7 Lesser-known Color Film Stocks Worth Trying by Taylor Blanchard

Written by Taylor Blanchard

Whether you’re a new or seasoned film photographer, when you think of color film, the names Kodak or Fuji most likely come to mind. These two behemoths have long histories with color film, and I recall a time when you would ask someone, “Fuji or Kodak?” – akin to asking someone, “Coke or Pepsi?” 

Manufacturing color film is a complex process, and there are very few companies left in the world that still make color film.

This year, Fuji announced it’s no longer making Superia Xtra 400, which answered a question many people had pondered in recent years, namely, “Is Fuji still making film?” It leaves a huge gap in the color film manufacturing market.

Other well-known companies, like Germany’s Agfa, stopped manufacturing film decades ago. For a few years, Ferrania made Agfa, and then Fuji. Ferrania’s kickstarter about 10 years ago promised to start making color film again, and while it’s exciting to see their black and white films, it may be some time before we see a color film from them.

Adox has also been working on a new color film, yet production has been challenging, and it’s uncertain when it will be released.

The State of Color Film Today

Very simply, there are several ways that color films come to market today.

1. A company like Kodak manufactures emulsions. As I noted, there are very few companies that have the capability to manufacture film given the expense and complexity.
2. Some brands, like Lomography, contract with a manufacturer to make their own formulations of film. 
3. Many brands repackage or modify existing films. It’s not a new film per se, but an existing film that is different in some way.

There are two primary repackaged color films that you can find today:

Cinema Film:

One of the best-known examples of a modified cinema film is the CineStill 800T, which uses Kodak’s Vision 500T motion picture film for still photography.

Motion picture films have a ‘remjet’ layer that protects the film from light piping (light leaking into the film) and halation (when highlights bleed into the image – often seen as a reddish glow on points of light). By removing this layer, the film can be developed in the C-41 process.

Otherwise, if the remjet layer is still part of the film, you develop it with the ECN-2 process, or remove the remjet layer yourself to develop in C-41.

Aerial Film:

Another repackaged film is Kodak Aerocolor IV, an aerial surveillance film, which is still used today for mapping and reconnaissance. It’s not to be confused with the much-missed Aerochrome Color IR film. 

Testing 7 Lesser-Known Color Film Stocks

We’ve seen a flood of new films in the past few years. Some of the brands are open about the origin of their films, and others are more cryptic.

A known film hoarder, I’m often first in line to buy a new film when it hits the market. For this article, I shot many lesser-known color films. I tried to put each film through its paces, shooting each under varying lighting conditions. It wasn’t a perfect experiment: I used three different cameras, so the optics could affect the individual results, but I took enough photos to get a general sense of the film’s performance.

The Results

Flic Film Elektra 100

Flic Film is a Canadian company that makes a wide range of films, chemistry, and darkroom paper. Flic Film uses Kodak Aerocolor IV for Elektra 100 and are transparent about the origins of the film.

I love the way the film renders color and the film overall performed well in several lighting situations. Color rendition was very accurate, except in underexposure situations, where it tends to be a bit green.

One note: Aerocolor is known for light piping, so you must load this film in subdued light.

Read a more detailed review of Flic Film Elektra 100 here.

Find Flic Film Elektra 100 at B&H Photo.

CatLABS X-Film 100 Color

I loved the warm colors and fine grain of CatLABS Color 100 film, and especially love that it’s available in 120. Because I shot it in 120, grain was almost not evident.

CatLABS makes the only 120 film that I tested, which they also sell in 35mm. CatLABS Color 100 is likely Aerocolor, and while they mostly acknowledge the films’ origin, they claim they’ve made some modifications.

I loaded it in the shade outdoors, which gave me some light leaks and leads me to believe it’s Aerocolor.

Find CatLABS X-Film 100 Color at B&H Photo.

Harmon Phoenix 200

Harmon, the parent company of Ilford, made a big splash by releasing one of the first brand new color emulsions to be developed from scratch. The news and results were discussed widely on social media, and the company was very transparent about the challenges in manufacturing a new color film.

They’re committed to continuing to make color film and ask users of the film for feedback, so they can tweak the next version.

This was certainly the strangest film I shot – the results were quite varied. I found it didn’t handle bright scenes well, yet other reviews of the film say the best results were in bright outdoor scenes. The shadows are very interesting and veer towards blue.

I’m going to shoot this film again and support Harmon’s efforts with the hopes the next version will be improved.

Find Harmon Phoenix 200 film at B&H Photo.

ORWO Wolfen 400

A German motion picture film manufacturer, ORWO released its first new films in decades with the Wolfen 400 and 500NC. The film is made at a facility that has been manufacturing film since 1910. ORWO says these films are based on an Agfa cinema film formulation. 

The film has a bit of a green cast, especially in lower light, and the color is unique; However, I really enjoyed this film. It’s different enough to stand out, but not so different that it looks experimental.

What surprised me most is that even though it’s based on a cinema film, there is no halation. Knowing the results, I’m excited to shoot this film again.

Find ORWO Wolfen 400 film on Amazon or at B&H Photo.

KONO! Color 400

KONO launched in 2014, and their first products were modified cinema film with the remjet layer removed.

With a history in analogue film (they also say they were involved in the R&D for LomoChrome Purple and have a partnership with Svema, the Ukrainian film maker), KONO has a dizzying array of products from a kickstarter for packfilm, that is now One Instant, to many low ISO and experimental films.

It’s unclear the origins of the KONO! Color 400, and the company doesn’t provide a datasheet. They only note that the results are muted at 400 ISO, and you can get more saturated colors by rating the film at 200 ISO.

While the grain is pronounced, I love the overall look of the film; However, it’s one of the more expensive films I shot.

Find KONO! Color 400 film at B&H Photo.

Panther City 400

The company is open about the origins of their cinema films and proclaims a love for keeping film alive. Otherwise, there’s not as much information about Panther City 400 film, and it might be the least well-known of the films I shot.

I was surprised by the colors and thought this film performed well on shaded days. After shooting similar films, such as CineStill 400D, I thought this film performed well with possibly more even results in different lighting.

Find Panther City 400 film at panthercityfilm.com.

Candido 800

Candido Collective is a company based in the U.K. that makes films in ISOs of 200, 400, and 800 balanced for both daylight and tungsten. They also sell a simple camera and bag.

Their website notes that they work with partners “across Europe and Asia,” which leaves a lot of speculation about which of their films are which.

As you would expect with an 800 speed film, it has noticeable grain. It also gives moderate contrast and saturation.

There are a surprising number of 800 speed films balanced for tungsten given availability of cinema films, and Candido is a strong choice among the competition. Some may wish for more exposures; I often enjoy 24 exposures when 36 can feel like a lot to shoot.

Find Candido 800 film at candidocollective.com.

Conclusion

After years of films being discontinued, it’s exciting to see more films come to the market. Using the soda analogy, we have more choices when we’re thirsty.

These new color films – even the ones with a shared cinema or aerial film lineage – are generally unique and have very different characteristics than you would find in other products.

Availability of these color films can be inconsistent, and, given their unique look and different film bases, scanning and editing can be more challenging.

My two favorites were the Orwo Wolfen 400 and the KONO! Color 400 – mostly because they gave me more distinct looks than I could get in other films.

Have you tried any of these films or are you interested in trying any of these? Or do you stick with a favorite color film? Let me know in the comments.

Thank you so much, Taylor! Taylor is a regular contributor here at Shoot It With Film, and you can check out her other articles here, such as Set It & Forget It Film Developing: An Introduction to Stand Development and Pulling Film: Misunderstood, Overlooked, or Worth Forgetting?.

You can also check out more of Taylor’s work on Instagram.

Leave your questions about these lesser-known color film stocks below in the comments!

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Taylor Blanchard

Taylor Blanchard is a landscape and travel film photographer and a regular contributor for Shoot It With Film. Find her other articles here, such as My Foray Into Large Format Photography and The World of Infrared and Red-Sensitive Black and White Film.

Image Credit: Ashley Thalman

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