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CatLABS is an interesting company, their X Film lineup hit the markets several years back, and I reviewed X Film 80 and loved the stock. But they also included an X Film 320 in their initial lineup. I didn’t review that one because it was only available in 35mm and turned out to be Eastman Double-X 5222, with tweaked developing times. But last year, they announced new versions of both X Film 80 and X Film 320. I will be reviewing X Film 80 later this year, but in the colder, darker months, X Film 320 Pro is the film that will suit the dullerRead More →

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Of late, I’ve had a soft spot for consumer-level SLRs. These are excellent options as knock-about cameras that often have the same internals as their professional cousins but in a smaller form factor and can be had for a low cost. The F65 is one of Nikon’s final entry-level SLRs and one of the best options for the era, as it combines form and functions and offers the greatest compatibility. While the F65 only saw production for a short period, its replacements split things into two sub-varients, a lower-spec F55 and a high-spec F75, the features on both are found in the F65. If you’reRead More →

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At the end of last year, Harman/Ilford made a fantastic announcement, their popular budget film, Kentmere, was now available in 120 formats. And it was going to be the least expensive option for medium-format shooters. Kentmere and I go back, and when I first reviewed Kentmere 400, I was not happy with my results. I was downright rude towards the film stock, but looking back at it now, I can see it was not as bad as I thought it was when I first came to review it. Kentmere 100, however, did make an excellent first impression. And since then, I hadn’t thought much aboutRead More →

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Respooling and shooting motion picture films have been around for several years now. The Vision3 line of the film presents a somewhat affordable way to shoot colour film since it is far more readily available than dedicated still photography film. But most people have been developing this film in C-41 chemistry. Now there’s nothing wrong with that, my first experiences with motion picture film developed in C-41 at home. And CineStill strips away the remjet layer specifically to allow motion picture film to be developed in C-41 lab machines. But technically, processing motion picture films, specifically Kodak Vision3 films, in C-41 chemistry is cross-processing. KodakRead More →

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The return of the 1990s classic trashcam that, despite being what it was, the Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim became a cult classic in the rise of the toy camera movement. And while the original Vivitar run ended, and the Sproketheadz version had some serious troubles, in 2022, a new version came to the market. Produced by Hong Kong firm RETO, the RETO Ultra Wide & Slim rebirthed the classic and is probably one of the closest versions of the original. It’s all plastic, light, and has a particular flare for the strange. But if you missed the boat on the original, this camera mightRead More →

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There have been a lot of great releases of developers onto the market of late, including refreshes and clones of some of my favourites. And this won’t be the last time you see a clone of a beloved developer in this series. But with the dull grey days of winter starting to pile on, now is the time to begin using developers designed to help push development and ensure your fast films keep their fine grain. But there’s something that sets Bellini EcoFilm developer apart from other Xtol clones, such as Adox XT-3, which is that the concentrate comes in liquid form rather than powder.Read More →

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Well, we made it through another year. And my past year certainly started with a surprise, the arrival of my son in February. And while you don’t see him featured on my blog anytime soon, I hope to introduce him to photography when he’s old enough. He will certainly have a full pick of cameras to work with if he chooses to explore the hobby further. And the best part is that I love being a dad, but I still love my photography hobby, and this year has been an excellent one for photography. With a good winter, spring and delightful fall, it made forRead More →

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This past year has been a lot of fun looking at different cameras. While some of these cameras I will have already released a review, others will be coming out next year. But that’s the thing about writing these reviews is that I’m often working 2-3 months ahead of the actual release. I put a lot of work into these reviews, between looking up specs, shooting multiple rolls of film through the cameras and trying to get the best results so I can give a fair and balanced review. But a group in the film photography blogging community decided to put out a series ofRead More →

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It was raining in the city by the lake, a hard rain. A hard rain would wash the silver halides off any type of film. I was looking for something or someone for that matter. Someone contacted me about something new hitting the streets. A film stock would deliver the look of those old detective movies from the mid-century. I spent hours in the old one-screen cinema watching these films when I was a kid, growing up on the wrong side of the tracks. He called himself Shadow, Agent Shadow, although, given his love of cloak and dagger, I think the “agent” part was made-up,Read More →

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If you want a simple answer to the question, why the heck am I reviewing a camera that isn’t precisely designed for use above the water, that answer is, I’m crazy. And by crazy, I mean some lenses work both underwater and on dry land with the Nikonos III, and the lens that only lens I have available isn’t designed for dry land. But the Nikonos line holds a unique spot in photography’s history, specifically Nikon. There are two reasons for this. First, the Nikonos line was the camera that made underwater photography accessible, and two, it was the last camera to have a foundationRead More →