Back to digital for a while
Before you ask, the answer is a solid, NO! I am not giving up film. However, I believe in the right tool for the job and at this time of the year, digital is the right tool. I like to keep things as simple as possible and I’m feeling like shooting more night shots, perhaps some time exposures, etc. When l leave work it’s already dark.
So, for you who have never shot film, you might ask: What’s the problem? Well, the problem is that film has this nasty little thing called reciprocity failure. That is, when things get low on light, film doesn’t behave the way a sensor might. So, if using a certain ISO on your camera and you need an exposure of say, 4 seconds, you know that if you stop down one stop, you need to double your exposure. Simple. Well, not with film. Some films have really bad reciprocity issues, especially Ilford’s Pan F which starts that nonsense at exposures of greater than 1/2 second. For example, for a one stop change, you may need to increase your time the equivalent of 2 or 3 stops, perhaps more. The more time that your exposure meter says that you need, the worse it gets.
I like to keep things simple, so I’ll probably use the Leica and Olympus for people shots during the day and the Mamiya for landscape shots in morning and evening … now should be pretty good for B&W. Most of the trees are nude and looking pretty sexy in their winter wear. 
Hmm, that doesn’t sound all that simple, but what the heck.
So, instead of a steady diet of B&W, I’ll be mixing it up for a while. How’s that? 
Different tools for different jobs — makes sense to me. Sounds like you’ve got the whole 24/7 four-season thing covered.
[Reply]
dude, you are SO thinking the wrong way here…. all you have to do is quit the job working for the man….. Bam! Daylight=Film……
[Reply]
The other solution is Fuji’s Neopan Acros B&W film and Provia 100F slide film. Neither film suffers reciprocity failure until you exceed 120 seconds of exposure. Both are excellent films overall.
I use Acros and Provia for all my tripod-bound long-exposure film work. Wonderful stuff.
[Reply]
@Tom: Sounds like you want to start supporting me financially!
@Adam: Thanks, Adam. I’ll have to try that Fuji Neopan Acros. I just went and read the specifications. I’ll have to check it out!
[Reply]
I’ve been doing a bit of the same… I’ve been using Astia and Acros in my 4×5, but I’m probably going to start using Ilford Delta since Fuji is apparently discontinuing Acros in Quickloads… but I also us a digital quite a bit, mainly when I want the quick feedback or the ability to share the images quickly.
Acros is great film though… you’ll probably like it. The newest version of Velvia is also surprisingly resistant to reciprocity failure.
[Reply]
Glad to see you are paying attention to her again Paul. (ie. Nikon).
[Reply]
A mixed diet is usually the best, I’d say. So, looking forward to some color in those dull days! Love the soft, sensible colors in your beach still-life.
[Reply]
I even bought my last lens for these dark times
Geez, I sit on the train and it’s snowing outside! Looks like the warm weather is over.
[Reply]
Umm, Provia also does not suffer from reciprocity failure, so you even have a color option. Have you shot color with your Leica yet? Humm? Heh. Really nice image of the shells, man.
[Reply]
Yeah, that’s true for most of Fuji’s latest films, apparently; the new version of Velvia, in both the ISO 100 and 50 flavors, is nigh immune to reciprocity, as is Astia. So you have all the options you could ask for
BTW, though I’m definitely a fan of Fujifilm, some of the newer Kodak slide films are also quite nice, in particular the E100G.
[Reply]