Kodacolor 100. New

[bfilm]

We, the old timers who know how great film can look, are the ones that were/are not so satisfied with Colorplus.

Now, I can bet the greatest amount of film sales is for the people 22 years of age and younger, who are into the "lo-fi" look, who scan their films using (ugh) Epson flatbeds or even (yuck) smartphone camera adapters, the guys who like to shoot expired film and enjoy light leaks... those guys are OK with getting any kind of image and it's normal that they would be just fine with Colorplus.

I still think Colorplus is a dull film. I wish Kodak Gold 100 (GA 100-6) would be available again! It was grainy, but OH what colors would you get!

Completely agree with this. No modern films have the color or the skin tones of Kodak Gold in its heyday. Even better was the short lived Ektar 25 and Ektar 125 which had incredible color, great skin tones, and virtually zero grain. These films were miles better than the modern Portra emulsions, which seem to do very weird things with blue skies. Skin tones on Portra 400 are awful too.

Yes, I have thought it unfortunate the distinct lack of seriousness or concern for quality in the way many people approach film use today. Film has such a beautiful look, and it seems like in the past more people sought to understand it and make their pictures represent this.

I am thinking that nowadays, the best bet for skin tones, is probably Kodak Ektachrome E100 with a light- to medium-strength warming filter or CineStill 800T with an 85B or equivalent filter. It is possible the daylight balanced films from CineStill can also do well with skin tones, but I think tungsten balanced film with the 85B filter often has a nice look.

 

[bfilm]

What Kodak could do to really make things interesting -- although I wonder if their relationship with CineStill precludes this -- is start selling direcly the motion picture films packaged for still photography, now that they are made without remjet backing and with an anti-halation undercoat layer. Then there would also be Kodak color negative film on cellulose triacetate base again, for those like me that prefer that.

Perhaps they could tell CineStill that their (CineStill's) thing is halation and that the Kodak films won't have that, so they are different.

 

[paddycook]

What Kodak could do to really make things interesting -- although I wonder if their relationship with CineStill precludes this -- is start selling direcly the motion picture films packaged for still photography, now that they are made without remjet backing and with an anti-halation undercoat layer. Then there would also be Kodak color negative film on cellulose triacetate base again, for those like me that prefer that.

Perhaps they could tell CineStill that their (CineStill's) thing is halation and that the Kodak films won't have that, so they are different.

I’d prefer Kodak to reformulate some of the great films of yesteryear and concentrate on neutrality, punchy color ( yes you can have both), great skin tones and low grain. Again, the Ektar emulsions from the early 90s are great models for what could be done. Why do all their modern c41 emulsions trend red/yellow or are boringly desaturated?

 

[bfilm]

I’d prefer Kodak to reformulate some of the great films of yesteryear and concentrate on neutrality, punchy color ( yes you can have both), great skin tones and low grain. Again, the Ektar emulsions from the early 90s are great models for what could be done. Why do all their modern c41 emulsions trend red/yellow or are boringly desaturated?

It could be interesting to see what Kodak could do along those lines, but I just don't know that they are really interested in doing that. It could be that those at Kodak just think differently these days in what they want to do with film.

I have often thought that film emulsions were at their most beautiful in the 1980s, which is not so distant from the ones you mention in the early 1990s. But as I imply above, this doesn't seem to be of interest to Kodak at the moment.

Of course, it would also require a lot of investment and work for Kodak to make new film emulsions. My thinking with the idea of offering the motion picture film packaged for still photography is that they could do that with no new development, and as they seem to be distributing still photography film directly again, it could be a possibility.

 

[brbo]

Why do all their modern c41 emulsions trend red/yellow or are boringly desaturated?

They don't and why would you say that? If you are getting yellow and desaturated prints from Ektar or Portra you are doing something wrong. With RA-4 papers that are still available I'd say you will be fighting contrast and saturation much more than the lack of it...

 

[paddycook]

They don't and why would you say that? If you are getting yellow and desaturated prints from Ektar or Portra you are doing something wrong. With RA-4 papers that are still available I'd say you will be fighting contrast and saturation much more than the lack of it...

Perhaps an over generalization on my part admittedly. Yes Ektar has the punch but skin tones trend to red. Maybe it’s me but I can’t get decent color on Portra 400 with blue tending to go teal. I can’t get a decent sky color. Portra 160 is meant to give great skin tones but I can’t get them and I don’t find the film neutral, it just seems desaturated to me. Perhaps it’s all me but I have mini lab prints from the late 80s early 90s that show more punch and a more neutral palette, and scan the same way even now, so I don’t think I’m imagining it.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Perhaps an over generalization on my part admittedly. Yes Ektar has the punch but skin tones trend to red. Maybe it’s me but I can’t get decent color on Portra 400 with blue tending to go teal. I can’t get a decent sky color. Portra 160 is meant to give great skin tones but I can’t get them and I don’t find the film neutral, it just seems desaturated to me. Perhaps it’s all me but I have mini lab prints from the late 80s early 90s that show more punch and a more neutral palette, and scan the same way even now, so I don’t think I’m imagining it.

I would be looking at your lab if you are getting results like that today.

If instead you are home processing and optical printing I'd start there.
If you're scanning negs and digital printing, well that is where it gets very tricky.

 

[BrianShaw]

Perhaps an over generalization on my part admittedly. Yes Ektar has the punch but skin tones trend to red. Maybe it’s me but I can’t get decent color on Portra 400 with blue tending to go teal. I can’t get a decent sky color. Portra 160 is meant to give great skin tones but I can’t get them and I don’t find the film neutral, it just seems desaturated to me. Perhaps it’s all me but I have mini lab prints from the late 80s early 90s that show more punch and a more neutral palette, and scan the same way even now, so I don’t think I’m imagining it.

How are you exposing the Portra?

 

[paddycook]

How are you exposing the Portra?

Box speed always.

 

[Cholentpot]

Kodak needs to make money. I know they read this so here goes.

Eastman Kodak needs to release KodachromeC. In reality it's Gold 100 but just with Kodachrome packaging.

It'll fly off of shelves. Kodak will be printing gold. The company will be saved and world peace will be reached.

Do it Kodak.

Do it!

 

[mshchem]

Kodak needs to make money. I know they read this so here goes.

Eastman Kodak needs to release KodachromeC. In reality it's Gold 100 but just with Kodachrome packaging.

It'll fly off of shelves. Kodak will be printing gold. The company will be saved and world peace will be reached.

Do it Kodak.

Do it!

Just in time for the Holidays? Open me First!

 

[Cholentpot]

Just in time for the Holidays? Open me First!

Not gonna lie, if they did this I would buy a few rolls just for the people who go 'Film huh. You shooting Kodachrome?' And I'd say, as a matter of fact yes.

 

[mshchem]

Verichrome II

 

[George Mann]

Kodak needs to make money. I know they read this so here goes.

Eastman Kodak needs to release KodachromeC. In reality it's Gold 100 but just with Kodachrome packaging.

It'll fly off of shelves. Kodak will be printing gold. The company will be saved and world peace will be reached.

Do it Kodak.

Do it!

Or perhaps Kodak will produce digital cameras that perfectly emulate their most lengendary and regarded films and then declare themselves permanently out of the film business.

 

[koraks]

I can’t get a decent sky color. Portra 160 is meant to give great skin tones but I can’t get them and I don’t find the film neutral, it just seems desaturated to me.

How do you go from a negative to the final image? Is the final image an optically enlarged RA4 print, a digital monitor picture or a digitally created print (inkjet, c-print etc)? The nature of your problem is likely in the process.