Bulk Loading film will absolutely save you money!
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- čas přidán 1. 02. 2024
- #filmphotography #35mm #film
Ever been curious about bulk-loading film? Well, you've come to the right place. In this video, you can learn how to do it AND how much money you'll be saving!
Good job with the video. I like bulk loading 12 exposure rolls for testing cameras.
That’s an excellent use for it!
That's a great idea!
That's such a good idea, we have a lot of cameras to test right now
Here's a few things to throw into the mix:
When buying the plastic reusable 35mm cassettes, clean them thoroughly before use. The felt tends to be poorly applied or perhaps not tidied after application and leaves strands and particles that can get dragged into your camera and cover your negatives and even get into the shutter. Never assume the factory supplied them 'finished' and ready to be used. Always clean them first.
Always use a small piece of test film when using a second hand bulk loader for the first time. You don't wan to ruin a brand new 100ft roll of film because the felt light traps have perished, or part of the mechanism isn't functioning the way it's supposed to.
Keep your used up normal 35mm film cassettes if you can. As long as they have a piece of film sticking out, you can just tape the bulk load film to them and reuse them as though they were a reusable cassette.
Colour film is very much available in bulk rolls. Kodak Vision 3, a 35mm film (available in a variety of ISO's) is sold in 400ft rolls that can be decanted into 100ft rolls in a dark bag, and then loaded into your normal bulk loader. The only issue with this is that you need to process it in ECN2 and not C41, or remove the Remjet layer then process it in C41. It only adds a small extra step to the C41 colour film process and will save you an absolute fortune in colour film costs.
Thanks for including the bit about the reusable cassettes. The batch I just purchased all had loose felt bits, so I did have to work with them a bit to clean them up. So good point!
Also a great tip on reusing the pre-loaded cassettes. The only trouble I have with that is making sure the leader isn’t completely rewound into the cassette after finishing a roll. I know they sell leader retrievers - I currently have 3 different brands/designs - and none of them work well. Years and years ago I had one that would work every time. I wish I knew where it went.
And the Vision film is what I was referring to when talking about color film availability. I think the ECN2 processing requirement might scare some folks off. But if the savings are good, it’s definitely worth a look! Cheers!
I have a 400ft bulk roller. Bulk rolled 35mm Ektachrome is the biggest saving in film photography at the moment
Just a few moments ago I believed that bulk Ektachrome was a daydream…now my eyes have been opened… wow!
@@vintagecameradigestThanks to Euphoria and Poor Things which were shot partly on Ektachrome, it exists. It's less than a third of the cost compared the consumer version if you bulk roll yourself. It's exactly the same film with no remjet.
@philipau3847 I think for Ektachrome, it comes out to about 75% savings bulk rolling from a 400' roll... now could you in someway showcase your 400' bulk roller? I've been looking for one myself but haven't really found anything. Thanks!
It's insane how in 2-3 years ago they went from 2 euros a roll to 10-15. You would think that they were able to mass manufacture at that price then and still make a profit. Now they are just taking advantage of the fact that the film community is growing
My hope is that they’ll use some of the profits to ramp up manufacturing to meet the growing demand. Fingers crossed!
Good one! The only thing to remember is that both ends of the bulk loaded film is light struck, so don't shoot any good stuff on the last three inches of the film!
Thanks for pointing that out. Something to be aware of.
That's interesting. The bulk rolls I used in the past were always loaded in a darkroom (including the bulk roll). We got prints from every foot, except for the leader when loaded into the camera outdoors.
Thankfully, I switched from Kodak to Ilford film years ago, and I love it. Ilford really supports film shooters and I like supporting them in return.
I’ve nothing but good things to say about Ilford. Great film stocks. Great prices.
Thanks for the great tutorial. Easy to understand and really helpful. 👍
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
Back in the day I did virtually everything on bulk loaded Ectachrome that I processed and mounted myself. Thinking about going back to bulk so thanks for bringing up to date.
Thanks for watching!
thanks for this video. what i enjoy the most is interesting, competent and comprehensive content. and god i love to watch 15min + videos. Most of yours are even longer and that is great! Keep it up!
Glad you enjoyed it! No matter what I do, I always seem to come out around 25:00. So, I guess that’s the time it takes me to get my point across, lol. Thanks for watching!
Kodak actually started selling ektachrome in bulk again. They call it ektachrome 100D but from what i've seen online it's identical to E100, no remjet or anything like that. 564€ for 400ft, which comes out at around 8€ per roll. Kind of insane considering E100 is sold for 25€ at minimum.
Someone else also pointed that out, so it’s a good sign! Even if it is a 400’ roll. That’s a ton of savings.
I've been on the fence about this for a while but you convinced me to just go for it this year.
I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Excellent tutorial, thank you!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
Another "advantage" for us older photographers is that 20exp rolls can be loaded as well. ;) Some of my "vintage" (ahem) cameras are sill marked at 20.
I've always used a diagonal cut on my leaders as well. I've also never had a problem with the film in my cameras.
I didn't know they make changing tents. I need one of those because the bags are a PITA when handling film.
Are you going to talk about film developers for 35mm? I recently saw a webpost by another photographer who did a lot of experimentation with HC-110 and Rodinal on FP4 and Tri-X.
Also, have you any thoughts on the current Tri-X product? Is it the same old Tri-X we know and love? (I shot a lot of Tri-X 40-years ago and loved the stock.)
I got really busy the last couple of weeks with paying work, so I haven't shot the Bronica much except for the test roll. (Test roll turned out fine.) But I'm thinking that some Tri-X might be in order for that camera. I'm currently shooting XP2 because it is easy to have developed and scanned at a local camera store.
I sure wish we could still get Plus-X. I really liked that film stock.
Man, I still wish we could get Plus-X, too. But, I suppose that FP4 will have to suffice these days. And I think it does a good job. I do like the modern Tri-X - although back in the day I shot WAY more TMax 400, so I don’t know if I can make an educated comparison. Apparently it did get reformulated in the mid-2000s - supposedly resulting in finer grain, but less silver content. In my 400 speed film comparison video, it did out-perform the budget Kentmere 400 and Arista (Foma). Much higher resolution, much finer grain, and very sharp. It’s still easy to get excellent tones from it without having to do a lot of post-trickery. In other words, it still has “the look”.
I may eventually get into the developers, but there’s another channel - the Naked Photographer - who has already done fantastic, detailed tests with just about every film/dev combo out there. He’s got a good system and I doubt I could improve on it.
Now, the changing tent - nice concept. Harrison makes (or used to make) the best ones. Very expensive, but very usable. The one I have is badged as Adorama, but I’ve seen pretty much the same thing on ebay under different names. I think I paid about $50 USD for it. But it has a design flaw: the floor/bottom doesn’t sit flat on the table or work surface. And the film rolls into the edges and corners. Also, the arm holes aren’t in a very comfortable spot. They’re high enough that you can’t rest your elbows on the table while you’re working in it. BUT, it does give you more space than the bag. But, I think I dislike each of them equally, lol.
Thank you very much for this tutorial!!
You're very welcome!
fantastic content, thanks.
Much appreciated!
Excellent "how to" video. Makes me want to try my hand at bulk loading. I like jeff's comment below about making short rolls for camera testing.
Yes, it’s perfect for that sort of thing. Waaay back in the day I’d routinely crank out rolls of 5-7 exposures for a quick turnaround job.
Good video explaining the process. A couple of points: you can use an old used regular film cassette if you develop at home and leave an inch or so of film at the cassette end to attach to the bulk film. Saves having to buy those others. Also my Watson loaders are not quite as complicated as the one you showed, if that put anyone off trying it. Although I've watched other videos about this before I got started, there's always something new to learn. Thanks.
You know, I didn’t think that the Watson loader was complicated at all until I sat down and went through the steps to write them down. It’s actually pretty simple. I may have just been a bad explainer. Thanks for watching!
Buying 100’ roll isn’t cost affective for me…..not worth bulk loading….not saving enough, when loading Kodak…..thank you for the video….
You’re welcome! The way film prices fluctuate these days it’s almost like airfare or gasoline prices. But generally, I do think Kodak has the least savings when bulk loading.
The economics of bulk loading here in the UK are quite different
Single 35mm 36exp. Ilford FP4 Plus £7.98
18 rolls of FP4 Plus £143.64
30.5m (100ft) roll Iford FP4 £109.55
saving £34.09 or 23.7%
I estimate the cost of a bulk loader (new) and 5 reloadable cassettes to be £60. I’m assuming you already have a dark space to work in. This means you bulk load 30 rolls of film before you make any savings.
A used one from E bay is an option, but you run the risk of it not working, or worse still having a light leak you didn’t spot!
What about the guy who shoots as much HP5 Plus as he shoots FP4 Plus?
You might do just as well if you talk to your film supplier about the discounts you could attract by purchasing rolls of film in bulk.
Those are all good points. Yes, you’ll need to factor in the costs of the loaders and cassettes. But you will eventually recoup that, as you said. I have been using bulk-loading since college, so I do have the advantage of having moved WAY past the point of recouping that initial outlay - although I do purchase new cassettes every so often. I also have more than one bulk loader - each dedicated to a particular film stock. And a couple of those did indeed come from eBay. Perhaps I was lucky that they were in great shape. Again, you make excellent points about the economics of it all. But I still think if one shoots a LOT of film, bulk loading will save you money in the long run.
Many thanks for offering your perspective on this. As I have no clue what prices folks are paying for film and accessories in the UK. Cheers!
Another great video Mr. V. I’ve know about bulk for years but always thought it was too difficult or expensive. I’m going to look into trying it out. It wasn’t specifically mentioned, but (and not to get too crazy) I guess you can load any number of exposures on any roll you need?
Absolutely! But 36 (+ or - one or two) is about as much as you’ll get in a cassette. Years ago when I needed a photo with a quick turnaround, I’d routinely roll up a 5-7 exp roll. Piece of cake!
Absolutey!!! I remember well using the bulk loader at my college newspaper. Using pre-rolled 35mm would have cost 4 times as much then.
Absolutely!
Where can I buy that bulk loader? It looks amazing. I mean the first one.
Thanks for the question! I’ve picked up the last couple I bought from eBay. So, I’m not sure if they are available new anymore…sadly. But the brand is Watson, so that may help you in your search. The smaller Lloyd-style has worked for me as well, but I’m always concerned that the film may get scratched when it’s pulled through the felt “gate” if there happens to get some dirt or debris in there.
Another terrific offering, thanks! -a random mike
Thank you!
I am not much of a black and white shooter.. Id have to really start getting into black and white before id consider this. :). Thanks for the great video
Thanks, Jennifer! I remember you mentioning that before. When I started to get back into film one of the first things I discovered was almost zero color film available in bulk. Back around the turn of the century (jeez…did I actually just say that??) we were regularly buying Kodak Portra NC and Portra VC in bulk, with a little Ektachrome thrown in. I’m hopeful that this new film resurgence will make it a viable product to offer again.
Great demonstration. I have been bulk loading for years. Just wish they would produce color C41 stock in 100ft rolls.
Me too! I’m hopeful that this film resurgence will make it viable for manufacturers to offer again.
The "problem" with C-41 bulk loading is that you would lose your cassette with each roll you send in, assuming that labs do not take the time to send your cassette back. Thus, you would have to continuously re-purchase cassettes which, in turn, may negate much of your savings.
@@mhc2b Home process C41 is not hard. Do it all the time.
@@mhc2b Most of the people interested in bulk loading will process their films by themselves. It is not any rocket science to develop C-41 film. You just need a way to control the temperature a bit more accurately than in black & white, because the temperature and time will affect also the color balance in addition to density.
Good, thorough instructions. A couple of useful points -
1. For any kind of film/developer testing, you can roll off very short strips of just a few frames at a time. Ideal for testing film exposures or especially for testing development times & dilutions.
2. Also - I don't remember bulks of C41 or Kodachrome films. I do remember that E6 chemistry was available for Ektachrome & Fujichrome films, so one could certainly develop your own E6 slide film at home similar to b&w film stocks. But, for C41 & Kodachrome, if they were available in bulk then or now, the "problem" they present is that you would lose your plastic cassette with each roll you send in. Assuming, of course, that labs would not take the time to send your cassette back. Thus, you would have to continuously purchase new cassettes which, in turn, would negate much of your savings on color bulk films.
Back in the 90’s we could get 100’ rolls of Ektachrome, Portra NC (normal contrast) and Portra VC (vivid contrast). Probably the earlier VPS and VPH stocks, too, but not Kodachrome. Not sure about anyone other that Kodak, though. We used a local lab that made sure we got our cassettes back, so it was sort of a perfect situation.
I always come away a bit more knowledgeable after watching your videos!! My mind is a complete blank on bulk color film. Had no idea these films were ever available in bulk. And using a local lab does make it more likely to get your cassettes back. Thanks to you and another responder for letting me know these things were available.
Sadly, it’s all just reminiscing at this point. But I think it would make economic sense for Kodak to offer up some Portra in 100’ rolls…maybe?
I always seem to learn a few things on these, too. Got a clever group of faithful viewers!
You can use commercial rolls to test too pretty easily. 1) Shoot like 6-8 frames. 2) Advance a couple frames 3) (in the dark or very subdued light) set your camera on bulb and reach in and put a piece of masking tape on the film being sure to reach the sprockets while in the camera through the lens mount 4) stop bulbing, advance a couple more frames, and continue on. 5) feel the masking tape in the darkroom by letting the sprockets run across your finger, and cut there for test strips.
Kodak had Vericolor film available in bulk, and when it was replaced by Portra, it was made available. Also, Ektachrome was available, but I don´t remember in which ISO. "Consumer" negatives were never available in bulk, and in our market (Western Europe), I have never seen Fuji, Agfa or Konica films (the big players way back then) sold in bulk. In other markets, I don´t know. It was Kodak only in color, and no Kodachrome. As it was impossible to develop by anyone except for specialist labs because of the very complicated process, it was understandable.
This man sacrificed the whole bulk for us, please be generous on likes! :)
Thanks! 😄 I’ll take the likes! And thanks for watching!
Savings with Ilford BW Film are around 20%, calculated without costs of cartrigdes and the worktime you spend for bulk loading. For me theres no good reason to start bulk load film.
Where I am - and when calculating for 36 exp rolls - the savings for FP4 and HP5 are indeed close to 20%. The Deltas and Pan F, however, are 40% or more. But even at 20%, that will add up over time - if you shoot a lot. Time spent bulk loading is actually quite minimal. And for me, the cost of reusable cassettes is paid for quickly. I’ve had some of the same cassettes for over 20 years. Bulk loading isn’t for everyone, I suppose. But it sure works for me.
Ektachrome is available from smaller shops and some movie film suppliers in 100 ft rolls. Alaris does not sell these officially, but the price will be about half the price of 18 rolls of Ekrachrome sold by Kodak Alaris. What I hope is that Portra in bulk will return. I remember using quite a lot of Vericolor III in buk rolls in the late 80´s - early 90´s. ECN-2 films are a pain in the ass to print optically, and have remjet. Not worth the effort in my opinion. In black & white, it is weird that Ilford paper in sheets cost about four times more per sheet than a quality RA-4 color paper in rolls, such as Fuji DP II. Of course, you must cut your sheets from a big roll then.
Nice to know! Thanks for sharing that!
Not sure when you did your price check but tri-x has gone down to 9.99.
I checked the prices right before filming this. But that is excellent news!
Interestingly, the price of the 100’ roll appears to be un-changed. So, you’re only saving $1 by bulk loading. Not sure I’d do it just to save $1. I’d have to be shooting A LOT of Tri-X for that to be an incentive.
I had Lloyd's clone for a moment. It was leaking light and I have returned it. Also plastic reusable casettes made by AP or Kaiser are leaking light.
I think some of the cassette issues come from the felt light trap. I’ve seen some of that on mine occasionally.
Hello, greetings from Argentina, I wanted to thank you for your videos, which helped me decide and buy a Zenza Bronica 2S, but I am having a problem, the canara does not have the waist display, it came with the TTL meter, the problem is that I cannot find There is no manual that tells me how to remove the TTL dial, the shutter speed dial, I would appreciate it if you could enlighten me on the subject, thank you very much
Hello! I have never had my hands on one of the TTL meters. They look pretty complicated since they have the two parts - one for the viewfinder and the other for the shutter speed dial. I did a quick search and found this: try pulling up on the largest black ring and rotating counter-clockwise. I think there are two locking pins that engage with the normal dial, so pulling up on the ring will disengage them (I hope). I did find a link to the manual for the meter, but it was a dead link. Hope this helps!
I bulked in college, but things were a little scratchy.
I feel like the Watson-style is better for avoiding scratches. And since the Lloyd-style film gate is just felt, I think there’s a greater chance of scratches with it.
@@vintagecameradigest Probably correct. I remember using canned air to clean it, just in case. I had the Lloyd in college, probably because it was cheaper at the time, but that was in the 70's
They were, indeed, cheaper. That’s why I have mine, lol. But I haven’t actually used it to bulk roll any film in years.
I’m guessing as there is no DX coating on the film cartridge that has to be sent manually. And for those cameras that only load DX film and default to 100 ASA without the coating, like the Nikon F60, I would have to use the exposure comp dial to account for a film speed higher or lower than the default 100 is that correct?
Great question. You can actually find DX code stickers online. So that shouldn’t be an issue.
Been a while since I bulk loaded. I would recommend it to anyone doing a significant amount of film. Maybe my memory is faulty, but I remember the % savings being much higher before digital. Am I misremembering?
I honestly have no idea. My memory doesn’t serve me well on that. But I suppose it makes sense that there wouldn’t be as much savings now.
Is there a way to bulk load 120 film?
Not to my knowledge. I imagine it would be quite tedious trying to get the backing paper positioned correctly. So many things could go wrong.
Where are you getting these cheap prices ???
Prices were taken from the B&H Photo website back when this video was published. Checking the prices now shows me that they’re still more or less the same - other than the Ilford PanF which has increased. Interestingly, there is currently no cost savings with Kodak Tri-X. Individual 36-exp rolls are about the same as you’d hope to get bulk rolling from a 100’ roll.
@@vintagecameradigest So Sad !!!
Do you and Matt Day come from the same town or something? You guys talk exactly the same lol
I don’t think so, lol! But I’ll consider that a compliment 😁
sorry. but this video has been done 100 times.
Yeah, probably so. Still wanted to put my 2-cents in.
Maybe so, but it’s the first time I have ever seen a video about bulk loading. I thought it was very well done and I got a great deal from it. Keep up the good work.
I'm sure it has, but I haven't seen one. But it was fun to see one of my favorite content creators give his take on the analysis and process using current bulk stock pricing.