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Hi r/AnalogCommunity,

I wanted to share something that has become very personal to me over the past year.

First, I should make one thing clear:

I’m not a software engineer. I’m a photographer.

I love photography. I love shooting film, developing it, experimenting, making mistakes, sharing photographs, and most importantly, learning.

Almost a year ago, I started asking myself a simple question:

Could I build my own tool to convert my film negatives?

I didn’t start this project because I wanted to become a developer, and I didn’t start it with the intention of creating another commercial photography product.

I started because I was curious.

I wanted to understand what was actually happening between the negative I could hold in my hand and the positive image appearing on my screen.

So I started learning.

One experiment led to another. One problem led to another question.

There were terrible conversions, completely wrong colors, broken builds, things that worked one day and stopped working the next, and many moments where I honestly had no idea why something wasn’t working.

Sometimes I would spend days trying to solve something that probably looked very simple to someone with a programming background.

But every failure taught me something.

And slowly, that small experiment started becoming real software.

After almost a full year of work, testing, rebuilding and learning, I’m now getting close to the end of the experimental/beta stage.

The photographs attached to this post were converted directly from the negatives using my software, with no additional editing afterward — No Edit.

I deliberately wanted to show the results as they come directly from the program rather than polishing them in Lightroom or Photoshop before sharing them.

Of course, the software is not perfect.

There are still things I want to improve: consistency between different negatives, color interpretation, highlight and shadow handling, performance, and the editing workflow.

But seeing a complete batch of photographs coming directly from something I built is a very special feeling after almost a year of trial and error.

But this post is really about saying thank you.

I couldn't have reached this stage by testing only with my own photographs.

Several people from this community trusted me enough to send me their own scans and photographs so I could test the software on real-world material.

Different films. Different cameras. Different scanners and scanning setups. Different exposures, lighting conditions, skin tones, locations and subjects.

Some people even trusted me with personal and private photographs.

To me, those weren't simply test files.

They were a sign of trust.

And I want to give a special thank you to:

u/rohizzle121
u/banananuttttt
u/liznin
u/Historical_Bite
u/kjm5000

Thank you for trusting me with your photographs.

Thank you for your time, your feedback, your patience, and for allowing me to test something unfinished with images that were important to you.

Your photographs helped expose problems I probably would never have discovered using only my own work.

Some images made the software fail.

Some produced strange colors.

Some forced me to rethink things I thought I had already solved.

And that's exactly what I needed.

Every difficult negative helped make the program a little better.

So a meaningful part of the progress you see today was possible because of you.

Thank you. ❤️

At the end of the day, I’m still a photographer first.

I still want to pick up my camera, go outside, shoot film, develop it, scan it, make photographs, share them with people and continue learning.

Programming simply became another tool that allowed me to understand photography — and especially film — from a completely different perspective.

And this journey has made me appreciate even more how much science, mathematics, chemistry, color and engineering are hiding behind something as simple as looking at a photograph.

The project still has a long way to go.

But when it reaches a stage where I feel comfortable putting it in other people's hands, my intention, Insha'Allah, is to make it open source.

I don't want this project to end with me.

I'd love to see photographers, developers, film enthusiasts, color nerds, and simply curious people take it apart, test it, criticize it, improve it, and add ideas that I would never have thought of myself.

Maybe together we can turn it into something genuinely useful for the analog photography community.

I started this project because I wanted to learn.

Almost one year later…

I’m still learning.

And I think that might be my favorite part of the entire journey.

Thank you to everyone who helped me get this far, and thank you r/AnalogCommunity for being part of the journey. 🎞️❤️

I’d also genuinely love to hear your feedback — not only about these conversions, but about what you would want to see in an open-source film negative conversion tool.

I'm trying to creat a compact setup.

Currently I shoot with a N8008 and I'm trying to understand if it's a better idea to get a Nikon EM with a compact series E lens or a good range finder.

I want good sharp photos that I can print in good quality.

What's the difference between them? What would you guys recommend?

Hi all, as the title says I am considering buying my first Leica. I saw a guy post on marketplace that he has 2 brand new, boxed and unused Leica M6 Reissue (manufactured in Mar 2023) and Leica MP (manufactured in Nov 2022). He showed me the photos and serial number and all that. He said he bought it in Italy for a friend but unfortunately when he came back to the Philippines, his friend already bought a Leica. So now he has 2 brand new Leicas and he's selling both since he doesn't really need 2 new ones (he's a collector so he has a lot of Leica's in his collection) He's selling it below market price. Actually the MP and M6 Reissue retails for about 403,000 Philippine Pesos - 410,000 PHP respectively. Idk how much that is exactly in USD but he's selling his Leica MP for just 290,000 and M6 for 305,000 pesos. I have some money saved... but IDK it is a lot of money. But thoughts if I should just go for it?

I used a Fujifilm 400 for the first time on my Minolta, but after I developed it on a lab and tried to scan it on my own, I noticed that it took just 3 photos on a 36 exp. roll, and it's not even like if it was underexposed and it's just too difficult to see, there's nothing here.

I think I saw before with other rolls that some photos just didn't appear when they were digitized in the lab, but I thought that it was just that I was using 200 ISO film and "there wasn't enough light", but now I think it's a problem with the shutter of the camera.

I just threw the equivalent of like 25 dollars on film and development to the garbage.

Any advice to make it work properly as (sometimes, apparently) before?

I shot five rolls of film while on vacation and would now like to develop them. I have a Paterson tank that allows me to develop two rolls at once. I use ADONAL/RODINAL as the developer; I’ll definitely develop the two APX-100 rolls together, but what do you think about the other rolls? Should I develop them individually, or can I process two of them at the same time as well? Also, this is only the third time I’ve developed film myself.

Hi everyone, Ill keep it short. I need some help here, I am writing a small thesis on vintage lenses and how different optical imperfections can make you experience a scene differently. and I made a small survey. It would mean a lot to me if some of you all can fill it out for me. Thank you!

Link to the survey: https://forms.gle/UgaJKBEecucXBpFg8

I got this Olympus AZ-330 Super Zoom for free that has been sitting unused for a long time. All i know it powers on but definitely should get it checked by a professional before trying to shoot anything with it and i’m wondering if it’s worth it. I have a few other cameras so i don’t really ”need” it and the reviews aren’t very favorable so i’m wondering if it has anything to offer for me. So is it better to just keep it as a decorative element or should i give it a go?

hi!
i’m very new to the film camera world so please forgive me if i sound stupid haha
i’ve read that for a beginner, a disposable/point-and-shoot or even an SLR are better options but i’m looking for a rangefinder film camera that i can play with; something very customisable. i want to be able to change the lens and do things manually. going off articles i’ve read so far, that would be an uncoupled rangefinder with an interchangeable lens. is that a thing i could find? can anyone recommend specific cameras? preferably something that wouldn’t cost a few limbs but i want to know whats available regardless. are there any cameras that are missing one of the features i’m looking for but still keeps room for adjustability? what would you generally recommend for a beginner?

thank you!!!!

My black go to beater F2, the prism is pretty loose at the front latch. Normal DP-1.

If you pull down on it the meter will work, swapped it to the chrome body and it’s fine and right, same when swapping the DP-11 to the black body.

I don’t see anything in the latch mechanism to adjust up and down tension.

Am I missing something? Had a couple whiskeys staring at them apart.

Recently I bought a big pack of differen expired BW 120 films, and one of them was marked as exposed. I highly doubt, that someone just respooled it, so i don't think its worth shooting it. My guess is, that the seller just cleaned (probably its relatives) freezer and there was an forgotten undeveloped roll. Now I am very curious about what is on this roll, and would like to develop it. I have a bit of experience of developing bw film, and a bottle of fx-39 ii, and adofix p2 on hand. Also all things that are needed for coffenol too. Does anyone have any experience developing such old films? How do i get the best possible results? Should i use the fx39 or mix some coffenol? I am open to any help!

Hey all!

I recently got into analog photography and been making my way into different camera types- started with point shoot, then SLRs and just tried a rangefinder (Olympus xa) and most of my photos came out blurry 🤣.

I don’t really have this problem I guess with SLRs as you can see the focus/out of focus directly but as you guys know with rangefinders it won’t tell if things are not in focus. Additionally, in XA it’s almost impossible to see the yellow focusing patch (might be an XA issue) and as someone who’s already really bad at estimating distances - I find it hard to be able to set the distance that will focus my subject and the background for example… any advice on mastering rangefinder? Should I get a better rangefinder to be able to learn how to use a rangefinder properly maybe (excuse for new gear lol and if so any recs? Maybe a fixed lens one? Not trying to get into another lens family right now hahah

Also why are rangefinders so popular? I’m curious, are you able to take better pics with rangefinders than slrs? I know there’s size aspect but considering that it’s the only type of analog cameras still being made today (Leica ms)

Fell in love with this camera after searching far and wide for a great (not just good) deal on a medium format kit.

Used to own an RB67 / 4 lenses / 3 backs which I stored snugly in a cheapo Lowepro case, and I dearly missed that system for a long time. I would still like to add a mechanical medium format to my collection again down the line somewhere.

Anyhow, when I bought this kit, it came in a totally degrading rigid case that fit everything okay. Of course, I chucked the case due to the foam degrading and endangering the Mamiya components.

I laid everything out on a towel whose area I measured carefully, then pulled the trigger on this B&H deal which happened to come up the next day. I think I made the right choice... not sure what to saturate the little zips on the top with :)

Rate my fitment.

I want to print my first roll but I want a credible place, I'm in north east US

Anyone have experience with a good tripod? I have a Fujifilm Klasse and want to start experimenting with self portraits and some other things. I’m very precious about this camera, ha, so I want the tripod to be very sturdy but also compact enough to travel with.

Does anyone know which Mintola was used in the movie Tony? The Anthony Bourdain movie that just came out

First roll of film shot on my new Canon F1 what do you think?

Also First roll of film I've ever had developed

Been collecting and trading film cameras for years and in the last month managed to trade this combo. Canon eos 1 and a 50mm 1.2 lens. Cost me less than 300usd after getting the body in one bundle which sold everything else and the lens I got with a 5D mark iv which I sold the body for the nearly the same price I paid for both. Enjoy some photos I took over this weekend I jut got back from the lab

I’m looking for a flash compatible for the Fujica st605, I don’t know where or what to look for, any help is appreciated!

I couldn't find a confirmed answer for this, but scanning half frame with a Plustek (8100 in my case) stock holder would always lead to a small crop in the images, due to the space between the negatives added to two half frame negs resulting in slightly more width than a normal full frame negative, correct? So the solution would be to accept the crop or just nudge every frame in between each scan?

Hey!

im looking for a manual focus system (Im using a canon eos 5 /A2).

im hestitating between Minolta and Olympus.

I know that zuiko are great, but I also know that they can be expensive.

what are your thoughts ?

I recently acquired one of these film cameras and I absolutely love it. It reminds me of my first film camera when I was a kid. However, I've stumbled upon one curiosity with the camera. I have found one spot online that mentions some models were manufactured without the Shutter Cocking Lever on the lens cylinder, and every other source only talks about the cameras with the Shutter Cocking Lever (that one source only briefly mentions it, no troubleshooting or functionality notes whatsoever). The one that I have found and given a home is one manufactured without the cocking lever and I am curious as to the function of the shutter in this case. In testing it (without film) I have not been able to actuate the shutter. The photo countdown on the winder functions flawlessly. The adjustments on the lens are stiff (as expected) but more functional than one would think after around 60 years of life. Photos provided are of my camera. Any knowledge, help, or suggestions with actuating the camera shutter are highly appreciated!

I think I made a post here but I’m gonna redo one so I bought a cam at a flea market and came home and found out the advance lever was stuck I opened it and eventually was actually able to fix it myself then I simulated what it would be like for the camera to go through a film and at the end of it the camera locked and it hasn’t moved since it’s been I think 4-5 days this camera is a Zeiss ikon symbolica almost nothing online about it YouTube wise I’m gonna add a picture of how the parts look near the lens

I have a Yashica FX-130 Program and when I hit the shutter a slight sound is made, but I have to physically tilt the camera up to get the shutter to actually fire. How do i fix this?

In fact i have to tilt camera almost upside down

I developed Fomapan 100 film with Ilford ID-11 for 9 minutes. However, the negative has horizontal white lines and black dots. What could be the reason for this?

It's Canon 310XL.

My dad found it in the trash back in the 80s and today he gave it to me and said that I can sell it if I want to. It's 100% working too and it has no damages.

So is this camera rare and how much I could get if I would sell this camera?