Current 8 x10 colour negative film and C41 process kits

[bob carnie]

I am going to do a colour project using 8 x10 camera and process in my Jobo.

I am wondering what current fast 8 x10 films are readily available in NA and also C41 kits that can be had in Canada. Some rules in shipping across border.

I am not adverse to a slight bit of grain as I plan to make 30 x 40 tricolour gum over palladium , and I prefer a warmer original film palette that kind of reminds me of Kodachrome or for those of you
who remember the Agfacolour Cprints of 80's vintage that were really nice.

any comments are welcome.. I have all the gear to photograph and process this and really hankering to use the 8 x 10 Dave Wooten sent me so long ago.

[m00dawg]

I shoot 4x5 but I believe 8x10 will be similar - for color negative, you're looking at Kodak Ektar 100, Portra 160, and Portra 400. Ektar tends towards vivid and tends to be a great landscape film; Portra is more pastel and great for portraits. But of course with negative films you can adjust to taste.

These are the only ones I know of currently. Fuji only offers slide film in 8x10 (Provia and Velvia 100 and Velvia 50).

[Fred L]

Keith Canham handles special orders of Kodak films and I believe he's ordered Portra in 400 and 800 so that would be where I'd start. Chemistry is easier to source but possibly not in volumes you require. Downtown Cameras sells C41 kits as does Argentix.ca. fwiw, my ast order with Argentix was for the 50 litre size Pyrocat HD in Glycol, which is great as B&H won't ship that across the border.

[bob carnie]

Keith Canham handles special orders of Kodak films and I believe he's ordered Portra in 400 and 800 so that would be where I'd start. Chemistry is easier to source but possibly not in volumes you require. Downtown Cameras sells C41 kits as does Argentix.ca. fwiw, my ast order with Argentix was for the 50 litre size Pyrocat HD in Glycol, which is great as B&H won't ship that across the border.

Jacques sells the kits, I love dealing with him thanks Fred.. 800 ISO in 8 x10 sounds perfect for me does Keith Canham have a website?

[Fred L]

Keith usually posts about special orders on his Facebook page but prefers emails for contact vs messaging. He may very well have some in stock if he didn't sell out the last lot. Jacques is a great resource for Canadians and the few bucks extra it costs to order from him is money well spent.

[agregov]

I believe you need a Facebook account in order to see Keith's posts on his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/keith.canham.12

That said, he is very responsive by contacting him directly. It appears he just got a shipment of 810 Portra 400. That means he's (likely) not ordering 400 again for a year. Portra 160 and Ektar are likely on different ordering schedules. Best just to contact him if interested in purchasing: http://www.canhamcameras.com

I just ordered some Portra 400 in 5x7 from Keith as he's the only resource for 57 color film. But you should be able to pick up Portra or Ektar in 810 (boxes of 10 sheets) from B&H, Freestyle or equivalent resellers in Canada. Keith is great if you want to put in a larger order. But if you don't need much, buying from the bigger resellers allows you the convenience of buying whenever you need it, albeit likely a bit more expensive. With Keith, you have to guess how much film you'll need ahead of time.

With respect to neg types, I prefer Portra 400. It's on the warmer side of 160 (more yellow). 160 is pretty neutral and Ektar has the most color saturation (tends towards the magenta side). I can't really use Ektar for optical printing, it's too fussy for color correcting. 1/2 point swings under the enlarger cause more like 2-3 point swings I'd see in Portra. Ektar was reformulated some years ago for scanning. So, in a digital workflow I doubt you'd have any problems. As for Portra 800, I don't think it exists in sheet film at any size. But Keith could confirm in the custom order world. It's the warmest of the Portras. I find the color a bit muddy and it's quite grainy.

For chemistry, I like using Rollei 5L color kits. I get them from Freestyle. It's been rumored to be rebranded Fuji chemistry. Though not 100% sure. That's what tilted me in their direction. Have had no issues with it and it lasts up to six months for me before the part C developer dies. I've only developed a few runs of Portra 810 in my Jobo. I noticed the negs seemed a bit thin to me (5 negs + 1L chemistry). For the same film/exposure in 45, I process 10 sheets in a Jobo 3010 with 500ml of chemistry with zero issues. Too early to tell what might be the root cause for me. Just a heads up that you might need to go to 4 sheets in the 3005 tanks.

BTW, why do you Canadians say "colour?

[Drew Wiley]

The only thing you're going to find still in production with a bit of speed is Portra 400. It's already a tad warm, but not like the old Agfa look. You could add something like an 81A warming filter if necessary. It's very fine-grained, especially at that speed. It has somewhat more contrast and saturation than the slower Portra 160. Try B&H. The "colour" rendering of Fuji 160 L might more closely approximate you're seeking, but it's out of production. You might ask Kumar if any stock of 8x10 still exists in Japan. (It's "colour"
because Bob lives in Montreal, not Quebec, where it's probably le couloir, or something - well, no, that's an ice chute on mountain.)

[Drew Wiley]

Just checked. B&H does have both Porta 160 and 400 8x10 color neg films in stock, plus Ektar, but unfortunately, none of the colour version.

[Two23]

Just checked. B&H does have both Porta 160 and 400 8x10 color neg films in stock, plus Ektar, but unfortunately, none of the colour version.

Wouldn't some of the larger Canadian stores, such as Henry's, have the colour version?


Kent in SD

[Fred L]

Henrys let the film (and darkroom) business slide from the glory days. They carry minimal darkroom supplies. 8x10 film is something no store in Toronto carries, afaik. Not Downtown Camera, nor Filmplus. Unfortunately, this is why Canadians end up buying from B&H. Can't speak to Beau Photo or The Camera Store, out west.