35mm Film Guide.

I get a lot of emails asking about the differences between certain brands of film, film speeds and which are better for which cameras but to be honest – the origins of 35mm consumer film are, to me, in murky waters. Color film production have ceased in several companies and although most brands are still for sale in the market, there has been a lot of re-branding going on so there’s no sure way of knowing what film I’m shooting with.

Having said that, I still think that a film guide would be useful for any other analogue enthusiast; every time before I try a new film, I like to check out samples on Flickr and blogs. Following my film camera guide, I do believe that a 35mm film guide is in order just so anyone who has half the mind to get into film photography has a clearer picture of what to expect. A few things to note about this guide:

1. This is by no means a professional guide.
I am an analog enthusiast, I do it for fun. I do not develop my own film and have absolutely no knowledge on how to do that. My films are sent to a local photo lab and basically, I just take whatever that’s given back to me. My thoughts and opinions of each film are based on how my photographs turn out under the professional processing skills of the lab people.

2. This is a guide based on preferences, not professional results.
Following the first point, there will be no discussion on how great the range of a particular film is, no talks about push or pull processing, no insistence on how grainless images are “the best”. As a film photography enthusiast, how good a film easily translates to how right it is for my needs.

3. Like I mentioned earlier, there is a lot of rebranding going on in different markets around the world so there is no sure way of knowing what film I’m shooting with.
One prime example: Lomography does not produce their own film so they basically rebrand other film stock to sell as their own. The origins of Lomography film is a topic widely discussed on the Internet but is generally inconclusive since it differs over time. Hence, all thoughts and opinions expressed here point back to what I’m being told on the film package box, not what they “actually are”.

4. Film performance is not always constant, depending on type of camera, lens, setttings and weather.
The results I have garnered are produced with the cameras I own, without flash, and may only act as a general gauge. I have picked a number of pictures that I personally feel are representative of the results I have had with each film.

5. All films on this list has been used at least twice on different occasions. 
Generally, I find it hard to characterize any film that I’ve shot with only once. There is no way to know for sure if anything that turned out was not by accident so I’ve made it a point to only include films that I’ve shot at least two rolls of.

The films, in alphabetical order:

Name: Efiniti UXi Super 200 (markings along the negatives show that it is a Fujifilm emulsion)
Tones: blue with strong undertones of green
Personal best results when used: in overcast daylight or indoors with plenty of natural light

Name: Fujicolor Pro 160s (expired)
Tones: muted contrast with relatively true to life tones, underexposes easily due to expiration
Personal best results when used: outdoors under shade or indoors with plenty of natural light

Name: Kodak ColorPlus 200
Tones: none in particular, occasional tinges of red or yellow
Personal best results when used: in bright sunlight with slight overexposure or indoors with plenty of natural light

From: Curating Cuteness Blog
To view the entire film guide use this link - http://curatingcuteness.com/2013/05/35mm-film-guide/