Some Iced Coffee... my last rolls of Mr. Brown

A few years ago, I did a one-roll review of the Mr. Brown film from the Film Photography Project Store.  Over the past month, I have managed to shoot my last two rolls.  The first roll was shot at ISO 6, and developed in my caffenol recipe for 15 minutes at 20°C.  It was quickly apparent to me that the negatives were overdeveloped, as they were quite dense.  Well, one fix for that was to try the second, and last roll at a higher ISO and cut a smidge off the development time in caffenol.  Since Mr. Brown is now out of stock, you may wonder why I am publishing this now.  Well, I imagine that there are some users that have yet to shoot all that they purchased and have some rolls left.  Also, film photography is also about experimenting and sharing results, so here we go.

First of all, here is the Caffenol recipe that I use:

450 ml water
27 grams Sodium Carbonate
8 grams Ascorbic Acid
20 grams Instant coffee
5 grams Iodized salt

Mix in 30°C water and let cool to 20°C before using.  Development times can be from 10-15 minutes, depending on film, so experiment to see what works for you.

Roll 1: Mr. Brown at ISO 6, shot with Nikon N80, 15 min development time. The negatives were very dense, so I had to adjust the curves in the scans to get a normal-looking image: 

You can tell that the highlights are blown out.  So, after that, I decided that in Caffenol, Mr. Brown could be rated at ISO 12-25, perhaps even higher. 

Roll 2.  Shot in my Nikon F2S, 105mm Nikkor, I rated the film at ISO 25.  Quite different subject, with the high contrast ice and dark water, but I also figured that I would develop it for 1 minute less in the caffenol, for 14 minutes.  I still had to do some adjustments in the scans, but still very good for this type of subject, which is about as contrasty as I could get. These are all along Mill Creek in Dexter, MI.

Overall, very good.  So, this tells me that Mr. Brown is certainly a film worth trying in Caffenol, with the added benefit of being able to shoot at a higher ISO than 6!   Of course, you may want to also try this recipe with other low-ISO films to see what you get.  I'd be happy to hear about your results.

Review of Kodak's NEW Ektachrome E100

Last October, I received my five 35mm rolls of the new E100 Ektachrome that I had ordered from the FPP store.  Of course, I was elated to see Kodak Alaris finally ship their product after what seemed to be a long wait (not anywhere as long as Film Ferrania!).  Considering that this new E-6 film had some hurdles to overcome in the digital hegemony, I am pleased that Kodak Alaris took a chance on bringing it forth.  I have been shooting slide film since the mid-1970s, and while I don't shoot it as often as I did over a decade ago, I still find it relevant to my photography. 

Since Kodak pulled out of the E-6 market in 2012, we have been left with only one E-6 emulsion manufacturer -- Fujifilm.  I'll admit that I have been shooting fresh Provia and some fresh and expired Velvia in the last few years, and there is nothing wrong with either film.  However, given Fujifilm's penchant for dropping well-liked film stocks, who knows how long before they are gone?

As a long-time user of film from Eastman Kodak, I loved Ektachrome, and its varied emulsions.  For me, an ISO 100 slide film was my mainstay when shooting nature and macro.  While faster emulsions were available, I used them far less often.  Kodachrome 64 was a superb film, too, though I shot it less often than E-6 film.  Since Kodak had withdrawn form making ANY slide films, I was using old stock that had been refrigerated.  The problem there, of course, is that as films age, the results will not be optimal.  So, I was pretty excited when Kodak Alaris announced in early 2017 that it was bringing a new Ektachrome into the world.  I didn't expect it to take over a year before it was available, but it has been worth the wait.

So far, I have shot two rolls of the new E100, and both were developed by The Darkroom in San Clemente, CA.  While I have an E-6 kit at home, I did not want my results tainted by personal goof-ups.  One roll was shot in my trusty Nikon N80 in Aperture-priority mode, and the other in my also trusty, full- manual Nikon FM.  I got the film back uncut, and cut it into 5-frame lengths to fit my archival print file pages.  I am not putting the film into slide mounts because it's easier scanning in strips.  I can mount it in mounts later, should I want to.  The film was scanned on my Epson V700 photo scanne at 2400 dpi. 

As an experienced E-6 shooter, I trusted my instincts when shooting with this film, compensating for the lighting conditions when it was appropriate.  A polarizer was used in some instances.  I am very pleased with my results, and the E100 film is everything that I had hoped for.

N80, Mackinac Island, MI

N80, Mackinac Island, MI

N80, Mackinac Island, MI

N80, Whitefish Point, MI

N80, Mackinac Island, MI

N80, Tacquahmenon Falls, MI

Nikon FM, Looking Glass Creek, NC

Nikon FM, Bat Cave, NC

Nikon FM,  NC

Nikon FM, Bat Cave, NC 

Nikon FM, Chimney Rock, NC

Nikon FM, Chimney Rock, NC

Readying for Portland

I am looking forward to going to Portland, Oregon for a week.  The Pacific NW is one area of the USA that I have not yet visited, and I have been doing my research for the trip.  While Portland is known for the rain, the weather outlook is mostly sunny all week, which has its merits, for sure.  Of course, I am packing my Tamrac camera backpack (I purchased it at Central camera in Chicago about 16 years ago) with gear for the trip.  I am bringing my Nikon N80 because it's a lot lighter than my F100. Lenses -- 50mm Nikkor, 20mm Nikkor, and 24-120 Nikkor.  The 20mm lens is fantastic, and of course, the 24-120mm is a very good all-around travel lens.  It has served me well over the years.
I may also pack my Tamron 90mm macro lens, depending on how well it all fits.   I debated on also bringing a manual Nikon FE or FG, and decided instead to bring the Yashica FX-7 Super because it's light, works great, and is a pretty nice walk-about camera with good glass.  Having used it a lot over the past month, I am pleased with how it handles and just feels right. It's most likely to be used walking around the city, and filled with b&w film.  We'll be renting a car, so of course the Oregon coast is a sure trip, as well as the Columbia River gorge, etc.

I'll be packing my new Manfrotto "BeFree" travel tripod in my checked bag, and after having tried it out a few times locally, I know it will be an excellent camera support.  I am also bringing a Holga, Lomo Sprocket Rocket, and the venerable Olympus Trip 35.  All are cameras that I know will give me something different.

As far as film goes, 10 rolls of Fuji Provia 100,  lots of Kodak TMax 400, Ilford HP-5+, and some C-41 and specialty films such as FPP Infrachrome and Mr. Brown.  I know I'll be seeing lots of waterfalls, and Mr. Brown will be just the thing for those long exposures.

Other items - lens cleaning cloth, cable release (which the N80 accepts), quick-release plates, notebooks, some short pieces of gaffer tape, various filters, including a graduated ND filter, and business cards all go into the pack.  An empty collapsed small camera bag will go into my checked luggage for when I am just doing things in the city and don't need to carry the backpack.

I thought about just bringing my Nikon D300 and a few lenses, but the APS-C sensor won't give me the benefit  of the 20mm f/2.8 Nikkor.  Just in case, I am bringing a Nikon Coolpix S600 which fits into a pocket. While my iPhone SE does a pretty good job with snaps, the little digicam has a better range of focal lengths.

Onward!

A Shot In The Dark

Ektachrome 400

To be honest, it was many shots fired in the dark. Last Wednesday night, Marc Akemann and I went on a little night-photography adventure in Ann Arbor. We shot mostly in the State Street area, concentrating on the exterior of the Univ. of Michigan Museum of Art, and around State and Liberty near the State Theater. Marc was shooting with his Bronica, and I of course, as usual, had several cameras that I was shooting with -- my Nikon N80, Ricoh R-1, aand my 35mm Holga. Tripods in hand, we walked around until it got dark enough for some artificial-light shots.
Mark with his Bronica. Ektachrome 64T.

One of our aims was to shoot with slide film and get it cross-processed in C-41 (color print film) chemistry. It's bad enough to shoot the variety of light sources at night with any slide film and get realistic colors due to the various color temperatures of neon, tungsten, halogen, and sodium vapor lights. Daylight-balanced slide film such as the Ekatchrome 400 I was using will give odd renditions in such conditions, but it was funny how the cross-processing actually looked pretty darn good. Same for the Ektachrome 64T (for tungsten lighting), though some of the images had a more pronounced greenish cast to them.

UMMA and people playing with the "swing" Ektaachrome 64T

Finally, I shot some Superia 100 color print film in the Ricoh R1 - a wide-angle P&S camera that is normally about 30mm, but goes to 24mm in Panorama mode. I shot some Kodak Gold 200 in the Holga 35BC, but haven't developed that film as yet.

Ricoh R1

The Ricoh was a pleasant surprise with accurate exposures and good color. Obviously having it on a sturdy tripod also helped. I'll be interested in seeing how the Holga 135BC shots came out.

You are probably wondering why in the hell I'd be shooting film and not digital for night scenes. Serendipity and fun. You see, digital is way to easy for this. I like the delay in gratification, and because each film has a different characteristic, the results were uncertain. Add in the cross-processing, and one gets a totally different color rendition, depending on the exposure and the film. In addition, I bought the film at 50 cents a roll, and developing was only a few bucks. Thank you, Huron Camera (in Dexter, MI), for doing C-41 cross-processing!