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Ektachrome is coming back!


Keith (M)

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Do you really think that with the renaissance of Ektachrome there might be still a need or chance for a comeback of Ferannia?

 

Kodak said:

 

"Resurgence in the popularity of analog photography has created demand for new and old film products alike. Sales of professional photographic films have been steadily rising over the last few years, with professionals and enthusiasts"

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Yes. I look back at my Ektachrome slides from the early 70s and the color has clearly shifted while the Kodachrome looks exactly the same

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I'm currently scanning my father in laws sliders dating back to the 1960s, everything but Kodachrome has colour shifted, some of the lesser brands very badly so.

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I'm quite looking forwards to firing up again my old Pradovit P 150 with it's glorious 2.5/90mm Colorplan-P2 CF (so much better than the 85mm Hektor it was supplied with).

 

I'll have to source a few spare globes to put away for a rainy day as I've only got the one still working in the projector. 

Edited by MarkP
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Do you really think that with the renaissance of Ektachrome there might be still a need or chance for a comeback of Ferannia?

 

I would think the Ektachrome announcement has thrown a spanner in the works for their business plans. They seem like they are much closer to production now, and as one of their Kickstarter backers, I would dearly love to see them succeed. 

But the cost of shooting, developing and scanning/printing E6 is a bit of a luxury. To keep it viable it will need a sustainable resurgence, and that means seeing it appeal to a new generation of film shooters, not just reasonably affluent baby-boomers. I sincerely hope that new trend is there to stay. Regardless of brand and type, I think E6 still delivers a unique richness and vibrance so I wish all the best to anyone making it.

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I would think the Ektachrome announcement has thrown a spanner in the works for their business plans. They seem like they are much closer to production now, and as one of their Kickstarter backers, I would dearly love to see them succeed. 

But the cost of shooting, developing and scanning/printing E6 is a bit of a luxury. To keep it viable it will need a sustainable resurgence, and that means seeing it appeal to a new generation of film shooters, not just reasonably affluent baby-boomers. I sincerely hope that new trend is there to stay. Regardless of brand and type, I think E6 still delivers a unique richness and vibrance so I wish all the best to anyone making it.

 

 
Enthusiasm like this I would like to share only for Kodachrome.
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Enthusiasm like this I would like to share only for Kodachrome.

 

 

 

Considering what is still relatively low utilisation of film in a digital world I just can't see Kodachrome coming back considering the infrastructure required for processing. We can always dream....

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I think there would be a great opportunity to offer a Kodachrome service, i.e. processing included in the cost of the film.

 

 

Like the good old days :-)

 

However my recollection is , albeit perhaps incorrect, that it cost a fortune to establish and maintain a Kodachrome lab. E6 is cheap and easy.

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I'm talking about E6. If Kodak or whoever sold an E6 film with a processing mailer included (just like Kodachrome) it might encourage more people to try it, knowing processing isn't going to be an issue, and it would surely be another useful revenue stream for them.

 

Like the good old days :-)

 

However my recollection is , albeit perhaps incorrect, that it cost a fortune to establish and maintain a Kodachrome lab. E6 is cheap and easy.

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Years ago the US courts prohibited Kodak in the USA from including process with film, deeming it anti-competitive. But with the different market today, I think selling film with prepaid processing and mailer would be a very good business move. Scarcity of labs and inconvenience are a deterrent to using film these days.

Dwayne's Photo was the last lab handling Kodachrome, and does a good job on E6 also, but cost is going up as volume goes down. A partnership with Kodak for film/mailer/processing through normal Kodak film outlets should significantly increase volume and allow lower processing costs.

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The same E6 labs for Fuji can support Kokak Ektachrome now. In fact the E6 is a simple chemical film development process.

 

I used to process my own E6, it is a very simple process. If I like the new Ektachrome enough I may switch from C47 to E6.

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There is no reason Kodak could not bundle a mailer with Ektachrome as long as they were two separate products and you have a choice. Who would process this film would need to be worked out since Kodak closed their labs a long time ago. A main reason for Ektachrome was to provide a transparency film that could be locally and quickly processed. If you have to wait several days for that processing it may as well be Kodachrome. 

 

When Velvia came out lots of photographers started using it in place of Kodachrome and Ektachrome for stock photography because their agencies thought punchy colors were more marketable. Whereas for portraiture or more "accurate" reproduction of fabrics using various dyes and for other uses, different versions of Ektachrome or Fuji were often chosen. Once scanning became widespread these differences started to lose their significance. At the dawn of DSLRs most of the people shooting E6 film were commercial photographers supported by local pro labs. When they switched to digital capture, the entire infrastructure of film, labs, and scanning houses quickly disappeared.''   There is also the issue of the manufacturers of commercial E6 processing equipment continuing the production and support of equipment.

 

Kodachrome usage was way down long before that because consumers turned away from slides in favor of color neg and one hour labs ages ago. Kodak discontinued the Carousel projector in 2004 since physical slides had been replaced by PowerPoint "slides" and digital projectors. 

 

So while nobody is expecting a turn around in all of this, Kodak is obviously banking on enough users to make Ektachrome profitable. What is not said in all of this and what may impact Ferrania is if Kodak has found a way to scale back film production to profitably make specific film emulsions in "smallish" quantities.

 

FWIW I notice that my spell checker flags Ektachrome, Ferrania, DSLR, and Velvia but accepts Kodachrome.

Edited by AlanG
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  • 2 weeks later...

I didn't see any E6 developing on there. Am I missing something?

 

from the FAQ section:

 

"Can you accept colour films?

Yes, we can accept C-41 colour negative and E-6 transparency films too.

However, colour films are not printed to ILFORD black and white paper, but instead printed on Kodak Royal Paper."

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Like the good old days :-)

 

However my recollection is , albeit perhaps incorrect, that it cost a fortune to establish and maintain a Kodachrome lab. E6 is cheap and easy.

 

This is what I understand as well. Kodak could though, do a mailer system like they used to for certain films where the cost of processing was in the purchase price and you mail your exposed film back to them for development. 

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