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I'm looking to take some film with me on an upcoming trip and am not sure which to buy. I don't plan on making physical prints of the photos, just having them developed and then transferred to a CD.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ I am not sure I understand what you ask - in the title you compare slides to prints (as in "what will give more quality photos, print or slides?") whereas in the body you ask about types of flim and disregard the prints (like "what slide film type/brand will give best results?"). Can you clarify? \$\endgroup\$
    – ysap
    Sep 22, 2011 at 13:12
  • \$\begingroup\$ FWIW, I never shot slides nor do I know anything valuable about film, but I think people swear by Fujichrom Velvia, especially for landscapes. \$\endgroup\$
    – ysap
    Sep 22, 2011 at 13:13
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ysap I think my question is pretty general. I only added the extra information in because it's a required field. That said, perhaps this will help clarify. If you browse for film on say bhphoto.com, there are many types you can purchase. Two of the are "slide" and "print" respectively. What is the difference between these film types? Are there differences in quality? \$\endgroup\$
    – Steed-Asprey
    Sep 22, 2011 at 13:24
  • \$\begingroup\$ I got you now - you meant film for print vs. film for slides. OK I see. \$\endgroup\$
    – ysap
    Sep 22, 2011 at 14:34

1 Answer 1

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Colour negative film has a wider dynamic range than transparency film. Depending on the quality of the scanning at your chosen developers, you may be able to get more detail in the highlights and shadows using negative film, and you will also have greater latitude to correct over- or underexposed photos.

Slide film, on the other hand, (especially Velvia as ysap has indicated) generally has much more saturated colours, and depending on what you will be shooting, will produce images with more immediate visual appeal. Velvia is also a low ISO film which means finer grain and hence, effectively, higher resolution. Whether this will be relevant to you depends on the resolution of the final digital files.

There are low ISO negative film brands available, but they are not as common as slide film.

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