First Shoot with K40

The Cat # is 140 2494 ?

The 100' loads will be on a daylight spool.

#85 filter for outside, bringing the speed to 25 asa.

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I guess you could leave the film in the camera for a bit, as long as it's stored in a cool place. ie: not the trunk of the car under a blazing sun, for the weekend.

Buy a roll of black electrician's tape, and after you load the camera run a length of it all the way around the join where the film-cover meets the camera. That will help prevent light-leaks.

When first threading the film, have the camera speed set to a low fps. Turn it back to 24fps once you know for sure the sprockets are catching the film correctly.

If the camera has an SLR, be aware that light can zip up the eyepiece if it's not closed/covered when you're not actually peeking through it.

Keep the paper strip that is holding the film from unspooling, when first opened. You can put that back on afterwards to do the same thing.

Go film! Woo-hoo!

thanks for the help! but a few more questions haha

i dont know what a CAT # is? but im guessing its on my film canister, in which case i can check it when i get home

and also, my k3 cam with some filters, is one of these the 85? if not, where can i find one?

thanks again

Zen answered most of your questions from the first post. I must say it's a big step to be shooting 16mm, so I tell you to just have fun with it and enjoy the experience.
Now about the filters, I think that an 85 comes with your camera. But when you get home just look at the filters and on the side they should tell you what type of filters they are. Of course you might have 2 85's. As there is an 85(a) and 85b. The difference is that the 85b is a darker amber, and the 85 is a a more light amber.

Here are some pic examples for you...
85(a)
85(b)

alright, the film is CAT # 140 2494 like you said, but it says on there "open only in total darkness", which scares me as far as opening it up in "subdued light" to load it, someone tell me im freakin out and that its ok to open it, haha

Maybe colour film is more sensitive than b/w?

I dunno... I've only used the b/w plus/tri-x.

According to the Kodak Catalogue it's on a daylight reel... but if it's saying total darkness on the box, I'd be gettin' a changing bag. I've never used a changing bag either... but I imagine it would be a real bear to thread the film if never having done it before.

I load in a bathroom with the door open just a teeeeny bit so I can just barely see. Never had a problem doing this. Ive also loaded with a changing bag, they're both easy enough to do.

I would STRONGLY recommend loading in the light with some dummy stock first (kodak might be able to send you a little) so you can really get a feel for how the K3 loads and works. Then try it with your eyes closed. Once you can load with your eyes closed you're ready to go in and do the real stuff. Of course, you do understand that 100' loads come on daylight spools - black metal spools - but you'll also need an empty daylight spool for the takeup spool. Once you're done shooting, you'll see the meter mark hit zero and youll hear the film start flopping around inside the cam. Put the lens cover back on and make sure the film is totally out of the sprockets and now it is just on the takeup side of the camera. Go back to your mostly dark room and takeout the takeup spool, put it back in the contaner that Kodak gave you, close the lid, and use some tape to tape it shut (use gaffers tape if you have it). Now write on the outside of it UNPROCESSED FILM, ONLY OPEN IN DARKROOM. Your name, address, order # if you have it. I would briefly type or write a letter to the colorist (if you're getting it telecine'd) stating you want it processed normal and if there are any notations on the film (IE theres a 20 sec black section in there but the image will come back after that etc).

You'd do yourself well to Shoot a grey card at the beginning of the reel. If this reel is to be telecine'd, this gives the colorist a good base to start with for your stock, camera, lens, etc.

Two more tips - make sure after you get the film loaded and the case shut you TAPE THE ENTIRE area around the case where there's a gap like light might get in. For safety I put a small piece of tape over the film remaining meter too. Make sure you shut off the exposure meter when you are done shooting. The exposure meter is pretty accurate in a lot of situations I have found. I would trust it assuming you have a new battery in there. Finally, Once you start rolling do NOT let go of the trigger until you are done. A slight lift and you will hear the camera click click click and then on the film it will have a white spot.

Welcome to 16mm.

wow, that was super informative, thanks a lot widescreen

and ive got one more question, im not sure if i want to get the film telecined, so if i just get it send back to me regularly so i can watch it on a projector, will i be able to later send that out for telecine if i decide i want it? or does it have to be done in developing?

ceej said:

wow, that was super informative, thanks a lot widescreen

and ive got one more question, im not sure if i want to get the film telecined, so if i just get it send back to me regularly so i can watch it on a projector, will i be able to later send that out for telecine if i decide i want it? or does it have to be done in developing?

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Yes you can send it out later if you want to, the thing about having it done on the spot is it avoids any possibility of dust or hairs or anything getting on the film and into the telecine. But if you want to do it later just run it on the projector and clean it yourself.

Also, you will want to look into this: http://www.k3camera.com/k3/k3s16mm-install.stm Not so much the s16 gate but farther down, removing the loop guides. For your test it should be allright but for real stuff you will want to have those things removed as they can scratch film and you dont really need them.

ceej said:

ok, ive got my k3 and my first 100 foot roll of k40 (from dwaynes). And im ready to shoot. Im planning to shoot it in daylight, so will i need a filter?

Also, should i shoot it all in one day? or will it be ok to leave it in the camera for a little while?

Will i be able to load it in the shade? or will it have to be complete darkness (i dont know how to tell if its a daylight or core)

Well thats all i can think of, but any other general tips or advice anyone has to offer would be greatly apreciated

- CJ

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All great advice given above. I will add...in my experience (re: leaving a roll inthe camera), I've had color neg sit in a cam for a couple of weeks on end (animating) and as long as the eyepiece (as Zen said) was closed down or a dark, opaque cloth placed over the eyecup, you should have no problem with light leaking or 'film freshness'. However, the best practice is to shoot the roll and get it processed, expeditiously.

Because I had a low ratio for shoots (1:1, ha), I would usually rattle off 10 feet at the front of the 100'roll and 10-15' reserved at the end, which I considered waste (you'll get some fogging on either end simply from the task of loading/unloading the roll from the cam).

Good luck on your epic journey through the world of film!

I take it the purpose of shooting the Kodachrome is test footage?Two books I recommend about properly testing your camera for specifics.The ASC manual and the Professional Cameraman's Guide.You should do some scratch and registration tests before you commit your camera to an expensive project.You will want NO surprises.