Film Digital Index (DX) Coding can be very convenient for 35mm.  No need to worry about setting the film speed (ASA, ISO etc.) on the camera sett

Film DX Coding – A photographer’s life hack

submited by
Style Pass
2021-10-24 01:00:08

Film Digital Index (DX) Coding can be very convenient for 35mm.  No need to worry about setting the film speed (ASA, ISO etc.) on the camera settings to ensure it meters correctly, just insert film and shoot away.  This function is especially prevalent on 80s and 90s compact film cameras, some of which are very popular and getting expensive now (looking at you Olympus mju Stylus).

The problems start to arise when the box speed of the film is not what you require or want.  For instance, you may want to shoot Ilford HP5+ but it is a bit of a gloomy day and you would like to push the film one stop, from ISO 400 to ISO 800, to increase contrast and allow more sensitivity to light.  Alternatively, you may want to shoot Kodak Portra 400 at ISO 400 but you rate Portra at ISO 250 in camera, specifically to get the beautiful saturation of colours it can produce.

One other problem you may face is when the film cartridge may not have DX coding.  This is a situation with some “boutique” films available or even when you load your own film from bulk rolls.  A lot of compacts will default to ISO 100.  Some do get around this, like the Olympus XA3, where you can only manually set the ISO if the DX code is not there or is hidden.

Leave a Comment