Since discovering slide film recently, I simply can’t stop shooting it. Film for me has always had that organic feel to it with the additions of real tones that make an analog image.
After shooting my first roll of Velvia some months back, I became hooked. Holding the negatives up to the light captures everything for me. I get that man fizz when the rolls come back from the lab in anticipation of how they will or might look.
Another element of shooting slide film that really grabs me, particularly with Velvia, and that’s the grain or should I say the fine grain it gives me. I’m keen to explore colour within my work and slide film, in general, gives me that “vivid” look I search for.
Velvia is one of those films that offers high-quality finish, grain, colour saturation and vibrancy. Its a great film for interiors, fashion, product, landscape, anything really. I guess that why I love it so much
Now, given the fact that now only shoot expired film these days, personal choice, there is always a slight concern that I might have underexposed my images, but to date that’s not happened at all. I’ve shot slide film on my Leica M6 before but I do prefer the larger finished look that my Hassy gives me.
Fuji Velvia 50 RVP50 (EI 50 – 120 – Hasselblad 500CM) 
Fuji Velvia 50 RVP50 (EI 50 – 120 – Hasselblad 500CM) 
Fuji Velvia 50 RVP50 (EI 50 – 120 – Hasselblad 500CM) 
Fuji Velvia 50 RVP50 (EI 50 – 120 – Hasselblad 500CM) 
Fuji Velvia 50 RVP50 (EI 50 – 120 – Hasselblad 500CM)
Looking into the waist level viewfinder gives me a true representation of how I see a slide image developing itself Much more so than shooting 35mm. I get a clear and true picture of the subject matter and the levels of colour I’ve chosen to frame.
These five frames form part of a project I’m currently working on, “a day in the life of a” of which film plays a big part.
If I was given the choice of just one roll of slide film, or even any medium format film, to shoot then the choice would be simple, it would be Velvia every time, hands down,
~ Rick
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purely a figure of speech. I think you understood what I meant. Cheers
In your article you write, “Holding the negatives up to the light captures everything for me…” These are not negatives they are positives, as is pointed out by Kris in previous post photographic positives are called transparencies or slides for short.
I really like how Velvia plays under what I think are fluorescent lights. I did not expect it to do this. I really like these pictures.
Oh, and transparencies. These are transparencies.