The Impossible Project—the people behind NOS Polaroid film resellers Polapremium and Polaroid photo sharing site Polanoid—bought the equipment necessary to make Polaroid 8×10 instant film, and hopes to start production in 2010.
New successful prototypes of black and white integral film for SX-70 and 600 Polaroid cameras have also been completed. Awesome.
More details in this article at the British Journal of Photography.
Via traskblueribbon
Here are nefotografas‘s instructions for adapting the very cheap Kodak Instamatic 100 camera to use 35mm film. There’s also a bigger version here.
This looks very easy to do, no major camera surgery required. Nice!
If you ever wondered what film looks like when abused with aftershave, hot sauce, lemon juice, gin, swimming pool water, or a wide variety of household cleaners, check out Thomas Anderson‘s amazing Experiments and Mistakes gallery on Flickr.
You can see more of Anderson’s work and experiments here on Flickr and at his blog, photodu.de.
View gallery on Flickr.
This 16-clip clothes hanger from Ikea is great for hanging film up to dry. It has built-in clips that don’t slide, is heavy enough to stay balanced, and is flippin’ cheap.
Jabba clothes hanger, $4.99 USD.
And it kind of looks like the Nanerpus:
Kodak announced Ektar 100, a new fine-grained, high-contrast, high-saturation, "world’s sharpest" color negative film. It’s 35mm-only, and will replace the almost cartoonishly-saturated Portra Professional Ultra Color 100UC.
Availability: October 2008 in the US, beginning of November in Europe, ?? rest of the word.
More info on Kodak’s Ektar 100 Q&A and in the film data sheet (PDF).
Here are the relevant portions of Kodak’s press release:
New KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTAR 100 Film Provides Photographers with the World’s Finest-Grain Colour Negative Film
LONDON, September 9, 2008 – Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:EK) continues to champion professional photographers and set new standards in professional film with the new KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTAR 100 (EKTAR 100) film. This new film, with ISO 100 speed, high saturation and ultra-vivid colour, offers the finest, smoothest grain of any colour negative film available today.
"Photography has always been about capturing a moment or story and sharing it, with just a few or with the world," said Mary Jane Hellyar, president, Film, Photofinishing & Entertainment Group and executive vice president, Eastman Kodak Company. "It is often the smallest details that mark the difference between a good photograph and one that stands out and becomes memorable. With our new EKTAR 100 film, we’ve created a film that helps the photographer capture unprecedented detail in remarkably vivid colour. This film continues a Kodak tradition of providing photographers with the highest quality films that expand the range over which they can create outstanding images."
EKTAR 100 Film is the ideal choice for commercial photographers and advanced amateurs for applications such as nature, travel, fashion and product photography where the emphasis is often on colour. The new film incorporates KODAK VISION Motion Picture Film Technology to achieve its unparalleled fine grain. It’s perfect for photographers who prefer the ease of working with 35mm, and who look for extraordinary enlargement capability when scanning and printing.
[…trade show stuff blah blah blah…]
The new KODAK EKTAR Films will be available throughout Europe from the beginning of November, 2008.
According to this Q&A page about their new Ektar 100 film, Kodak will discontinue their Portra Professional Ultra Color 400UC film by the end of 2008.
I don’t shoot much 35mm these days, but I thought it really sucked when they discontinued it in 120 last year, it was great in 6×6 toy cameras.
The Fujifilm Professional Newsletter says:
Process 10 rolls of any brand of 120 colour negative film at London-based pro lab Genesis Imaging and receive a free 5 roll pack of either Fujicolor PRO160S, PRO160C or PRO400H 120 colour negative film.
The Fujicolor PRO Series offers an exceptional range of professional colour negative films to suit all purposes. PRO Series films produce natural skin tones, extremely fine grain, have a wide exposure latitude and are optimised for digital scanning.
To claim your free 5 roll pack, simply process 10 rolls of ANY BRAND of 120 colour negative film at Genesis Imaging. For more details contact Ken or Lynda at Genesis on +44 20 7384 6299.
This offer is open only while stocks last and is limited to one free 120 film 5 pack per order, per person, per day.
Genesis Imaging
Unit 1 Hurlingham Business Park
Sulivan Road
Fulham
London
SW6 3DU
United KingdomTel: 020 7384 6299
This article in Amateur Photographer says:
Polaroid is in fresh talks over the survival of its professional instant sheet film following its failure to reach agreement with UK firm Ilford Photo.
Polaroid bosses have confirmed that they are in discussions with a ‘third party’ over the continued production of 20x24in large format professional b&w sheet film.
In a meeting with Amateur Photographer, Polaroid’s European vice-president Paul Telford also revealed that there is a ‘strong possibility’ that production of 8x10in format sheet film will be taken up by an, as yet, unnamed manufacturer…
Flickr member Dark Orange says:
Can’t buy the film you want any more? Just make the stuff!
In this set you will find random photos and information on a project a friend has undertaken – a machine to make his own camera film.
Plastic and goop go in one end, and camera film comes out the other end. This is not a trivial undertaking.
*update*
This bit of hardware seems to have created a bit of a stir…
Via MAKE Blog
Excerpt from a Fujifilm UK press release:
FUJIFILM UK Ltd. (Managing Director Hiroshi Saigusa) has announced that it is to increase prices on its range of photographic papers and films in the United Kingdom. The price changes are being implemented on a worldwide basis. [emphasis added] Prices will be increased from July 2008 and will range between 10% and 20% depending on the product group.
To sustain its photo imaging business, FUJIFILM has been undertaking intensive structural reforms to reduce fixed costs and improve productivity, and has been absorbing the increasing costs of raw materials used to manufacture films and papers over the past few years. However, the recent soaring costs of such materials as silver and crude oil mean that FUJIFILM is no longer able to absorb these costs during the production process.
FUJIFILM’S photographic paper and film continues to set the standard in terms of image quality and they are appreciated by professionals and enthusiasts alike. We remain fully committed to this important market and plan to continue our product development of new photosensitive material.