CineStill’s new calibrated light source — CS-LITE+ SpectraCOLOR™ — for digital camera scanning rigs.
A poor light source can cause issues when scanning film using a digital camera. The colours may appear muted or show a colour cast that isn’t easily or completely correctable. Best results come from sources that use a fine-tuned combination of colour LEDs to render light as close to the natural, full-spectrum illumination as possible.
Today, CineStill is offering a new light source design, which they have rebuilt from the ground up to produce an improved colour specifically for film scans made with digital cameras:
“The CS-LITE+ transforms the light from ultra-bright single-band LEDs into specific multispectral wavelengths, powered by a standard 5V/1.5A USB cable with a single dimmable on/off switch, and can be used in three different modes: for Color Negative, Black & White, and Slide film.”
10ARTCC is working on a foldable Instax Square film camera based on the iconic Polaroid SX-70 design.
The Polaroid SX-70 camera is a holy grail of instant film that was akin to the first iPhone when it was released in the 1970s. The world’s only foldable SLR with a high-quality glass lens, a unique aperture and unsurpassed image quality on a nearly 4x5 integrated film format. Several manufacturers tried to replicate the success of this camera — around the time it was released and in recent times — but they always came short.
Even Polaroid’s I-2 camera, with all its modern technical advances, does not fold and has a range of issues that the company has only recently solved (analog.cafe/comments/z0ow).
Fifty-five years later, there’s still nothing that can match the SX-70. If you want that experience, you’ll need to find a vintage copy and load up some SX-70 film — an emulsion the new company is making specifically for those remaining old-stock cameras (film review: analog.cafe/r/polaroid-sx-…, vintage SX-70 review: analog.cafe/r/polaroid-sx-…).
Jason’s early review of the Harman Phoenix II is a strange but captivating video essay that criticizes the product while showing some of the best-looking photos on the channel.
It’s not easy to break free from the influencer curse, where early access to a free sample entices the author to give a positive review. It’s not just the free sample, it’s the privilege to lead the conversation in a way that brings attention to both the product and the author as a cohort.
To be fair, being perfectly objective when talking about anything other than straight facts is impossible. Even with all the technical details and edit-free scanning techniques, I review film and film cameras from the position of a person who loves this medium. This means I’m excited about films like Phoenix, their potential, and the wild experiments you can do with these technically imperfect emulsions today (like developing them as a slide with Rodinal: analog.cafe/r/harman-phoen…).
But in this video, Jason is being straight with the viewer: the new film is grainy, with hard-to-control colours, despite the massive improvement over the original (review here: analog.cafe/r/harman-phoen…). That said, you can still expect the millennial deadpan humour and outstanding photography from his new upload, along with something new: an ironic use of extreme slow-mo.
Updated: Fujifilm Neopan Acros (I & II) Film Review.
Fujifilm Neopan Acros is the only film that the company has brought back from discontinuation in recent decades. Based on what we know, it’s still manufactured in Japan and packaged in the UK (presumably by Harman/Ilford).
Acros II, which is the current name for the film, extends its sensitivity range to panchromatic (from the original orthopanchromatic) but retains its remarkable reciprocity characteristics and consistency across developers. The new version also renders a bit more contrast, but overall, today’s Acros is nearly identical to the product we’ve been using since the year 2000.
I wrote about this film three years ago. Today was the time to update that review (I completely rewrote it, added new samples, and corrected all the mistakes of the previous post).
That’s true, they’re all different! Kodak’s latest remjet is particularly tough to remove (I compared it to Fujifilm Eterna, which is much easier to rub off).
About 1989, I got a roll of Kodak cine film, I don’t remember which type. I was developing C-41 at home and had read an article in Modern Photography magazine on developing cine film at home. It recommended just rubbing off the remjet layer with a finger after fixing (or after the stabilizer, it’s been more than 35 years). The obvious: remjet is short for removal [water] jet, so the layer is meant to be mechanically removed by a strong water jet…or a finger will do. I tried it and it worked. If you use a light through the film while rubbing, you can see any leftovers. The layer is just tinted gelatine, so no problems. On today’s cine films? It’s a matter of testing.
A small update to improve the free reader experience on Analog.Cafe v3.29.112+.
July has been a busy month; despite my intentions to update the apps, I spent most of the time writing, developing, and photographing. However, there’s one small feature I’d like to mention here quickly, which I think will help a few blog readers.
A reader expressed their frustration earlier this month about the persistent “View this image in HD” labels overlayed above all feature article panels.
I founded and grew this website on the premise that it can function without invasive advertising messages. Having reviewed the signed-out user experience with the reader’s perspective in mind, I’ve decided to add an option to hide those labels for 30 days for all visitors, including folks who are not signed in at all.
Lomography launches Joseph Petzval Focus-coupled Bokeh Control Art Lens Series.
The new 55mm f/1.7, 80.5mm f/1.9, and 35mm f/2 lenses offer creative swirly bokeh control using Joseph Petzval’s original 1840 portrait lens formulas, recalculated and redesigned for modern cameras with full-frame and crop sensors.
The 27mm and 135mm lenses will shortly join the lineup.
“Each lens features stopless aperture and focus control rings, plus a distinct chrome bokeh ring for intuitive control. This launch also marks the first time the Petzval 80.5 mm focal length is available for full-frame mirrorless cameras.”
Everything you say about the Super-B’s beauty and quality is spot-on. But the lubricant for its unusual double-leaf shutter had a tendency to stiffen with age. Mine did, and I tried an equally unusual way to clean the gummed mechanisms WITHIN the camera. The shutter still works 1.5 years later, and the method is described in this 35mmc article-- 35mmc.com/24/01/2024/shoot… -- along with a discovery about the camera’s ability to take super-macros without using Zeiss-Ikon’s expensive macro lens. I hope the article (and its two following installments) prove helpful and interesting!
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri edited on Aug 15, ‘25
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Amilcar de Oliveira
Dmitri
scottsphoto1960
Dmitri
Dmitri edited on Jul 30, ‘25
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
Dmitri
dave_powell_11