never keep records, I always tell myself after the fact that I should have.  I even have some note books just for that purpose, just need to use them.

I find when I'm taking photos if I take my time to compose and meter and just sit back and think about the shot I tend to get better results.  That's why I like to spend my days off when I'm working on the road to just go out alone and take my time.  I usually feel rushed if I'm with someone else, especially if they're not taking photos.

[Photo_Utopia]

I'm pretty meticulous, although I have used out of date film for less critical work and camera tests.
Where I'm worst is I test each film for different conditions and developers, colour not so much as I keep standard.
Metering I'm pretty fussy, and test, test, test. Then again if I'm snapping the kids on colour neg I might just sunny 16 it.
Processing is another place I have extreme accuracy, and always use fresh chems and never exceed the amount I can process from any volume.
Darkroom work and scanning I'm driven by method, as I like to repeat results-I think keeping it consistent is very important if you want to know what you visualise is going to come to pass... 

[Sandeha Lynch]

Gauging temperature ...  very careful.

Making notes ... what's that?   

[charles binns]

Most of the time I meticulously shoot with a holga. 

[Francois]

I wonder how many people have actually measured the apertures on their holga and made the appropriate mods? 

[Peter84]

Film storage is either in the fridge or frozen but most of it is expired anyway.
Keeping notes when shooting I've only done once with my home made pinhole box with 4x5 FP4+. Oh and some times I write the asa on the leader of the film when I've shot it at something other then box speed.
Shooting is more a feeling thing then science with me although the lightmeter app on the iPhone comes in handy when shooting with non metered equipment but I'm not keeping track of anything.
Developing film is mostly done at home except for some stuff that is really important to me or I can't do myself. E6 for example. But when I do it temperatures and time are well monitored. When I do a film I've never developed before I might take notes for future references. But from time to time there is a little cross processing or caffenol-action going on...
Scanning; Dust particles can make me really mad, so there is the can of compressed air, special soft brush, scanner bed cleaning wipes... uhm should I go on?
Cataloging is done per film, which isn't really that convenient when looking for something because it requires you to remember on which film you shot it... I should adopt another system really, but then I would have to sort all the files again....

[Late Developer]

Some really interesting responses so far. 

I'm glad they're so varied as it helps validate that my approach isn't so out of step. My film is all kept in the fridge.  Most of it is in-date but I have a few rolls of out-of-date film that I shoot occasionally.

I have a varied bunch of cameras. most of which have fully-functioning meters.  Where that's the case, I tend to rely on the meters - because I've used them previously and I trust them.  I do tend to shoot 2/3rd to a stop over box speed, though.  When I meter manually, I tend to take my time and try to ensure that I don't blow the highlights.  I also like to be sure that my cameras actually work.  I'm just having a very brassy FM2n checked as the slow speeds stopped working and, although I seldom shoot from 1/30th down, I wouldn't feel comfortable not being able to if the need arose.

I've just started developing my own B&W again after a gap of 30 years.  Reducing cost is a factor but I also enjoy doing it - though I'm finding loading film onto the reels a tad slow and frustrating - but practice should improve this. I'm all-but paranoid about temerature and getting the chemicals at the right dilutions.  It's probably not that critical with B&W but it seems a shame to risk all the effort of getting the shot to screw it up in developing.

Scanning is the bit that seems to focus most people's attention and it's the same for me. I'm not sure the film holder is at the optimal height as the end results aren't as sharp as I'd like.  I got some little bits of plastic that help raise the holder, so I'll give them a go.  A separate issue is finding a consistent "look" when post processing.

All in good time, I suppose....

[Francois]

Loading the reels can be made a simpler process if you clip the corners of the film. This works for both 35 mm and 120.

[Kayos]

Also regarding developing, ive almost finished  my new temp controller and its very accurate, means I can concentrate on other stuff

[Late Developer]

Cheers Francois.  that's really good advice but I do take off the corners as a matter of routine. 

The problem actually tends to manifest when loading film if the spool isn't 100% dry - i.e. when loading second or subsequent rolls of film onto a spool which has already been used to develop. I get there eventually but there's always some residual dampness on the spool that seems to cause the film to snag as you pass it through the initial "gate".

The other issue is how to keep airborne dust and cat hair off the film whilst it's drying.  The best place in our house is hung behind the bathroom door and leave the window open.

[charles binns]

Paul

Try drying the spools with a hair dryer in between films. 

I also dry films in the bathroom.  - I fill an atomiser with water and spray the bathroom before hanging the films to get rid of any dust (and I respray every time I go into the bathroom whilst films are drying).  I also leave the films to dry overnight.

Both measures significantly reduced the amount of dust on my negs.

[Photo_Utopia]

I dry my film in the shower which I run for 5 mins before I hang up the film.

[limr]

Most of the film I shoot is expired (some more than others). I keep it in the freezer, except for instant film. I shoot them at varying ratings, and stand develop (b/w).
Most of my cameras are not equipped with a meter, and most of those that are, do not have a battery available or the selenium meter is non-functional. So I usually meter by hand, and sometimes by sunny 16.
I almost always have a film camera with me. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. So most of my shooting is informal.
I wouldn't characterize my scanning as meticulous, but I will adjust a level in Epson Scan since it is thrown off by film borders and high contrast scenes. I label film holder sheets with date, camera and film, but that is usually the extent of my 'notes'.
I suppose if I thought anyone (even future me) would be interested in the technical details, I would be more meticulous and take better notes, but it disrupts any spontaneity I might be experiencing and the ROI just isn't there for me.

This is almost exactly my process, except most of my film is fresh with some expired thrown in here and there.

I feel like I need to be a bit more meticulous with my metering, and also with keeping track of what I have in a camera at any given point. Some of my cameras will have a reminder wheel - mono vs color, ISO rating - and I am trying to be more consistent with using them. 02Pilot can attest to how many times I've picked up a camera and said, "Oh crap, what do I have loaded in this thing?" 

As for developing and scanning, I never really thought I was being too meticulous, but I realize that I do measure my ingredients to the gram and am really picky about getting the temperature right. And I do a LOT of dusting of negatives and scanner as well as some tweaks to correct for some color shift or contrast. And when they are scanned in, I am something of a pixel peeper when it comes to getting rid of dust spots.

[6cmsquare]

I'm sort of a nerd, and love the process. so with my Mamiya Universal and the Pan f50 it's..
-film is in date
-clean lenses
-use a tripod
-level the camera
-use the viewing screen
-meter the scene
-attach polaroid back
-shoot a polaroid to look at composition
-realize I forgot to close the shutter after using the viewing screen
-take another polaroid that's not ruined
-check that the camera is still level
-meter the scene again
-attach the 120 film back
-try and remember if I wound the film, -wait I always wind it after a shot....or did I?
-shoot two frames (just in case I didn't wind the film) at metered settings with zone guesstimation.
-shoot two more frames, N+1, N-1.
-realize i'm at the end of my roll because I only get 8 shots with 6x9
-completely forget to take notes. or- take notes and never look at them again.
-stand there and think to my self: Dammit, this is probably a fucking boring shot, it's been done 1000 times.
-develop in rodinal at 1:100, one hour with two agitations. cold tap water.
-if I'm lucky find one shot per roll I like.

[hookstrapped]

- you have film that's in date / stored properly / as per manufacturers' guidelines?

I try.  I keep my film in the fridge. When I buy expired Ektachrome on ebay I make sure it's been kept in cold storage.

- exposure is correct (for the effect required)?

Yeah, except when I forget to turn back the ISO dial to its box speed setting from overexpose 1 stop setting when shooting in different conditions, but then sometimes I get happy accidents.

- the film is developed exactly as required?

Develop B&W myself and I try. Color I take to the lab and have learned to bring it in on Mondays or Tuesdays (never on Fridays or Saturdays) in order to get fresh clean developer; otherwise, I get dirty negs that I have to spot a lot in PS.

- scanning / printing is done exactly as required?

Umm, I do it and it works for me.

- your camera and lenses are clean, serviced and up to the job?

More or less.

- you keep records of location, weather, time, aperture, shutter speed.....for each shot?

HA!  No.