What´s your favourite slide film?

[Slixtiesix]

I´m new to slide photography and started with Fuji Astia. Now I´m trying Provia 400X and there is some Velvia 100 in the fridge I´m looking forward to use. How about you?
Greetz, Benjamin

 

[Stephen Prunier]

I mostly shoot Velvia 50 or 100. I just shot my first roll of Provia 100 F and I will probably develop it this weekend. I also shoot Kodak 100 VS. If I'm just shooting for fun or experimenting then I will shoot with Kodak Elite Chrome.

 

[Ektagraphic]

I loved Kodachrome but I now shoot the Ektachromes. I like E200 for the speed E100VS for nice vivid but not over the top colors, Ektachrome 100 Plus for great colors and Ektachrome 64T filtered from some pretty nice very natural colors. The Ektachromes suit me extremely well. I reccomend them. The Elite Chromes are great too.

 

[Ektagraphic]

The Elite Chromes, being the virtually the same as the Ektachromes are a really good value! You may also want to try the Rollei Digibase CR200 Pro that can be found at Freestyle.

 

[benjiboy]

I'm a fan of all the range of professional Fuji slide films I like Velvia for 'in your face colour', Provia 100F and 400X as a general purpose do everyting films, and Astia for portraits, I shoot 35mm and medium format, and I like fact they are available in both formats, and that my local pro lab can process them in two hours is a big advantage.
I must admit I haven't used Ektachrome for more than twenty years, I know the latest versions are very good, but I'm so happy with Fuji I can't see any reason to try it.

 

[Chris Sweetman]

My favourite slide film at present is Kodachrome. Yeah this is the last year the film will be produced but we have until November 2010 to get it processed! Since I bought my OM1 30 years ago Kodachrome is my most used slide film. I stopped using Kodachrome three years before this year and replaced it with Fuji Sensia 200. Didn't like it for some reason. However, I could be hooked on Velvia 50 when Kodachrome finally disappears. In the past I have used Sakuachrome, Koniachrome, Agfachrome CT200, Ektachrome 64 - very nice, Agfa CT18 & CT21 non E6 processing along with Kodachrome 200 and 64.

Cheers Chris

 

[Ann M]

Most of my photography is done with Velvia 50 or 100. It's great for my flower photos and I love it for medium format. For years I used E100VS and Ektachrome 100 Plus which I also really liked, especially because it was easy for me to get them at a great price!!

 

[benjiboy]

Modern slide films, and indeed most films these days are excellent, I consider that the the improvements in film photography in last thirty years have been far more significant in the materials than the hardware.

 

[Ektagraphic]

Many older films such as Kodachrome were also excellent

 

[benjiboy]

Ektagraphic, films are constantly being improved, manufacturers spend millions on R&D to keep pace with the competition. todays Kodachrome is not the same Kodachrome of twenty years ago.

 

[benjiboy]

I got three rolls of 120 Fuji Provia 100 F I shot a few weeks ago yesterday from the lab, and I was astounded when I saw them on the lightbox, the sharpness and the colours were very impressive, I'm looking foreward to projecting them tomorrow,now that It's getting late in the year I'll probably be shooting more Fuji 400X which is also a very good slide film that gives a quality of results for an ISO 400 that I wouldn't have thought possible a few years ago.

 

[Chris Sweetman]

benjiboy - The recently discontinued Kodachrome KR64 did not have any changes from 1974 when it was first introduced. 35 years of continuous production without any changes! That is almost half the lifespan of the history of Kodachrome. Fuji Velvia 50 was re-formulated only a couple of years ago after being withdrawn from the market.

 

[benjiboy]

I remember when it was re- hashed in1974 and after a huge ballyhoo in the press when it was launched both the K25 and K 64 were as green as hell because Kodak marketed it before it was 'ripe' I don't know if you are old enough to remember, but there were a lot of very unhappy photographers world wide, and I have never used it since.

 

[Chris Sweetman]

Benjiboy, I started to use KR64 in 1979 when I bought into the OM system. It was OK then and the last batch I had processed returned a couple of weeks ago - no problems with these either! In 1975 a British led expedition successfully climbed Everest the hard way. The colour film used was KR64 and the published book included many images taken with this film. I didn't notice any shots that were "as green as hell"!

Whatever, happened in 1974 Kodak got it fixed and it has stayed fixed!

Chris

 

[lxdude]

I started using Kodachrome 25 and 64 right when they came out. The photo mags had noted the greenishness in shadows. It was more in K-25, as I recall. I saw it in a couple rolls but it was beautiful after that. The green was from not being aged enough.

I suppose the hoarding of K-II might have led to releasing the K-14 early.

Mr. Ektagraphic is correct in referring to Kodachrome as an older film. It's an older design, and for example, eventually lost its position as the finest-grained. However, I'm willing to bet many refinements have taken place with advances in technology and techniques. Supposedly its longevity has been enhanced, too.

Like McCurry, I still consider it the Gold Standard.

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

Chk-chk boom, another roll of Velvia 100 has rattled through 'Brutus' (EOS 1N) today.

Kodachrome 200 (PKL-200) was a long time favourite from 1978 to 1995 during my solo bicycle touring travels, when I switched to Fuji in mid-1995 (by 1998, Kodachrome was waning in popularity and availability in the face of the drenching of the reversal film market by Fuji).

Much can be said to recommend all photographers dabble with Fujichrome given its narrow margin for exposure, thus teaching you how to identify potentially risky scenes that do not 'fit' with the film's oft-remarked latitude i.e. it's not a "blue sky/sunny day" film (but Provia 100 will lap that up!).

I don't know about "today's Kodachrome not being the same as Kodachrome of twenty years ago"... I wonder... well, there's none of it in Australia or New Zealand to speak of... Those PKL slides of 20+ years ago look excellent to my eyes in archival sleeves and stored away. The scenes are mundane and pedestrian, MG cars in red (red being Kodachrome's stand-out strength, conversely a noted weakness with the Fujichrome reversal stock), jet engines roaring, ultralight craft, nudists riding horses (times have changed, they now pad the horses out...).

 

[Ektagraphic]

I know it is all a matter of opinion, but I haven't seen a photo where I liked the colors of Velvia yet...

 

[benjiboy]

One of my my new year resolutions will be to try all the current range of Kodak films, I've been shooting Fuji films for the last twenty years or so.

 

[Joachim_I]

Velvia 50 for nature (landscape/macro) shots on 6x7. I like the Velvia green for nature shots. Provia 100F and 400X for everything else on 35mm. I very much like Agfa Scala 200x but I gave up on it because of limited availablity and processing options (and its high price).

 

[shoe]

Agfa Precisa 100. I had purchassed a large bath when kodachrome was terminated and have expermented with it since. I wanted to try something new or should i say old?? The advantages are very neutral colors not "candy" colors like most modern films . Excellent sharpness, nice whites and greys (yes whites and greys), and will not cast as easily as other slide films. Did i mention cheap , ya very cheep...

For all of this fun you must be prepared to live with 2 negatives. 35mm format only and the film is very grainy for a 100 asa slide film. However this film remains an alternative to the fujis and kodaks... for now....

 

[D1v1d]

Provia 400X has a warmth without too much colour push
http://www.flickr.com/photos/d1v1d/4619467743/

 

[benjiboy]

I like all the Fuji Pro. slide films, but tend to use more Provia 100F and 400X in 135 and 120, but have also had some breathtaking results with Velvia 100F in 120.

 

[STEREOKODAK]

Kodachrome. Always. I am now trying the Elite Chrome and Elite Chrome Extra Color in ASA 100. Kodachrome will always be the best, though. I have some vintage obsolete films in the fridge that I need to try.

 

[TareqPhoto]

All the Velvias are my favorite, then E100G/VS, the Provias.

 

[STEREOKODAK]

Didn't care for the Elite Chrome at all. Especially the Extra Color. The Ektachrome E100VS looks much better to me. More like what I expect. Not quite Kodachrome, but nothing ever will be.