Kodak Ultramax 400 Overview: Kodak Ultramax 400, also known as Kodak Max 400, is a versatile consumer film for 35mm cameras with a decent amount of saturation and grain.
Try rating at box speed, 400 ISO, for bold, bright colors without color casts. If overexposed, expect to see a yellow color cast, especially in skin tones.
Find Kodak Ultramax 400 on Amazon.
Kodak Ultramax 400 Film Review by Amy Elizabeth
Why in the world would I choose to write about my love for Kodak Ultramax?
Isn’t that the outcast of the consumer films?
I mean, it doesn’t have the same cult following as Kodak Gold or the cache of Fuji Superia XTRA400. (You can see how it compares to Kodak Gold here.)
In fact, when I first started shooting it, I HATED it.
I had a small stash, and I dreaded loading it into my camera, just wanting to get rid of the supply I had. That’s when I began using it in my point-and-shoot cameras, because, let’s face it, shooting with those can be a bit of a crapshoot anyway.
But something amazing happened, I found out I love Kodak Ultramax 400. Like, actually love it.
How To Rate Kodak Ultramax 400
What made the difference?
In the grand tradition of film photography, I had been overexposing my Kodak Ultramax 400, always rating it at 200. I didn’t like skin tones at that rating; they were too yellow (which I now know is a sign of a Kodak film being overexposed).
When I shot the film in my point-and-shoots, the DX code reading took over. This automatically rated the film at 400. Magically, I began to like my images from this stock.
Let me phrase it this way: Kodak Ultramax is a film you can (and maybe should) rate at 400.
FOUR HUNDRED.
In the world of film, this makes it so versatile. I shoot this film outdoors on sunny days or on cloudy days, and it’s even feasible to shoot this film indoors throughout the year.
Metering And Getting The Most Out Of This Film
Rating Kodak Ultramax at 400, I get the skin tones I want, the pop of color I love, and just the right amount of contrast.
I almost always meter in the shadows. Unless my subject is in full sun, then I go for highlights or midtones to not get wonky skin tones.
But go ahead and photograph people, photograph landscapes, photograph pets!
But try it at 400 if you haven’t liked your results, and let me know if you, too, fall in love with the outcast of the films.
Thank you, Amy! It’s always such a joy having Amy here on the site, and you can check out her other Shoot It With Film post on developing black and white film at home! Check out Amy’s website and Instagram to see more of her work.
Leave your questions about Kodak Ultramax in the comments, and if you want to pick up some Kodak Ultramax 400 film for yourself, check it out on Amazon here!
Click here to read all of our film reviews!
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Blog Comments
Jackie
May 26, 2018 at 7:12 am
So true. I have a roll and thought why do I even have it. That’s exactly how I use it, in the point and shoot for those reasons.
Carla
November 15, 2018 at 11:02 am
I just found four 2016 rolls of this at a antique store. Great to know it will be a good film.
shootitwithfilm
November 15, 2018 at 2:25 pm
Cannot wait to see how they turn out! Expired film is always a fun experiment!
Isaac Smith
February 4, 2020 at 3:07 pm
If i expose ultramax 400 at 200 do I get it develop at asa400?
Amy Berge
February 4, 2020 at 3:18 pm
Yes! These are both in the acceptable range for shooting Max 400. I know some even rate it at 100 and develop normally! C41 doesn’t get developed for long, so it’s uncommon to hear of people pulling it to compensate for overexposure.
Juliana
February 29, 2020 at 12:18 pm
I’m new to film. I’m using it on a ae-program and they all come out too yellow or too dark? Anyone know what I’m doing wrong? ?
shootitwithfilm
March 2, 2020 at 6:04 pm
Hi Juliana! It sounds like you’re underexposing the film a bit. Your light meter might not be working correctly, or there could be an issue in your settings.
If you’re shooting in Program mode and you have the ASA dial set correctly to match your film speed (for example, if you’re shooting Kodak Ultramax 400, you’d have the ASA dial set to 400), you can try setting the ASA dial lower (to 200 or 100 in this example) to try and compensate for the underexposure.
David
June 15, 2020 at 2:27 pm
Thanks for the post. I really appreciate your descriptions of who the film acts when you rate it off normal and at normal ratings. Normal is 400 and you shot it in the past at 200. Have you tried at any other settings and what were your results?
Thanks a lot. Just stumbled on your site and blog. Looking forward to exploring more.
Cheers,
Amy Berge
June 15, 2020 at 7:40 pm
So glad you found this helpful! I haven’t tried it at other settings, but would like to try it at something like 620 or 800 and push it. Maybe that should be my next article!
David
June 15, 2020 at 9:32 pm
That’s exciting Amy. I’m curious to see how that turns out. I was looking at your website and getting energized to start shooting some film and developing it. It was definitely motivating me. I just have to find the time.
I color grade for film and television shows and recently purchase a very cool product the has over 50 film emulation corrections that can be applied to balanced footage. As I dug into what individual film stocks should look like I came across your blog here. It just got me excited about film again. Use to shoot still 35mm photography a while back. Sorry I got so long winded. Thanks for the reply.
levi
September 25, 2020 at 12:47 pm
You mentioned outcast of the films. I think that term might be reserved for Pro Image 100. A review of that stock would be awesome Amy.
Amy Berge
September 27, 2020 at 7:32 pm
Hi Levi! Thanks for stopping by! And LOL that’s too funny! I feel like there was a Film Photographers group on Facebook that got into that film for a while but yeah, it’s not a very common one. I love the idea of reviewing it! (I’ve actually never shot with it…maybe even a comparison with another 100 ISO film? Or another consumer film?). Thanks for the awesome suggestion!!!!
Vai
April 7, 2021 at 6:50 pm
Such a helpful post and joyful images! Thank you for sharing. I wonder for people using a 35mm camera that’s point and shoot but usually like the look of pushed film, what would you suggest to help control the outcome? Thanks!
Amy Berge
April 8, 2021 at 2:05 pm
Thanks for stopping by and for your kind words!!! I would run it through just like normal and then push it! Point and shoots tend to underexpose because of their imprecise metering, so I feel like running it through and pushing it would be perfect!
Norman Rupp
March 23, 2023 at 4:33 pm
Ultramax 400 is together with Gold 200 my favourite budget film stock.
I wonder if you have use a flash for the photos taken indoors? If not, you have a great lit house with probably huge windows?
Kind Regards,
Norman