Searching for a new 400 speed color film

[btgc]

While 400H is very nice film, I prefer 800Z over it - very tight grain, almost no difference, and like tonality better, too. Maybe it's only in my head, as it usually happens.

 

[Michiel Fokkema]

I use NPH a lot. Very good film and reasonable contrast.
I also use provia 400 a lot. Very good film. If you only pay $9 you're lucky. Price here is EUR 13,-

Cheers,
Michiel Fokkema

 

[35mmdelux]

Without wanting to get into a political debate, my gf likes to buy HK style clothes and once she made a rather large order and it got stopped at customs for taxation. Things coming from HK to the mainland are checked the same as anything coming from overseas as far as I know.

Huh? You lost me. I though HK was mainland, no? Connected by a chainlink fence and a guard shack.

 

[blazejs]

The Russian Yugo is quite a good value for the Rubble too. Drive it cross country you'd be pushing it most of the way.

Just to be strict🙂 Yugo was made in former Yugoslavia. That's on Balkan peninsula. Far away from Russia. And they have used dinars ;-) In USSR were made Volgas, Ladas, Tavrijas etc.

 

[Tim Gray]

A million suggestions 🙂 I like Portra 400NC. It was recently improved upon again - about a year after 400NC-2 came out. I think it's a fantastic film. Pretty fine grain, HUGE dynamic range, and nice colors.

 

[dmr]

Wow, that's like the nastiest film in the world. Seriously.

I'll second that! It was until recently the Kroger (Kroger-Bakers-Smiths shops) house brand film. I bought a bunch of it dirt cheap when the closed it out and still haven't used it all. High-contrast, rough and gritty, but not gritty in the good way like the old Agfa Vista stuff.

I prefer the off-the-shelf Fuji print films. Yes, punchy and contrasty, but not so contrasty as most slide films.

 

[Al Kaplan]

It amazes me that both Fuji and Kodak put so much money and effort into coming out with all these new and constantly improving films when everybody knows that film is dead and production will cease within six months or a year at most. It's the Digital Revolution! Get with it!

 

[funkpilz]

Are you serious, Al?

 

[sockeyed]

Finding a 400 colour neg film that I liked was always a struggle. I shot Fuji NPH (ProH) for a few years and found it flat in terms of contrast and colour. It's great for portraits, but not for street work, in my opinion. I'm not a fan of high-saturation, high-contrast, but I found my images kind of flat.

Bangkok's Chinatown:

Negombo, Sri Lanka:

I might suggest trying Fuji ProZ 800 instead. Shot at 400 or 500, it has a bit more pop than ProH but remains accurate in terms of colour, and not too contrasty. It has the advantage of going to 800 quite well if you need it.

Some examples:

Vancouver, BC:

Kuching, Malaysia:

Angkor Wat, Cambodia:

 

[Daneinbalto]

What do people think about Kodak Ultra Max 400? I have been very happy with my results with this one. I was also wondering if Ultra Max is an amateur version of a pro film.

 

[Bob Michaels]

Are you serious, Al?

Welcome to the discussion kid. We all know that in reality Al Kaplan is older than dirt and has been shooting film exclusively (and professionally) for over 50 years. Be careful what you believe from someone who goes around with a stuffed monkey on his shoulder and shoots self portraits of himself and famous people with a hand held 15mm lens.

 

[vincentbenoit]

I might suggest trying Fuji ProZ 800 instead. Shot at 400 or 500, it has a bit more pop than ProH but remains accurate in terms of colour, and not too contrasty. It has the advantage of going to 800 quite well if you need it.

You've spiked my interest about ProZ 800... When shooting it at 400 do you actually instruct the lab to pull 1 stop at the developing stage or not?

Vincent

 

[ChrisPlatt]

What do people think about Kodak Ultra Max 400? I have been very happy with my results with this one. I was also wondering if Ultra Max is an amateur version of a pro film.

A review I read compared it to UC400 but at a popular price.
If so this might be a very interesting film...

Chris

 

[apras]

i also used the ultra max 400, and i love the result, much better than the superia 400. i'm in indonesia, the film is very limited here.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3204/2409115681_745600ca7f_o.jpg

the colour is kinda dull in the scan.