Personal ramblings on photography
Color Photography
Petapixel has Daniel Lachman tell us how much you can over expose colour negative film:
“What I took away from this is that film basically can’t be overexposed, it can just be too dense for the scanner to be able to shoot through the negative. But the information will always be there.”
My quick take is that you can shoot it at +2 and it will be more tolerant to under exposure error.
Early December Ilford announced two new disposable cameras with their black and white film, one with HP5, the other with XP2.
Strangely, disposable cameras still sell well in comparison, and Ilford is just trying to capitalize on this. There is a version with processing included for the HP5 film as it is traditional B&W. The XP2 film can be processed anywhere as it is C-41 process.
End of January, Lomography announced the LomoChrome Purple, a colour negative film design to achieve effects similar to the long discontinued Kodak EIR inversible film. The 35mm version is already sold out, but the 120 will cost you around $60 for a five pack, on pre-order.
It is good to see new niche product like these or like the Fujifilm Baby box.
Pixelogist talk about Developing C-41 Color Negative Film explain how simply it can be done at home.
Alright, developing C-41 is pretty similar to the black and white process. The equipment is the same, so just check out my previous post on developing equipment to know what you will need. All of it applies — developing tank, beakers, thermometer, timer — all that. The chemistry is different but again, there’s developer, there’s fixer, and there’s something afterwards. The process, while different in order and times, is also very similar to the black and white process, so if you’ve worked black and white before, you should have no trouble with C-41.
My take: it might be harder to obtain the chemicals than to actually do it.
Fujifilm Reala 100 Discontinued in 120 Format:
It is with great sadness that I have to report the announcement of the discontinuation of Fujifilm’s Reala C-41 color film in 120 format.
Thanks to the phoblographer.
Via the photographblog, Fujifilm to discontinue Fujichrome Velvia 100F in 35mm, 120 and 4×5 formats and Velvia 50 in 4×5 and 8×10. Last shipment in December 2012 for the UK.
This is sad, even for the Velvia 50 at it represent one of the best color film today for landscape. The market for inversible color film is shrinking even more.
In Kodak bankruptcy reorganisation, the announcement of Ektachrome being discountinued mark the end of the Kodak slide film, after discontinuing Kodachrome in 2009 and stopping development at the end of 2010. The won’t stop producing E-6 chemistry though.
This is very hard on slide film shooters. Now the only source for color reversible film is Fujifilm. Time to stock up.
A small documentary “Kodachrome 2010” by Xander Robin, with an interview of Dwayne’s Photo lab manager and how it came to an end.
The video was taken down on YouTube due to a copyright claim.
Robert Cohen found his last roll of Kodachrome and went to the Missouri fair to shoot it ; then drove down to Dwayne’s to get it processed, anxiously waiting to see if the film had any picture on it.
My biggest regret is to not have shot Kodachrome more often. I think that the 3 weeks turn around in France was part of what turned me off.
Heinz Maier’s amazing photos of water drops (archived from the original): just view these awesome pictures. And look at the setup.
Business Insider has an exhibit of color pictures of Manhattan from the 1940’s and 1960’s by amateur photographer Charles W. Cushman. The collection is maintained by Indiana University. All shot on Kodachrome.
Kodachrome is dead, long live to Kodachrome.
Yesterday, December 30th 2010, was the last day to have Kodachrome processed at the last lab operating in the world, Dwayne’s Photo, in Parsons Kansas. Rolls had to reach them by noon that day to be processed, after 75 years.
Steve McCurry, the legendary photographer from the National Geographic got given by Kodak the last roll they produced in 2009. You can see shots from his last roll.
It is sad to see this happening, but ever falling sales of film made the enterprise even less viable. I just wish there was a company that was able to manufacture and process a Kodachrome-like film in the future, as it was the best color slide film, with unbelievable archival quality, unrivaled by the E-6 chemistry based slide films.
I just regret to not have shot enough of it, none of them in America.