Slide film... again.

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Ronald_H

Don't call me Ron
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When I started shooting film again I bought a brick of nearly expired Agfa CT Precisa 100. This turned out to be deeply horrible stuff. Coarse, color shifts and no acutance. I could not make the scans look sharp, no matter what I tried.

Then I moved on the Fuji Sensia but this also was disappointing. Still no 'bite' and this cursed lack of sharpness.

Then I dug into the archives and started scanning 10 year old slides with my new scanner. These looked fabulous! Strange thing was that it was no-brand drugstore film. So what was happening? I still did not figure that out, especially because people reported good results from Precisa and Sensia.

On my trip to India a few weeks ago I brought along a 8Euro roll of Fuji Provia. Well, that looked fabulous, but 8 Euros per roll is a bit steep for me.

So a long story but the question is simple: Is there a good, cheapish 100ISO slide film left in the market?
 
Why does it have to be slide film? Plenty of good C-41 film out there that is inexpensive (and just as good as slide), as well as inexpensive to develop ($0.95 at target).
 
Ronald_H said:
When I started shooting film again I bought a brick of nearly expired Agfa CT Precisa 100. This turned out to be deeply horrible stuff. Coarse, color shifts and no acutance. I could not make the scans look sharp, no matter what I tried.

Then I moved on the Fuji Sensia but this also was disappointing. Still no 'bite' and this cursed lack of sharpness.

Then I dug into the archives and started scanning 10 year old slides with my new scanner. These looked fabulous! Strange thing was that it was no-brand drugstore film. So what was happening? I still did not figure that out, especially because people reported good results from Precisa and Sensia.

On my trip to India a few weeks ago I brought along a 8Euro roll of Fuji Provia. Well, that looked fabulous, but 8 Euros per roll is a bit steep for me.

So a long story but the question is simple: Is there a good, cheapish 100ISO slide film left in the market?
Click to expand...

sensia 100 is quite cheap and fuji cheap film are quite good anyway 🙂
 
filmfan said:
Why does it have to be slide film? Plenty of good C-41 film out there that is inexpensive (and just as good as slide), as well as inexpensive to develop ($0.95 at target).
Click to expand...

Not sure OP's reasons, but with slide you can enjoy the picture and its intended colors on light table. Also viewable with projector. The idea of the film itself having "real" colors is quite nice.
 
Ektachrome E100GX is nice. Look for moderately expired (<5 years) rolls of it on craigslist, the auction site, and other places.
I just shot a roll that expired in 2005 without any problem.
 
There's just-expired Velvia 50 at 7dayshop.com for £2 a roll. Not sure if that's too slow for you, or how shipping might work out, though.

Edit - no there's not, they've sold out. Still, they've Velvia 50 for £3.49, Velvia 100 for £4.15, Sensia II at £3 and Provia 100 at £4.40, as long as you buy 10 rolls or more at a time.

Cheers
Jamie
 
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coelacanth said:
Not sure OP's reasons, but with slide you can enjoy the picture and its intended colors on light table. Also viewable with projector. The idea of the film itself having "real" colors is quite nice.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. I was just thinking along the lines of budget, for when on a budget, one has to sacrifice choice.
 
not_in_good_order said:
Elite Chrome 100 is absolutely wonderful--the best bargain in slide film, IMO. I'm not sure how it is priced outside the US, though.
Click to expand...

Always take EliteChrome 100 to Mexico:

4331707736_658e445943.jpg


4330971167_7715221a15.jpg
 
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What are you paying for developing in the Netherlands? Isn't that what really kills slides vs print, economically?

Yes, Provia is nice stuff, but should be priced near the bottom of the available films. It is in the States. $5.79/36 at Freestyle, versus $5.59 for Astia. (Only Digibase is cheaper, but that's 200 speed.)
 
batterytypehah! said:
What are you paying for developing in the Netherlands? Isn't that what really kills slides vs print, economically?

Yes, Provia is nice stuff, but should be priced near the bottom of the available films. It is in the States. $5.79/36 at Freestyle, versus $5.59 for Astia. (Only Digibase is cheaper, but that's 200 speed.)
Click to expand...

Elite Chrome 100 is $4.69 at B&H. Dwayne's photo also sells it for $4.69, so when I have them process my e-6, I have them send me a couple of rolls of fresh film as well.
 
Provia "Imported" is $4.99 at B&H. Worth the extra 30 cents if one prefers the look, no? My point was that 8 euros/roll sounds like the OP overpaid. Or maybe that's just what you're looking at in NL these days, no idea.

Aside:
Provia "USA" is $5.75 at B&H. WTH is that supposed to mean, anyway? (That's a rhetorical question. I did read the pop-up explanation.) It's the exact same item number. So are they telling us, "Of course, if you pay the higher price, we'll make sure to fill your order from the official box, honest!" Gimme a break.
 
That 8 euro roll of Provia was bought at Kamera Express 😀 which is a huge photography store (for Dutch standards anyway). Hence they are usually not that expensive.

Processing E6 or C41 does not matter, price wise, only E6 film is much more expensive to buy. I can get perfectly ok Fuji Superia for less than 3 euros/roll, E6 is just more expensive. But the Kodak film sounds ok, I'll try some.

Btw, I don't even bother to frame my slides right now but I do have a projector. The main reason I like to use E6 is color fidelity.
 
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