Favourite "Cheap" 35mm Colour Negative Film?

[jrose125]

Hey gang!

Next month I'm going abroad with a couple of compacts (mainly because I'm too much of a wimp to take my Leica along) and was wondering what your favourite Colour Negative Film is. I am going to the Caribbean (Cuba) so needless to say, I want to capture all of the beautiful colours the Caribbean has to offer. As much as I would love to take 20 rolls of Velvia or Ektar along, it just isn't economically feasible (aka I'm cheap).

The only "cheap" colour negative stock I've ever used has been Kodak Gold 200 and I absolutely loved it.

I'm essentially looking for suggestions and was wondering if any of you folks have a favourite? Any responses are greatly appreciated 🙂

 

[Crazy Fedya]

Take that Kodak Gold 200 with Rollei 35 and a small flash unit. It should be glorious!!!

 

[Moto-Uno]

^^ "and I absolutely loved it " , pretty well eliminates anything else I'd say . Peter

 

[jrose125]

Take that Kodak Gold 200 with Rollei 35 and a small flash unit. It should be glorious!!!

Thanks for the advice! I almost bought a Rollei Flash with the camera itself but I was weirded out by either A) having the flash on bottom or B) holding the camera upside down.

Any recommendations for a small flash unit?

 

[jrose125]

^^ "and I absolutely loved it " , pretty well eliminates anything else I'd say . Peter

Hey Peter! Thanks for the advice 🙂

 

[Crazy Fedya]

Thanks for the advice! I almost bought a Rollei Flash with the camera itself but I was weirded out by either A) having the flash on bottom or B) holding the camera upside down.

Any recommendations for a small flash unit?

You should have bought that Rollei flash with the camera, but any small flash will do. Of course, you can use large flash as well, if you own one, but it will defeat the purpose of carrying a small camera.

I own and use quite a lot of different cameras, from Univex Mercury CX half-frame 35mm camera to Korona VI 5x7, and I have to say that using Rollei 35 upside down with flash on top of it is not that quirky. I'd take it any day vs any point-and-shoot AF camera(I don't like th m at all). Voigtlander Prominent or any Alpa are a lot less convenient to use.

 

[Prest_400]

I'vve yet to try Gold 200 because its availability is spottier than other films (Fuji) in Spain.
Have shot on Superia 200 with quite nice results. Also, Garden shed 1 year expired c200 given by a friend got me through summer with decent results (but has a grainy 1980s palette). More recently trying the Lomo CN films, which are Kodak film but seemingly a consumer gold of an older generation. Just recently sent out this batch to lab and still don't have the results.

As you mention Velvia, try to squeeze a bit of slide film for variety. Agfa CT precisa is Provia 100F rebranded and cheaper, but as everything, it depends of the retailer.

The suggestion of flash is interesting. I'd like to carry medium format in my future big trip and was actually reading about flash usage, even if just for fill because tropical light is harsh.

No Leica? 😱 I would take the M3 as a main camera. Just because it's so classic and RF focusing. Then the R35 is easy to squeeze 😀
I don't know if you will be a lot around beaches, a "not to worry much" carmera to have around there is useful.

 

[shawn]

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=107444

UltraMax for me.

Shawn

 

[ForestCap]

Fujicolor C200

 

[Sarcophilus Harrisii]

Kodak Pro Image 100 might be worth a look. I just started my first roll of it today in my Contax so can't speak from personal experience yet, but I've seen some great colour from it. Michael's series from Burma was shot on some of that a couple of years or so ago, and I loved it.
Cheers
Brett

 

[Leica All Day]

Brett (Sarcophilus Harrison) is spot on. Kodak Pro Image 100 is what I have been using for the past 8/9 years and I absolutely love it.

Cheers,
Michael

 

[Skiff]

As much as I would love to take 20 rolls of Velvia or Ektar along, it just isn't economically feasible (aka I'm cheap).

Have a look at AgfaPhoto CT Precisa 100 (its converted from Provia 100F production). Excellent reversal film, and in some countries it is very cheap.

The only "cheap" colour negative stock I've ever used has been Kodak Gold 200 and I absolutely loved it.

I prefer Fujifilm Superia 200 to Gold 200, because
- the Fuji has significantly finer grain
- is sharper
- has higher resolution
- has better green and blue color rendition (Gold 200 has often a Cyan cast in its blues).

 

[Pioneer]

Whatever happens to be on sale and then I buy a lot. I still have quite a bit of Fuji 200 color film from my last batch buy as well as some Kodak Gold 100 in the freezer from the previous one.

They are all pretty much the same with small differences that are not obvious until you look for them.

Kodak Gold 100 seems to have the most natural color palette but is no longer available. Fuji 200 has a slight tendency to bring out the greens a bit more. Kodak Ultramax 400 has very high contrast to my eye and I have never quite developed the taste for it but my wife loves it.

But, like I said, not huge differences so go for whatever you can get your hands on that is inexpensive.

Personally, if I were the one going on vacation, I would buy some Kodak Portra 400. A bit more expensive but a terrific film that is very flexible. I have come back with really good exposures from EI200 all the way through EI1600. Ektar is another terrific color film that is a little more expensive but not as flexible.

 

[Canyongazer]

A thought:
"invest" two tenths of one per cent of the cost of the trip in order to upgrade to the film you want for this important trip.

Eschew one or two Cuba Libras.

Jeez.

 

[Huss]

Whatever happens to be on sale and then I buy a lot. I still have quite a bit of Fuji 200 color film from my last batch buy as well as some Kodak Gold 100 in the freezer from the previous one.

They are all pretty much the same with small differences that are not obvious until you look for them..

I'm with the dood in the hat. They are all good, and poor results seem to be a case of either user error or processing error.

Someone mentioned Fuji C200 has an 80's grainy palate. The C200 thread here begs to differ.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147318

 

[jrose125]

Hey guys! I popped into a few local drugstores today and other than Kodak Gold 200 and 400, I found some Fuji Superia 400. I found a pack of three for 24.99 CAD which seemed pretty expensive until I realized that I've been paying $11 for a single roll of HP5 the last 5 or so years.

My local photo store has had Agfa Vista Plus stocked for quite awhile but at $13 CAD a roll, it seemed pretty pricey to me. Anybody have any experience with it?

Nobody local carries professional colour anymore (Ektar, Portra, Velvia, etc etc) so I have to order that stuff online (usually B&H). By the time I factor in Duty and shipping, the Agfa may be considered "cheap".

 

[Godfrey]

My favorite color negative film is anything 35mm or 120 format and old, expired for at least a dozen years. Each one of the films like this I've used has been a unique experience to process and scan, with color renderings that are delightfully 'off', contrast and fog that is almost literally unreproducible.

A friend gave me two/three more rolls of this to work with. Time to get out the M4-2 again. 🙂

G

 

[snot]

Kodak Pro Image 100 might be worth a look.

I second this. I shot a roll through a Mju-II and was really pleased with the results.

As far as my favorite cheap go-to film, Fujifilm Superia 200 or 400.

 

[Daryl J.]

I like Agfa Vista Plus.
$3.99 for a roll of 36 and decent results.

 

[mwoenv]

Fuji C200 provides nice results. Shot with a Zeiss Ikon Contaflex Super BC, Unicolor self-developed.