Discontinuation of FP100C

NedL · Feb 29, 2016

TheToadMen said:
I don't know how Fuji instant film works, but you can't freeze Polaroid or Impossible film. Well, you can put it in the freezer but you'll get in trouble with the liquid chemicals pouch within the film. Does Fuji also use liquid chemical to develop their instant film?

BAC1967 said:
Don't freeze it!!! That will ruin it, put it in the refrigerator to extend it's life.

I've read several people who have tested freezing FP-100C with good success. If you wait long enough, the development chemical packets will dry out, but my understanding is that while freezing did not work for polaroid film, it does work with Fuji. Of course I will find those references again and run some tests myself before I put it all in the freezer.

Ricardo, I use a lot of this film in a pinhole camera, and almost every time I show a picture from it, I try to mention how much fun it is to use.

The instax film isn't really a replacement... FP-100C is already a bit small for good pinhole. I think I'll be done with instant pinhole when my supply is used up. ( It will take a few years, I just bought quite a lot of it. ) Unless IP comes out with peel-apart film.

I found this (there was a url link here which no longer exists)

But I'm sure I read about systematic tests, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month... then thaw in refrigerator after use. I think they concluded that the actual freezing point of the chemicals is well below normal freezing point of water, and that for whatever reason the water does not separate out in FP-100C. But it's been several years since I read it. They cut one of the pouches open and found cold "thick" liquid, but still liquid.

Michael Raso · Feb 29, 2016

That link on page one yields this warning "This page was not retrieved from its original location over a secure connection."

So far, no other source confirming that this product is discontinued (including from various distribution sources).

bvy · Feb 29, 2016

Michael Raso said:
That link on page one yields this warning "This page was not retrieved from its original location over a secure connection."

So far, no other source confirming that this product is discontinued (including from various distribution sources).

That's probably the Google translate service.
http://fujifilm.jp/information/articlead_0384.html

Oren Grad · Feb 29, 2016

Michael Raso said:
That link on page one yields this warning "This page was not retrieved from its original location over a secure connection."

So far, no other source confirming that this product is discontinued (including from various distribution sources).

Here are the direct links to the Fujifilm website. First is the press release, second is the product page. The red annotation (生産終了いたしました) means "production discontinued".

http://fujifilm.jp/information/articlead_0384.html

http://fujifilm.jp/personal/filmandcamera/film/instant/peelapart.html

Theo Sulphate · Feb 29, 2016

Damn, this is depressing. I just started using the FP films (didn't get a pack film camera till last year).

I love everything about these films. I have a Polaroid Super Shooter with FP-3000B with me right now!

Well, since the B&W hasn't totally disappeared yet (at ~$27), the color will be around for a while.

Where's my effing time machine when I need it?!

Ken Nadvornick · Feb 29, 2016

Ricardo Miranda said:
So, that was the next film to be axed.
You were warned: "if you don't use it, you'll loose it".
You lot should have used it more and told every one you knew to use it as well, instead of some crap Digi.

I'm afraid I would be less than fair and consistent to other members on APUG in the past if I did not point out the logical inconsistency of arguing here that it's our fault for the discontinuation of any film product.

APUG is one of the last bastions of mass film usage. It makes no sense to beat people here over the head for not using enough film. That they are film users is the whole reason they are here in the first place. These are the film good guys. Not the film bad guys. If a film gets discontinued, it's the photographers who are NOT using film (and thus are NOT members of APUG) who need to be the target of your wrath.

Just look at the number of reaction posts in this thread by users of this film who are upset at its reported demise. I think the data is trying really hard to tell you something...

Ken

amellice · Feb 29, 2016

Ken Nadvornick said:
I'm afraid I would be less than fair and consistent to other members on APUG in the past if I did not point out the logical inconsistency of arguing here that it's our fault for the discontinuation of any film product.

APUG is one of the last bastions of mass film usage. It makes no sense to beat people here over the head for not using enough film. That they are film users is the whole reason they are here in the first place. These are the film good guys. Not the film bad guys. If a film gets discontinued, it's the photographers who are NOT using film (and thus are NOT members of APUG) who need to be the target of your wrath.

Just look at the number of reaction posts in this thread by users of this film who are upset at its reported demise. I think the data is trying really hard to tell you something...

Ken

+1

Lachlan Young · Feb 29, 2016

Can't say I'm surprised - it was a bit of a orphan material & with Instax selling extremely strongly I wouldn't be surprised if the bean counters decided to try & free up production capacity.

Its role as a proofing material had gone a long time ago & the PA145 back was much more awkward compared to the pola 545 etc.

I'm really struggling to think of one of my contemporaries (I'm 27) who uses the stuff in any quantity, yet many of them use plenty of IP/Instax alongside C41 & BW. More to the point, a lot of them use continuous light rather than studio strobe.

If someone wants to sink a million into peel apart, I'd rather see a colour version of Type 55, especially if the somewhat wonky colour of 809/59 was able to be maintained.

Peter de Groot · Feb 29, 2016

Ricardo Miranda said:
So, that was the next film to be axed.
You were warned: "if you don't use it, you'll loose it".
You lot should have used it more and told every one you knew to use it as well, instead of some crap Digi.
You had a warning when all B&W pack film went away.

You could be buying Instax film instead or...
...have you occurred to ask The Impossible Project to start research towards producing pack film?
You could have sent that money to them.

You are kind of a d*ck you know? You don't know me and asume a lot of things. First You asume I have shitloads of money to buy all kinds of film. Then you think I have never heard of TIP or Instax. Did you support New55 by the way? With the incme I have it is better to buy now then in a couple of months when prices have doubled. I bet you were complaining about the quality of the first films TIP sold and only buy their film now. See I can also asume things without knowing who you are.

Peter de Groot · Feb 29, 2016

Ricardo Miranda said:
My dear Wayne,
I'm so sorry you felt offended.
I'm just frustrated that Fuji's accounts felt they weren't selling enough pack films.
I'm just frustrated to find so many over 50s "photographers" hauling around big Digi cameras with even bigger lenses just because they are the latest scream in digital equipment and they can afford to plug £5000+. Even yesterday I saw a group of them, silver heads and all, carrying big cameras trying to do some "street photography". They could do with Albert Eisenstaedt's advice: be unobtrusive and carry as little equipment as possible, blend with the background.
But, the good thing is I see so many younger people, that is under 30, carrying and using film cameras who can hardly afford to spend more than £50-60 for a SLR and spend all their pennies in film. I carry with me some cheap Agfaphoto Vista film just to give it to some youngster that might be in need of it.
I just feel that the Digi majority could once in a while shoot the odd film roll to help keep the machines going on.
It is a pity to see now all pack film going away.
Personally I'm also frustrated with myself, because I never used them.
I spend more than 40% of my income in buying and using 135 film and chemicals.
I can't do more.
But I can try to convince others to use film.

Best regards,
Ricardo

So why should I buy all kinds of instant film when you have never bought any? So it is because of you Fuji is stopping fp100c. Not me.

Ai Print · Feb 29, 2016

+1,000,000!

Luckless said:
Insulting people and suggesting that the tools they choose to use and the styles they work in somehow make them lesser than you is a great way to have people ignore you. One of the biggest things that kept me from diving deeper into film work when I was in my 20s was the level of arrogance and ignorance from many parts of the film community. (Why on earth would I want to spend time in a community where I would often get insulted for using a canon 7D and burst photography to photograph sports?)

I think it reflects poorly on this "community" when people start pointing fingers, bashing digital, film companies and even blame someone who has no interest in using a product for it's demise because they did not buy the product. It's unfortunate that the product is gone but I would think that many would understand it has been on shaky ground for some time due to lack of use in the broader scope.

Only using film, sharing the passion for that and being positive about what we do have left will help to keep the niche film movement moving forward. Nastiness pushes people away, this is not unique to photography either.

Ektagraphic · Feb 29, 2016

No no no no no no NO. This HAS to be a bad dream!!!

Ektagraphic · Feb 29, 2016

Prest_400 said:
Well, as we speak some pack film producing machinery is sitting idle in Japan and might benefit from getting new ownership. IP could grab them and incorporate whatever they have on hand. But not easy.

With the way these guys can act, HOPEFULLY it is still sitting there

Jeff Bradford · Feb 29, 2016

Time for Fuji to make a good Instax camera.

NedL · Feb 29, 2016

Lachlan Young said:
...
I'm really struggling to think of one of my contemporaries (I'm 27) who uses the stuff in any quantity,

I think the main use has been in the passport photo business, especially in the developing world. As digital takes over, that use is diminishing.
When I made my big order a couple hours ago, the company helpfully presented me with the opportunity to buy another item "frequently purchased together": passport photo holders!!

GarageBoy · Feb 29, 2016

What the hell... Some of my best portraits, which I don't own were shot on that... Just got a back for my graflex XL too

Wayne · Feb 29, 2016

GarageBoy said:
What the hell... Some of my best portraits, which I don't own were shot on that... Just got a back for my graflex XL too

When I travel I ask if I can take pictures of people for my Facebook. I then pull out my spiral lined notebook with FP100C pictures taped in it. It never fails to amaze and amuse, and most people think it's incredibly "cool". But those days seem to be over....I only bought my 180 a few years ago...

Oren Grad · Feb 29, 2016

Wayne said:
When I travel I ask if I can take pictures of people for my Facebook. I then pull out my spiral lined notebook with FP100C pictures taped in it. It never fails to amaze and amuse, and most people think it's incredibly "cool". But those days seem to be over....I only bought my 180 a few years ago...

You can do that just as easily with Instax. More easily, in some respects, because the film packs are smaller and simpler and there's no messy peel-apart stuff to deal with.

skorpiius · Feb 29, 2016

Concidentally an order of 10 packs of FP-100C just arrived a few days ago. Just put in an order for another 50, hopefully the BH backorder does actually arrive.

Peter de Groot · Feb 29, 2016

APUGuser19 said:
These things disappearing like this, I wish these companies could hold out just one more year, when America's economy will pick up again. Because as we know "as goes the American economy, so goes the world". After next year, things will be so much better than what we've been having. Just hold out 1 more year. But alas, I can't either, so I know how Fuji feels. Once these things are gone in hard times, they're never brought back again. Man I hate this.[/Q

Oren Grad said:
You can do that just as easily with Instax. More easily, in some respects, because the film packs are smaller and simpler and there's no messy peel-apart stuff to deal with.

But with fp100c you get to keep the negative and scan it. Kinda difficult with Instax.

Oren Grad · Feb 29, 2016

Peter de Groot said:
But with fp100c you get to keep the negative and scan it. Kinda difficult with Instax.

True. And I know some will prefer the look and feel of FP-100C. I wish that it weren't going away. But even if Instax can't serve all of the purposes for which peel-apart film has been used, it can serve many of them, so at least all is not lost.

Theo Sulphate · Feb 29, 2016

Oren Grad said:
True. And I know some will prefer the look and feel of FP-100C. I wish that it weren't going away. But even if Instax can't serve all of the purposes for which peel-apart film has been used, it can serve many of them, so at least all is not lost.

Up until this year, the only instant film I knew was the integral type, first Spectra, then SX-70, then type 600. Now I've been using the pack film and I enjoy everything about the experience: the packaging, pulling out the dark slide, seeing the little tabs, pulling out the film, and separating it. The negative is a bonus.

Sure, making a good image is important. But I think the process of making an image is enjoyable too, whether it's setting up a large format camera, developing the film, printing it, or - as in this case - using pack film.

I think technology has eliminated many of the manual processes we used to do - things that were often fun. Younger people are less likely to experience these things or even know about them unless their inquisitiveness leads them to it.

lxdude · Feb 29, 2016

Ricardo Miranda said:
So, that was the next film to be axed.
You were warned: "if you don't use it, you'll loose it".
You lot should have used it more and told every one you knew to use it as well, instead of some crap Digi.
You had a warning when all B&W pack film went away.

You could be buying Instax film instead or...
...have you occurred to ask The Impossible Project to start research towards producing pack film?
You could have sent that money to them.

Why are you scolding those who most supported it?

Ricardo Miranda · Feb 29, 2016

lxdude said:
Why are you scolding those who most supported it?

Some 2 years ago or even less than that someone was asking a question here of the type "what is the best colour film?" or something like that.
At one point the discussion went to "how much colour films people are using".
Some members, just a few, had to post comments like "if I want to shoot colour, I'll use some digi" and "I don't use colour films any more".
I said at the time that more colour films will be discontinued if the trend wasn't stopped.
Just last week in another forum with a section specifically for films and not quite a few entirely dedicated to digital, someone asked a simple question about slide films as he wanted to try them for the first time. The first few answers were all "don't use slide films, they're awful".
You see where I'm going?
If we don't use more colour films and advertise to others, I'm afraid that more of the same downward spiral is to continue.
There's a reason why Ilford is doing well and Kodak/Fuji aren't doing so well: there's more B&W film being used than colour.
At times I wish I was wrong or that this was still 1986.

Wayne · Feb 29, 2016

Oren Grad said:
You can do that just as easily with Instax. More easily, in some respects, because the film packs are smaller and simpler and there's no messy peel-apart stuff to deal with.

No messy peel-apart? That's the part I love the most. I didn't even know what Instax was until just now when I googled it, but I don't think one of those cameras will fit inside my Polaroid 180. Anyway, like FP100C, those can only be so long for this world

Discontinuation of FP100C

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