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When I started building my Minolta A-Mount kit, the Maxxum 100/2.8 Macro was not the first choice for a short telephoto lens. Instead, I was more drawn to the 135mm f/2.8 lens, only because Minolta did not have a 105, which has always been my preferred short telephoto prime lens. It wouldn’t be until a Toronto Film Shooters event last year hosted by Burlington Camera that I had the chance to try out the 100mm macro for the first time care of my good friend James McFarlane. While I wasn’t completely sold at that point, I wasn’t completely turned off the lens either. That lovelyRead More →

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When it comes to 200-Speed films, I don’t have the best view, and usually end up with decent results (Rollei Superpan 200), other times I dislike them entirely. When it comes to Ilford’s offering, SFX 200, it goes in a slightly different direction. See, I have shot SFX a lot more than I initially thought, but it never stuck too much into my film supply mostly because if I need to shoot a 200-Speed film, I’m more likely to pull a 400-Speed film (Tri-X or Fomapan 400) or push a 100-Speed film (TMax 100). See, SFX is fun in the sense that it has anRead More →

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While Ortho 80 Plus might appear to be a new film, it isn’t a new film. I’m surprised I missed reviewing the film earlier in this series. I skipped over a film I had shot in the past for a good two years. And thinking back that doesn’t surprise me; the film never made much of an impact. But also the film was, until recently, only available in 4×5. But I also only shot a single box of the stuff back in 2014. The results were excellent, and it was the first time shooting an ultra-low ISO film and one that had no set filmRead More →

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Back last year I made a single roll review of the Eastman 2238 film, but now that I have a lot more resources available to me and having found three rolls sitting in my storage, I decided to do a proper review of this beautiful film stock. As I mentioned in the one-roll review, 2238 is what is called a Panchromatic Separation Film and is used to create archival film prints from colour film prints. Unlike past speciality motion-picture stocks this is a Panchromatic film, meaning it is sensitive across all the colour spectrums. Now, 2238, like all films, is not designed for regular pictorialRead More →

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Can lightning strike twice? Fujifilm thinks it can! In 2018 Fuji ceased production of Fuji Acros 100, just before I released a review on the film that turned into a bit of a eulogy. But then in 2019 Fuji announced that they would reintroduce Acros as a new version, Neopan Acros 100 II. Of course, there were already plenty of conspiracies over the source of Acros 100 which translated over to Acros II, ranging from giant master rolls kept in some deep freezer hidden somewhere in the world. And when the first details on Acros II hit the Internet and a box reading “made inRead More →

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If the standard Svema Foto films are too grainy for you, how about stepping it down a notch and picking up a roll of Foto FN64, or FN64. Before this review, I had only shot a single roll of the stuff, and it did not turn out well. I eventually figured out that due to the thin PET base, the film is subject to light piping, and I ended up fogging the whole roll. Now if you’re a fan of the slower film that is having something different from what you get from other typical films, then FN64 is something for you to try. AndRead More →

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If you are a follower of my work and this blog, you’ll know that I tend to combine my love of history with my love of photography. And when I learned that the FP4Party was coming back in 2020, I made a plan to shoot four rolls over four days and just keep it random such as what I had always done in the past. But sometimes things and situations change and suddenly the weekend of the FP4Party shoot week became busy with some family matters calling my attention. I had to sit back down at the drawing board and figure out a new plan,Read More →

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There were plenty of photographers out there who seemed happy that Kodak ColorPlus 200 came to the North American market. But the real question among many was what is the film stock exactly? If you look at the box lots of the standard text is not only in a foreign language but even in foreign characters. Once I opened up the box and popped out the canister, the mystery would be solved, the film canister clearly says Kodacolor 200! Kodacolor itself is an old film stock and was Kodak’s first colour negative film released and produced from 1940 to 1963. The next version, Kodacolor-X wasRead More →

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Having a photo walk in the winter is not always the best idea. But we live in Canada, and I love getting out in the snow and taking pictures. But here in Southern Ontario Winter can be a trying time, with bitter cold, slate-grey skies, and generally not exactly lovely to be outside. Sometimes you have to roll the dice and see what you get. Last year we got treated to a snowstorm which produced some excellent images. This year, due to a busy January, I pushed the event up to February. It was worth the wait for a few reasons. We were treated toRead More →

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If there is one film developer that I will always go back to and use until they cease production (which isn’t any time soon) that developer is HC-110. Released in 1962 to little fanfare, Kodak HC-110 quickly found traction as being the developer of choice of Ansel Adams and those who use the zone system extensively. Kodak HC-110 is the third black & white developer that I ever used and became my developer of choice. Personally what keeps me coming back to HC-110 is the general-purpose use, the excellent results, economy, stability, and results that it continues to give. Kodak HC-110 has never let meRead More →