film scans

Film Testing Kodak 400TX and Diafine Developer

by EveNSteve

Amazing couple of days running dozens of different developer tests all with 400TX… love the look of the grain and depth of this film! In the end I came back to an old friend but with a new twist. Diafine is back in my life in a big way! Diluted 1:1 and used as a one shot developer it is spot on in my JOBO with very nice grain, great tonality, no processing issues and best of all a usable EI from about 100-1250 (the chart shows 200-1600… I think 1600 is a bit on the edge for my works but is totally usable in a pinch. So again, in a JOBO speed is 4, temp does not really matter but I ran at 75F, Dilute part A and B 1:1… I did 3.5 minutes in each followed by a 2 min wash with water then fix (box time), clear (box time) and hang to dry…. easy as pie!

BarnTest200-1600

Of course an advantage of Diafine that I have written about here before is that many different films can be souped at the same time which is a huge time saver. Diafine negs are a bit flat and do requiere an “S” curve in PS to make me happy but I am now quite happy indeed. I will post links to Diafine articles I have written and a great one from a friend Sandy King from View Camera.

RiverTEST_800_Web

My suggest EI…. 800.

Viva la Revolution– Stephen

All images shot with a Leica MP with a 35MM Summicron ASPH… on Film!

LINKS:

Sandy King Article Diafine…. a must read!

as for articles here… there are a lot!!!! Just type in Diafine in the search box and enjoy!

Also please note these were just quick scans (first set) as I am leaving tomorrow for a week of shooting but the final scan (last image) is quite nice and shows the real potential for this amazing combo.

LF Kickstarter – Travelwide 4×5 Camera

by EveNSteve

Of course not the first camera of this kind and I do worry about the build quality BUT at $100 for the camera (lens and accessories are additional $$$$$$) it is quite interesting.

Travelwide 4x5
Travelwide 4×5

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wanderlust/travelwide-45-camera

As I said others options do exist and many with a better build quality and additional options, however, anything to keep film and LF alive is cool by me! Ive been shooting a lot of LF in the last few months… but more on that and a review of some LF films and processing options in a few weeks.

Viva la Revolution- Stephen

The End Of Film? Or… The End Of Digital?

by EveNSteve

Click on the audio play button to listen to this 14 minute discussion on the future of photography by Stephen Schaub.

LINKS:

How Much Longer Can Photographic Film Hold On?

Traditional Camera Film Makes A Come Back

New Kodak Professional Portra 160 Film Review

by EveNSteve

When Kodak released the Portra 400 a few months ago many of us speculated that a new Portra 160 would be just around the corner… and guess what? Kodak has announced today that Kodak Professional Portra 160 will be released starting in March 2011 in: 35mm, 120/ 220, 4×5 and 8×10… fantastic!!! Click on the audio-play button to listen to a 13 minute in-depth review of this new film (I tested 120) and be sure to look at the sample images provided below while listening to the audio… What a nice way to start the week!!!

Viva la Revolution- Stephen

Please click on the images below to see larger versions of each.

Indian Hill Imageworks Interior Kodak Portra 160
Eve- Kodak Professional Portra 160- 50" x 71.65" Print!
16" x 20" Crop from a 50" x 71.65" File. WOW!!!
5" x 7" crop from a 50" x 71.65" file... amazing tonality and detail!

Article for Consideration

by EveNSteve

First click on the link below and read the article and look at the examples…

http://www.twinlenslife.com/2011/01/digital-vs-film-canon-5d-mark-ii-vs.html

Now here are my thoughts…

1. The film looks fantastic! The latitude is much better and I like the feeling of the film file much more.

2. The test was very good. It would have been even better if the film scan was done on a higher resolution scanner like say an Imacon. This would have also leveled the field a bit as the RAW processing done to the digital file corrects a lot (but apparently not enough) and the film image was stuck with a relatively middle of the road scan on a Fuji Frontier SP-2500. It is a shame that the scanned image had to be upsampled (due to the scanner resolution limitation) as this film has a lot of subtle detail that a higher quality scanner could have showed optically.

3. I would also like to hear their thoughts regarding a side by side print analysis say at 2 or 3 different sizes… the proof is in the print!

4. The digital wins in the high speed test but the film is still quite good.

In the end will this article sway any true blooded digital shooter to consider film…? I don’t think so, as there will be a myriad of excuses on the RAW conversion technique or other BS that really does not matter. It is a good solid test and it confirms once again the many strengths that film and the hybrid workflow provide for the working creative photographer

Viva la Revolution- Stephen

Kodak Portra 400 Pinhole Reciprocity Test

by EveNSteve
Kodak Portra 400 at EI 100 60 Seconds Pinhole Test

Click on the audio play button to listen to this quick post on reciprocity correction for the New Kodak Portra 400 film. In a nutshell: double and triple everything beyond 1 second and you should be spot on.

Viva la Revolution- Stephen

Goodnight Kodachrome: 1935-2010

by EveNSteve

Click on the audio play button to listen to this bed time story read by Eve  Schaub… but first be sure to get a glass of warm milk. Today is the last day to get Kodachrome processed.

Goodnight Kodachrome


In the big yellow room

There was a camera

and a classic film

and a picture of Paul Simon jumping over the moon.


Goodnight Kodachrome

Goodnight moon

Goodnight slide show in the living room


Goodnight 25

Goodnight 64

Goodnight dynamic range eight stops more


Goodnight Dwayne’s

Goodnight flare

Goodnight little Afghan girl’s haunting stare


Goodnight mail order

Goodnight rush

And goodnight to Steve McCurry whispering “hush”


Goodnight plastic carousel

Goodnight transparencies rare

Goodnight glorious old color film… everywhere.


–“Goodnight Moon,” original text by Margaret Wise Brown

–”GoodNight Kodachrome,” text by Eve O. Schaub and Stephen Schaub, Copyright 2010

Two Buck Chuck… Good Cheap Film Does Exist!

by EveNSteve

Yes Virginia, good cheap film does exist. Click on the audio play button to listen to my thoughts on new approaches and needs for film in this figital / hybrid world.

The test images below are Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra which is a fantastic film and is readidly available at only two bucks (24 exp)… that’s $2 Dollars, 1.51 Euro, 1.28 United Kingdom Pounds, 167.94 Yen… about the price of a cup of coffee!

Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra at EI 200
Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra at EI 100
Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra at EI 200
Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra at EI 1600

And for those of you who want even smoother results here is an example of the portrait of my wife (same file as above) that has been processed through Imagenomic Portraiture Photoshop Plugin at default settings and then faded back to 50%… very nice!

Fuji 400 Superia X-Tra at EI 200, Imagenomic Portraiture at 50%

Thoughts On Testing And A Quick Lens Review

by EveNSteve
Voigtlander Ultron 40mm f/2.0 SL-II and Nikon 45mm F2.8P

Click on the audio play button to listen to this 10 minute audio on real world testing and a quick review of Voigtlander Ultron 40mm F2.0 SL-II Lens vs Nikon’s 45mm F2.8P lens… real world!!

Another Kodak Portra 400 Review

by EveNSteve

This review was passed on to me this morning and thought it would be of value to readers here on FR… his tests confirm what my posts here on FR did but he also tested the new Kodak Portra 400 at 6400 and 12,000 with very usable results… check it out:

www.twinlenslife.com

Links to articles on the New Kodak Portra 400 here on FR:

New Kodak Porta 400 Review Part 1

Kodak New Portra 400 Review Part 2: Skin Tones

Kodak New Portra 400 Review Part 3: Usable EI Range

Kodak New Portra 400 Review Part 3a: 3200!

New Kodak Portra 400 Review Part 4: Conclusion.

I have also heard that pushing the film in development for the 6400 is also quite amazing but of course requires special processing which is not available at my film processing lab… CVS or Rite Aid!

Viva la Revolution- Stephen