White blooms and wonky colors - round 2 testing Cinestill 400D in 4x5
April 2024
Observations
- The film base is probably the same as 120 and 35mm formats - it’s way too flimsy for Paterson tank + #20thcenturycamera reels; maybe the Stearman Press Tanks would work better (but I won’t purchase those until my current reels break)
- Only one sheet jumped off my reel during development with very gentle agitation (swirl stick + gentle pouring), but these are still the only sheets that have ever jumped off the reels during my three years of using this system
Results
- Halation! - I purposely shot the blooming dogwood with the sun coming in from the front (mid-afternoon full sun) to maximize flaring/reflection; I’m not a fan.
- Colors are a bit wonky (reasons below); I am a fan (when I expect/plan for it).
- I had some light leaks from film holders and weak Graflok back light seals (unexpected, but fixable)
- My ECN-2 developer is maybe going bad after ~15 rolls developed (time to mix a new batch)
- I used a 1942 Ektar lens for these images versus a modern Tele-Nikkor for the first test batch, so I expected more color aberration on the older lens.
Conclusions
- At ~$4 per sheet, Cinestill announced that 25-sheet boxes are now available on their online store. This is a great price for color 4x5 film (vs ~$7.5+ per sheet for Portra or Ektar)
- That said, my challenges developing these sheets at home due to the flimsy film base would keep me from buying more boxes of this film (past my crowdfunding reward); I dislike uncontrollable development mistakes
- I’ll fix light leaks and mix up fresh ECN-2 chemistry and finish out the box; I’ll probably stick to color film on 135 (250D) and 120 (Kodak Gold and Ektar) since they are easier to handle (yes, remjet removal is less of a pain than having sheets jump off the reels mid-development)
Exposed on Cinestill 400D with Pacemaker Speed Graphic + Kodak Ektar 127/4.7 lens; developed in homemade ECN-2 color chemistry.
White blooms and wonky colors - round 2 testing Cinestill 400D in 4x5
April 2024
Observations
- The film base is probably the same as 120 and 35mm formats - it’s way too flimsy for Paterson tank + #20thcenturycamera reels; maybe the Stearman Press Tanks would work better (but I won’t purchase those until my current reels break)
- Only one sheet jumped off my reel during development with very gentle agitation (swirl stick + gentle pouring), but these are still the only sheets that have ever jumped off the reels during my three years of using this system
Results
- Halation! - I purposely shot the blooming dogwood with the sun coming in from the front (mid-afternoon full sun) to maximize flaring/reflection; I’m not a fan.
- Colors are a bit wonky (reasons below); I am a fan (when I expect/plan for it).
- I had some light leaks from film holders and weak Graflok back light seals (unexpected, but fixable)
- My ECN-2 developer is maybe going bad after ~15 rolls developed (time to mix a new batch)
- I used a 1942 Ektar lens for these images versus a modern Tele-Nikkor for the first test batch, so I expected more color aberration on the older lens.
Conclusions
- At ~$4 per sheet, Cinestill announced that 25-sheet boxes are now available on their online store. This is a great price for color 4x5 film (vs ~$7.5+ per sheet for Portra or Ektar)
- That said, my challenges developing these sheets at home due to the flimsy film base would keep me from buying more boxes of this film (past my crowdfunding reward); I dislike uncontrollable development mistakes
- I’ll fix light leaks and mix up fresh ECN-2 chemistry and finish out the box; I’ll probably stick to color film on 135 (250D) and 120 (Kodak Gold and Ektar) since they are easier to handle (yes, remjet removal is less of a pain than having sheets jump off the reels mid-development)
Exposed on Cinestill 400D with Pacemaker Speed Graphic + Kodak Ektar 127/4.7 lens; developed in homemade ECN-2 color chemistry.