Digital photograph noise is composed of neatly arranged pixels, while film photograph grain is formed by silver halide exposed on film.
In digital photography, we all want to minimize noise; but in film photography, when we want to make the photo style more retro, we may want to increase the graininess.
The main factors affecting the graininess of film are as follows:
ISO
A higher ISO indicates higher light sensitivity, making it more suitable for shooting in low-light environments. Generally speaking, higher ISO films in the same series tend to have more graininess.
Film series
Even within the same brand, different film series can exhibit significant differences in graininess. For details, please refer to the manufacturer's information.
Common high-grain films:
Kodak Colorplus
Common low-grain films:
Kodak GOLD
Kodak Protra
Kodak Ektar
Film size
This is something that digital photographers are quite familiar with: the smaller the photosensitive area, the higher the noise. Film cameras work on a similar principle.
Because a half-frame camera only uses half a frame of film to shoot, the resulting images will have a higher graininess.
exposure
When the exposure is insufficient, the technicians at the photo lab will usually increase the brightness, but this will also increase the graininess in the shadows. If you want to create this effect intentionally, you can shoot with EV -1 and then reduce the brightness during photo processing.
