New Agfa production?

C A Sugg · Dec 20, 2009

or just a new marketing agreement for what's left?

http://reviews.photographyreview.com/blog/agfa-film-re-introduced-in-north-america/

Terence · Dec 20, 2009

Without APX 25, it hardly seems worth it.

funkpilz · Dec 20, 2009

I've never shot APX25, so I can't comment on that. But for me, keeping APX100 alive seems worth it on its own.

Prest_400 · Dec 20, 2009

To me it sounds like they're getting rid of some old stocks hidden somewhere. I Did hear of it two days ago, but when I read a similar article with the press release; It didn't sound at all new manufacture.
Ferrania USA owns that Oklahoma plant that was discussed here some months ago, do they still have film coating and packing equipment?

If my guess isn't right and they're remanufacturing some Agfa film, that would be great!

photomem · Dec 20, 2009

I was saddened to see only 35mm in the product photos. I wish I could get some Agfa 120 size.

aldevo · Dec 20, 2009

Difficult to say, but I doubt there's any new Agfa emulsion being produced. It's possible that Ferrania has got what's left of the master rolls (Rollei is still trying to move the remainder of their re-labeled APX 100 some 3+ years after obtaining it) and is finishing it and boxing it. Who really knows...

There are longer-term plans from Adox/Fotoimpex (who recently brought Agfa MCP and MCC B&W enlargng papers back from the grave) to get APX 100 and APX 400 back in production but there's no fixed timeline at the present. This would include 135, 120, and 4x5 sizes - so we'll just have to hope this becomes a reality.

aldevo · Dec 20, 2009

photomem said:
I was saddened to see only 35mm in the product photos. I wish I could get some Agfa 120 size.

Which tells me more than anything that it's just existng stock that wasn't re-labeled by Rollei. 120 stocks of both APX 100 and APX 400, world-wide, were gone within 3-4 months of AgfaPhoto going belly-up.

fotch · Dec 20, 2009

If it were new manufacturing, you would think there would be more news about it.

Chazzy · Dec 20, 2009

Terence said:
Without APX 25, it hardly seems worth it.

That's the only Agfa film I'm interested in too.

perkeleellinen · Dec 20, 2009

Ultra 50 and Portrait 160 would have got my interest.

Ian Grant · Dec 20, 2009

While APX25 was a superb film it was only marginally better than APX100 which is an outstanding film, streets ahead of Tmax 100 which in practice runs a full stop slower to achieve the same tonality.

Some of the best/highest quality 35mm images I've ever seen where shot with APX100 or it's predecessor AP100, and processed in Rodinal.

It's afr morev important to have APX100 back in a full range of sizes from 35mm to sheet fil, APX25 had very poor sales in later years mainly because the 100 ISO film was so good, and far more practical

I found a roll each of AP25, APX25 and APX100 on my trip back to the UK 3 weeks ago so will be shooting them soon

Ian

AgX · Dec 20, 2009

Lupus Imaging is seemingly the outlet of AgfaPhoto Holding. The latter is what is left of AgfaPhoto. With the demise of the AgfaPhoto coating plant that holding only holds the right to use, as an unwanted licencee of Agfa, that AgfaPhoto brand and that red dot (for sublicencing). And seemingly that holding has in some way still access to some remainders of the AgfaPhoto stock out of their insolvency.

Aurelien · Dec 20, 2009

Please do not expect any resurection of Agfa products. The AGfaPhoto plant in Leverkusen is dead, dismantled and you'll never have new APX films. It's finished !!!

sepiareverb · Dec 20, 2009

APX 25 is the only Agfa film I will miss long term. Insignia was a favorite paper of mine, but the latest Seagull VC Warm is better in my darkroom.

brianmquinn · Dec 20, 2009

I saw a post a while ago from someone who at least sounded like he knew what he was talking about. In it he said that then NEW AGFAPhoto Vista film was really Ferrania film. It was just re-branded Solaris film.

kompressor · Dec 20, 2009

And Ferrania have discontinued all their filmproducts and closed down the filmfactory, regardig a press notice on their website. But i dont give a damn. I will use my big stock of APX100 and 400, its a superb film. But i gett even nicer/smoother negatives (my personal taste) with Kodak Plus-x or TXP/TX. And if i really want the big bang, i develop in pyro and spend some quality time in the darkroom using several masks in the printing process.

Folks, there are plenty of fresh quality films out there, just learn to know them. If its packed in a yellow box and not dated years back, it WILL give you superb results if you keep your part of the deal and expose and develop it with understanding and care!

PHOTOTONE · Dec 20, 2009

No one has mentioned it, but Agfa-Gevaert in Belgium is still an operating company with a coating facility. They could manufacture Agfa b/w films if they wanted to, after all they were the parent company of Agfa Germany. Lupis "could" contract for production. It seems that entering into a new distribution agreement would mean that there were large ample stocks of materials available, even if only in 35mm size.

aldevo · Dec 20, 2009

Aurelien said:
Please do not expect any resurection of Agfa products. The AGfaPhoto plant in Leverkusen is dead, dismantled and you'll never have new APX films. It's finished !!!

Certainly there will be no more film from AgfaPhoto; it is kaput.

The Adox/Fotoimpex project is on hold because there are still large stocks of APX 100 around in 35mm.

You can read about the status of the project here:

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

Of course there's no guarantee it will ever be produced again, but the same group has returned Agfa MCP and MCC to production in the past 18 months.

Ian Grant · Dec 21, 2009

HAve to agree there will be APX100 hopefully once the glut of 35mm film disappears.

Just like Agfa's MCC has come back under the Fotoimpex Adox name.

Ian

Tom Kershaw · Dec 21, 2009

Ian,

I just wish Fotoimpex packed Adox MCC in larger quantities (e.g. 100sh of 8x10" assuming a discount), and in stronger ILFORD-like boxes. A flexible paper with rich tonality, concerns aside. How about a German manufactured cold tone paper at some point from Adox?

Tom

Sal Santamaura · Dec 21, 2009

Tom Kershaw said:
...I just wish Fotoimpex packed Adox MCC in larger quantities (e.g. 100sh of 8x10" assuming a discount), and in stronger ILFORD-like boxes...

Tom, ever since Kodak began packaging its 8x10 film in 10-sheet boxes there's been an on-line outcry. I'm sure sales have suffered as a result. It seems people don't readily accept reality. The market for analog photography products is a small fraction of what it once was. If a top-quality manufacturer decides higher prices and smaller packages are appropriate for this "new world order," why make matters worse by further discouraging consumption?

Please purchase and enjoy the extremely fine Adox MCC as it's currently offered. I encourage everyone else to do the same!

cmacd123 · Dec 21, 2009

Reading the press release, they talk of AGFAphoto "Branded" film, and don't mention APX400. Maco has been only selling the APX100 stock. As someone else metioned, Ferania themselves have said they are no longer making film, but the US plant was always a packing/converting plant for private label products.

Ferania USA could probably convert, perf, and package any master roll of film, from almost any source. Hard to imagine that any actual AGFAphoto made colour film would still be arround, but perhaps some of Ferrania's 2008 production is still in stock.

AGFA-Grevert is only set up to make Polyester base film AFAIK, and the stuff sourced from there is mostly from their Military-Industrial range. Thus Maco's S series films.

OTOH is is hard to tell the players without a scorecard, and several smaller makers are now capable of coating stuff, and sending it out to be converted.

mikebarger · Dec 21, 2009

Well, I'm with Tom. I'd buy more of the new paper if it was in 100 or 250 sheet boxes.

Mike

sepiareverb · Dec 22, 2009

If there is still APX100 lying around it would make more sense to start with some APX25!

brianmquinn · Dec 22, 2009

Ferrania Solaris is still being made in 2009. There was an announcement in the summer of 2008 that Ferrania would stop film production at the end off 2008 however it looks like that did not happen.

New Agfa production?

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