So now what? -Slide film in 35mm

mexipike · Dec 7, 2012

I love shooting slides on my Leica M6. They look great. I've always loved chromes! I mostly scan for output and I really loving being able to put the slide on a light table and match the color to the monitor, and I even love to project them here and there.. I don't really care for the dumb c-41 orange negatives that I can't really read well.

My all time favorite is Astia 100F, such natural beautiful colors. Of course no more of that in 35mm, so I heard Kodak E100G was a good replacement, but alas it's gone too.
Velvia is just too saturated typically for what I like, I may have to give Provia another chance
SO now what do I shoot?

Maybe I'll break out the Rolleiflex and slap some 120 astia in it.

Renato Tonelli · Dec 7, 2012

Fuji Provia is still available in most formats.

Matthew Wagg · Dec 7, 2012

I haven't had a chance to shoot with it yet but you could try Rollei digibase.

Slixtiesix · Dec 7, 2012

Yes Astia was one of my favorites in 120 because of its extremely natural rendition. Very sad they stopped production. I like Provia 400X too. It is not as fine grained but colors are still pretty close to reality, though it is more contrasty than Astia. But the chromes look sharper!

Vonder · Dec 7, 2012

I recently tried (on accident) Fuji Velvia 100F. First off, wipe the word "Velvia" from your mind. It's NOT Velvia. I have no idea why Fuji calls it that. To me, Velvia was, and will always be Velvia 50, that oversaturated marvel that would not die. The saturation in Velvia 100F is subdued, pleasant, and very Astia-like. Provia to me is much more saturated.

DREW WILEY · Dec 7, 2012

Velvia 100F is still distinctly a species of Velvia, with significantly higher contrast and narrower exp
range than Astia. If I were you I'd snatch up whatever Astia and E100G you can still find and freeze
it. Provia is Fuji's middle of the road offering.

B&Wpositive · Dec 7, 2012

Velvia 100F is being discontinued, but still available now.

David Nardi · Dec 7, 2012

mexipike said:
I love shooting slides on my Leica M6. They look great. I've always loved chromes! I mostly scan for output and I really loving being able to put the slide on a light table and match the color to the monitor, and I even love to project them here and there.. I don't really care for the dumb c-41 orange negatives that I can't really read well.

My all time favorite is Astia 100F, such natural beautiful colors. Of course no more of that in 35mm, so I heard Kodak E100G was a good replacement, but alas it's gone too.
Velvia is just too saturated typically for what I like, I may have to give Provia another chance
SO now what do I shoot?

Maybe I'll break out the Rolleiflex and slap some 120 astia in it.

I'm very much like you. I love slides. In all formats. The bigger the better. Fuji Provia is probably your best option since it is currently available. I have never had the pleasure of Astia largely because I am a landscape photographer who mostly used Velvia 50. But now that I am getting older I am starting to appreciate the subtleties of Provia over Velvia 50. Now would be the time for me to try Astia but, alas, it is no longer, and I don't want to start liking it knowing full well that it's discontinued. So for the time being Provia is my film of choice. It is quite beautiful, especially in 120 and 4x5. Velvia 50 is good too, but you have to know when to use it. It's not for everything, like I once thought.

LJSLATER · Dec 7, 2012

Matthew Wagg said:
I haven't had a chance to shoot with it yet but you could try Rollei digibase.

I love Digibase CR200. However, it is not a viable alternative for E100G, Astia, or anything else for that matter; the Freestyle description and sample photos are comically misleading. It has a strong yellow cast and very coarse grain (I'm talking about CR200 processed normally as an E6 film, by the way). It's made on a thin, yet untearable polyester base that I've heard can actually hurt your camera if you're not careful. I don't know why the film looks the way it does or what its history is (I've heard it's old aeronautic formula or something), but it's fun nevertheless. And cheap.

I do think everyone should try it at least once; if for no other reason, buy the 35mm double-pack for the awesome reusable film holder.

EDIT: To be fair to Freestyle, I checked a couple of other websites that sell the film and they have the same descriptions.

Poisson Du Jour · Dec 7, 2012

Temper Velvia 50 by downrating it e.g. EI80, expose in diffuse light. This stuff about it being "too saturated" is rubbish. You can vary the rendition depending on prevailing conditions (light), whether or not you are using a polariser (only in diffuse light), and if you are compensating that to "lift" the scene.

Velvia 100F is a bit more difficult to work with, but best left at 100 for exposure, also in diffuse light. I don't think anybody is going to shed a tear for the loss of Velvia 100F (discontinued); it's a particularly difficult emulsion to scan and to print, very especially with the (defunct) Ilfochrome Classic process.

Neither of these films were designed or intended for use in bright point light e.g. outside bright sunny days.
Provia 100/F has a noticeably muted palette and better contrast making it a good all-rounder.

Astia is a Velvia clone with an altered palette (greens and blues).

Roger Cole · Dec 8, 2012

DREW WILEY said:
Velvia 100F is still distinctly a species of Velvia, with significantly higher contrast and narrower exp
range than Astia. If I were you I'd snatch up whatever Astia and E100G you can still find and freeze
it. Provia is Fuji's middle of the road offering.

This, exactly so.

Same story for me as OP (though I do like color neg.) I fell for Astia after shooting about two rolls, then it was gone. Went to E100G then. I've been putting together a slide show for visitors tomorrow and just sighing over how good my E100G slides look, but alas..

If you want a current production film less contrasty and saturated than Velvia, Provia is it (could try the Rollei too of course, but I have no experience with it.) I agree that Provia 400X is less saturated and contrasty than 100, albeit grainier, but not that grainy for a 400 slide film.

If you are willing to buy up existing film there is still some E100G in 35mm for not too bad prices to be found, at least in 35mm and, even more so, in 120. Sheet film is ridiculous. There seems to be somewhat better prices on Elitechrome 100, which is the amateur version of E100G, maybe a tad warmer and more saturated but a very similar film.

I've been shooting through the E100G in my fridge. I'm thinking about buying some more while I still can. I also have some Elitechrome and some E200 in there.

Jim Rice · Dec 8, 2012

To me Velvia 50 is underexposed at E.I. 50. I always shot it at 40.

mexipike · Dec 10, 2012

The Rollei sounds like it might be something I'd like, however no one seems to have it in stock. Anyone know where to get some?

Tony-S · Dec 11, 2012

David Nardi said:
So for the time being Provia is my film of choice. It is quite beautiful, especially in 120 and 4x5. Velvia 50 is good too, but you have to know when to use it. It's not for everything, like I once thought.

The best thing about Provia is its reciprocity characteristics. Velvia pretty much sucked after a few seconds of exposure.

Poisson Du Jour · Dec 12, 2012

Tony-S said:
The best thing about Provia is its reciprocity characteristics. Velvia pretty much sucked after a few seconds of exposure.

You can deftly skirt around reciprocity by using hedge metering (spot metering especially) and providing either 0.3 to 0.7 (usually too much) or more sensibly, 0.5 additioinal over an additive/averaged multispot measurement. This is what so many people forget to do, even with an onboard meter to add "just the right amount" of correction.

Tony-S · Dec 12, 2012

Poisson Du Jour said:
You can deftly skirt around reciprocity by using hedge metering (spot metering especially) and providing either 0.3 to 0.7 (usually too much) or more sensibly, 0.5 additioinal over an additive/averaged multispot measurement. This is what so many people forget to do, even with an onboard meter to add "just the right amount" of correction.

Yeah, but you also have to add filtration to compensate for the magenta shift. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it's a pain in the backside compared to Provia.

AgX · Dec 12, 2012

LJSLATER said:
I love Digibase CR200... ...I don't know why the film looks the way it does or what its history is (I've heard it's old aeronautic formula or something), but it's fun nevertheless. And cheap.

It's the emulsion of the late Agfa RXS II 200 slide film currently coated on modern PET base for aerial surveying use.

thuggins · Jan 11, 2013

Provia is a good film for those of us that never developed a taste for the "unique" colors of Velvia. Being able to get it at both ISO 100 and 400 is remarkable. Once the 75 rolls of VS in the freezer are gone, Provia will be the only hope. Shoot it with a warming filter to perk up the cold Fuji colors.

Roger Cole · Jan 11, 2013

I don't find it cold at all. It's a bit too contrasty and a bit too saturated, unlike Velvia which is WAY too contrasty and WAY too saturated, to be ideal overall in my view, but it's a good film and does look nice for many subjects. This refers to the 100. I find the 400 a very different animal and actually prefer the more muted saturation. Well it's not "muted" really but it's less saturated than the 100. I just don't care for the grain of the 400 which, while not too bad for a 400 speed slide film, is still considerably and noticeably more than the 100.

So now what? -Slide film in 35mm

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency