The Ultra-Wide and Slim travels

Back in August, I drove a 15ft U-Haul truck from Tucson, AZ back to Asheville, NC.  I've already posted on the trip here. Before the trip, I had mailed my film and my RETO Ultra-wide and Slim to my daughter in Tucson.  I hadn't used the UW&S for quite a while, and figured that it would be a fun thing to have with me for the trip back, in addition to my Pentax Spotmatic F and my digital Panasonic GF-1.  It had been several years since I used the RETO camera, and I did review it in 2022.

I put in a roll of expired Agfa APX 400 that my daughter had in her film stash, because I wanted a shorter roll in the UW&S. A 24-exposure roll is recommended for this camera.  It didn't matter if the film was expired - this is all for fun, and toy cameras are perfect for old higher-ISO films.  I didn't start shooting with it until our second day on the road, when I loaded it up in Grants, NM, where we had spent our first night.  

Since the camera has such a wide-angle of view, it's basically just aim and shoot, which I could do one-handed while driving the truck.  But that camera was the one I pulled out when we were refilling at gas stations and pit stops from New Mexico to Tennessee. We were on I-40 most of the way, with the occasional stretch of old Route 66. I think I made the most of my limited photographic opportunities.

Here is a sequence from the trip.

Filling up just E of Grants, NM in the morning of 8/25.

Traffic jam on I-40 in Albuquerque, thanks to a 4-car collision ahead.

At a rest stop E of Albuquerque

NM has some really interesting-looking rest areas.

I bought some souvenirs here in Tucumcari, NM

A little park to stop at and eat our our take-out lunch from Del's in Tucumcari.

A quick partial fill-up in Adrian, TX. 

A fill-up at Buc-ee's in Amarillo, TX. This must have been built since we were there in 2021.

A rest-area in Oklahoma

Oklahoma. It was damned hot AND humid there.

Arkansas

Major Tom, Weatherford, OK  and out-of sequence.

Somewhere in Tennessee. It was a long last day on the road.

October 15th Update:

I finally had the roll of Ilfocolor 400 developed that I'd shot with this camera.  Here are several images from the trip.

The building next door to the motel in Tucson.  

gassing up

Rest area on I-10, N of Tucson

Speedway Blvd in Tucson

Our quick stop in Flagstaff

Ektapan To the Max!

The best 400 ISO film?

It’s been a while since I’ve used Kodak’s T-Max 400 (now also known as Kodak Ektapan 400) in 35mm.  I have used it occasionally in medium format, and the 120 version has been a good choice for a lot of things.  However, I just have not shot much of it in my 35mm cameras over the years.  Back in early May, I had two rolls from Ball Photo in Asheville, and took them with me on my trip to New York and Connecticut in mid-May. I shot them with my Nikon FM2N, a very reliable camera that I’ve owned since 2008, and have also not used it much in the past few years.  It was time to take it on a road trip and give it some love.  

First of all, the Nikon FM2N is one of Nikon’s longest-selling 35mm SLRs, and it is fully manual, with LEDs indicating the exposure with +/- and an “o” when the light meter determines the proper exposure.  Not really all that different from a Pentax Spotmatic F.  Since I’ve owned this camera, I’ve used it more for low-ISO films, since it has a range of 12-6400.  Being all-mechanical, it was also a good choice for winter photography when I lived in Michigan.  I have also taken it on trips as a back-up to my Nikon F3HP.  As you would expect from Nikon, it’s a very reliable camera.  Mine looks like it just came from the store. 

We drove our usual route to New York State, via I-26 to I-81, and then I-84 and the Taconic Parkway to Dutchess County.  The trip was to attend my brother-in-law’s wedding, and to also visit a spot on my “bucket list” - Steichen’s Pond in Connecticut.  On the return home, Adrienne and stayed in Winchester, Virginia, and also visited Luray Caverns on our way home. A lot of driving over 5 days, for sure.  

Besides the Nikon FM2N, I brought my Nikon Zfc and my Ansco Pix Panorama cameras. It was a short trip, so I didn’t plan on doing a lot for stopping and photographing.  I shot two rolls of Kentmere 400 and two rolls of T-Max 400 in the FM2N.  The Zfc was mostly used inside Luray Caverns (where it performed quite well).

From the Kodak/Alaris site

I developed the film about a week after I returned home, and used Kodak’s T-Max RS developer for the T-max 400 film.  The negatives were scanned on my Epson V700.  The moment I saw the negatives hanging up to dry, I knew that the T-Max 400 really delivered good images.  The Kentmere 400 negatives were likewise excellent (D-76 1:1).  However, I’m here to praise the T-Max 400.   

By this time, you have possibly seen something about Eastman Kodak rebranding T-Max 400 as Ektapan 400.  The Kodak-Alaris brand of T-Max is still available, and they are exactly the same films.  I’m glad that I chose T-Max 400 for the low-light shots, as they came out really well.  I used a 50mm f/2 Nikkor lens, and I’m really pleased with the results as shown below.

Some examples:

Poughkeepsie, NY

Chicago House, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie

Vassar College

A huge Sycamore, Vassar College

Steichen's Pond and house, Topstone Park, CT.

old train station, Winchester, Virginia

We stayed here in Winchester, VA. I highly recommend it!

I've shot T-Max films over the past 25+ years, and have generally been happy with my results from them.  T-Max 400 hits the right spot in terms of fine grain, sharpness, and shadow detail.  It also lies perfectly flat in the scanner, so that's another plus.  It's more expensive than Kentmere 400  and Fomapan 400.  I checked the B&H Photo its, and 36-exposure rolls of Kentmere 400 are $7.99, Fomapan 400 is $8.99, Ektapan 400 is $11.99 and T-Max 400 is $10.99.  So it's at least $3.00 a roll more expensive than Kentmere 400, which is my usual 400 ISO film.  It's only 50 cents/roll more expensive than Ilford HP-5.  B&H sells Kodak Tri-X for $8.99, and for more comparison a  36-exposure roll of Ilford Delta 400  (a T-grain film ) is $16.49!  So, T-Max 400 isn't the most expensive ISO 400 black and white film.  I'm definitely ordering more for future trips.

Is it the best 400 ISO b&w film?  It really depends on what one wants from their film, but I'd say that T-Max 400 is a film that I really like.  The photo of the train station and the hotel were taken near sunset, and there is a lot of detail. The grain is quite minimal, too. So, I'd rate T-Max 400 at the top.  

A Developing Story

Film from the Arizona trip

Over the past few months, I have shot quite a bit of film.  Thirty-seven rolls on my October Arizona trip, and another 13 rolls during my November Ohio-Virginia trip.  That’s 50 rolls, and really raises my count for the year. Of course, the chickens come home to roost, which means that I have had to do a lot of film developing. The black and white film always gets done first - and while I tend to shoot a lot of different b&w films, there are some that I use more than others. Using only one b&w film does make the developing end simpler, but no, I am not that type. Therefore, the b&w developing takes longer since I have to work out the developer and time for each different emulsion.  The Massive Development Chart is what I use as a reference, as well as my developing notebook - which I’ve been keeping for almost 25 years. Lately, I have been using a lot of D-76, followed by Black White and Green, D-96, and HC110.  

On my recent trips I did shoot a lot of color film, even in medium format.  I used my Pentax 6x7 quite often during the Arizona trip, and I think the addition of a 3D printed right hand grip really makes the camera easier to hand hold.  I confess that I have not used the Pentax 6x7 very often over the past few years, and the Arizona trip was the most use it’s had in a long while. Most of the color shot on that trip was with my 35mm K-mount bodies, the Vivitar V3800 and the Pentax KX, and then the Pentax 17. As I was getting ready to leave for Ohio in mid-November,  I sent in the E-6 films to Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, KS, and the 120 C-41 to Reformed Film Lab in Florida.  The developed film returned shortly after I got home from the November trip. 

I developed the 35mm color film at home using the FPP Color kit for ECN-2 and C-41 films.  I use a sous-vide in a 5 gallon tote to keep the chemistry at 42°C.  I have 7 Jobo tanks that take 2 rolls of 35mm, so what I do is this: 

Number each tank and record what rolls are in each. Work from Tank 1 -7, hanging the film to dry in the same order.  Since everything gets the same development, it doesn’t matter what rolls are together, except that I do keep ECN-2 films separate from C-41, since I don’t want remjet particles polluting the non-remjet in the same tank.

For a developing session like this, I mix a fresh batch of developer.  The kits are said to be able to develop up to 25 rolls, but after 18-20 rolls, I mix up a fresh batch. At $20 for a kit, it’s still a HUGE savings over sending the film out for development. 

In looking over the lists of what I shot, here is the breakdown from the two trips:

Here’s the actual number of rolls:

1 Amber T800

2 Eastman 250D 

3 Fomapan 200

1 Fomapan 400

1 FPP Derevpan 100

1 FPP Retrochrome 400

1 FPP Svema FN64

1 FPP Xray

4 Fuji Acros 100

2 Fuji Color 200

1 Harman Phoenix 200 II

1 Ilfocolor 400

4 Kentmere 200

7 Kentmere 400

2 Kodacolor 100

1 Kodacolor 200

1 Kodak Color Plus 200

1 Kodak Ektar 100

3 Kodak Gold 200

1 Kodak Max 400

1 Kodak Tmax 100

2 Kodak Tmax 400

1 Kodak Tri-X

1 Lomo Color 100

1 Lomo Color 92

2 Lomochrome Purple

2 Lomochrome Turquoise

3 Rollei Retro 400S

The Lomochrome films were used in a Holga and my Rollei 35TE.  The Holga gave me some wonderfully wacky images, and the sharp lens on the Rollei definitely gave me some nice images, and with those color shifts from the Lomochrome - very surreal imagery.  Most of the 35mm films were shot in K-mount bodies - Vivitar V2000 for the b&w, and Vivitar V3800 and Pentax KX for color.  My Leica M2 shot a roll of b&w and two in color, my Pentax 17 1 b&w and 1 color, and my Pentax 6x7 for 120, with a few b&w rolls in my Lomo LCA 120, and of course, the Holga.

Now that I’m done scanning all of the negatives, the editing and deciding which ones are the “keepers” come next.  B&W definitely requires less editing. With color films, there’s typically a lot more that needs to be done until I have something that I am satisfied with.  Spotting, adjustments to the color and so on, takes more time. In the end, I’ll have several hundred images on film that I will have to evaluate.  Still, film gives me something that seems “organic” and despite the work that’s required, I enjoy the process.  I have plenty of digital images from those trips, too, and while they require much less work, I don’t have the same feeling about most of them.  There is something about seeing an image on a piece of thin acetate that has a tangible bit of reality about it.  

Here are a few examples from the film I shot.  I’ll go into more detail in the captions.

On the Lewis and Clark Trail in Missouri.  Vivitar V3800, Ilfocolor 400. Oct. 12.

Coolidge, KS. What appears to be an old bank building. Vivitar V2000, Kentmere 400

Offerle, KS.  10/13/25.  Vivitar V3800, Kodak Max 400

Grants, NM, Route 66. 10/15/25. Vivitar V3800, Fujicolor 200.

Just past the Arizona Welcome Center, I-40. Oct. 15.  V2000, Kentmere 400, red filter

The oft-photographed GANO abandoned grain elevator near Kinsley, KS. Oct. 13, Pentax 6x7, Kentmere 400

Saguaro National Park, 10/18/25. Holga, Lomochrome Purple

Pima Air and Space Museum, 10/18/25. FPP X-Ray film, V2000, 85b filter

Lowell ghost town, S of Bisbee, AZ.  Pentax KX, FPP Retrochrome 400. A perfect film for this vintage scene.  10/17/25.

Chiricahua National Monument, Rollei Retro 400S, V2000, red filter.  10/19/25.

Bisbee, AZ.  Lomochrome Turquoise, Rollei 35 TE.  10/17/25.

Pipe Organ formation, Chiricahua Nat. Mon., Lomo Color '92, Pentax 6x7. 10/19/25

Shell and Chevy. Lowell ghost town. Pentax KX, Kodak Gold 200

I still have a ton of editing to do on these hundreds of images, and I'll be sharing more on my Flickr pages (mfophotos).

Grants, NM, Route 66.  Pentax 17, Kentmere 200.

A Monumental Visit

Whenever I travel, if I find there is a camera store in the vicinity of where I am staying, I try to stop by and check it out.  Tucson, Arizona has such a store — Monument Camera, and when I was in Tucson for over a week last month, I finally had the opportunity to stop in.  I was previously in Tucson in January, 2024, and was unable to visit Monument Camera when it was open.  This time, our vacation rental was located on the NE side of Tucson, and it was a quick drive to Monument Camera on E. Fort Lowell Rd.   It was our first full day in Tucson, and it turned out to be a great start to our 9 days there.  

The friendly folks at Monument Camera (L-R)- Alexis, Lee, McKenzie, Jordan, Nasho, and Jacob (missing).

The storefront was quite welcoming, and when I stepped inside, it was definitely apparent that this is a destination for anyone that shoots film.  Glass cases full of cameras, aisles of photographic gear and accessories, and plenty of staff on hand.  Of course, film is prominently displayed at the front of the store.  I had a nice conversation with Alexis, and after a few minutes, she went into the back and brought out Lee Walker, the owner of Monument Camera.  Lee bought the business in 2020 - and then there was COVID. It’s truly great to see he was determined to keep a film-based photography store going in a city with lots of local and visiting photographers.  He added in-house film developing services, and of course, sells all kinds of cameras and supplies.  It’s obvious though, that film cameras are their forte, and there are a lot of beautiful cameras for sale.  Anyone desiring a twin lens reflex would be smitten by the selection available in the medium format case.  No matter what your level of experience is, it's great to talk to other photographers, and a camera store is a magnet for that.

Lee and I talked for quite a while and I asked if he had any Pentax K-mount bodies for sale, as this trip was pretty much a Pentax gear road trip (more about that in another post).  He brought out two beautiful K-mount bodies. A mint black Pentax LX with a 50mm f/1.2 SMC Pentax lens, and a very nice Pentax KX with a 50mm f/1.7 SMC Pentax lens.  Of course, the LX was in fabulous condition, but my wallet could only accommodate the KX.  I decided to buy the KX, and I used it every day while we were in Arizona.  You will often pay a bit more for a camera at a brick and mortar store, but it’s worth it.  To have the camera in hand and test it out out before you buy, and know that it’s been serviced is a plus, and of course, you are supporting a local business.  In this day of instant gratification, there is something to be said for walking into a store and buying a camera, lens, or film, and interacting with others in the photography community.  Maybe you only need a lens cap, so why not go to a store that has them right there?  

Monument Camera sells a lot of film, and I hope that I convinced Lee to carry some FPP branded films.  I stopped back into the store a few days later and dropped off a couple of gift zines, and bought a roll of Kodak Kodacolor 100, as I was almost out of color 35mm film, and had more days left for this trip.  I’ll be developing all those rolls of C-41 film soon.

If you are anywhere near Tucson, AZ, I highly recommend visiting Monument Camera.  You may just make some new friends.  

Monument Camera is located at 15 East Fort Lowell Rd., Tucson, AZ. It’s on Instagram @monument_camera, and their web site is www.monumentcam.com.   

This one came home with me.