Film Photography News — August 2025 Recap
Kodak Trouble? Leica “Lifestyle,” Non-Kodak Films, Widelux, Fold Instax Cam
7 min read by Dmitri, with image(s) by DokaLab.Published on .
☞ This is the 76th monthly Analog.Cafe Newsletter with the latest film photography lore. Sign up to get it via email on the last Tuesday of every month (it’s free).
Lily Li Hua (Instagram: @lilianlihua), shot on KONO Color 200 / ORWO NC200 / Optik Oldschool OptiColour 200 film (review).
What’s new?
Kodak was in the news; some outlets said they’re on the verge of bankruptcy. With that in mind, I reviewed and compared today’s only two colour-negative options that aren’t made by Kodak.
Leica wasn’t in the news, but the brand did manage to draw condemnation over a (now deleted) post on Threads. But they won’t be the only German camera manufacturer to sell film cameras this year: a new Widelux camera, made in collaboration with Jeff Bridges, is around the corner.
Plus, an easy-to-use silver gelatin black-and-white printing kit that uses a smartphone as an enlarger, a new foldable instant film SLR in the works, a new line of 617/612, 4x5, 5x7 and 8x10 cameras, and CineStill’s massively improved scanning light source.
💛 GOLD members get to compare the only two colour-negative films that aren’t Kodak in our exhaustive study of the German-made NC200 vs. UK-made Phoenix II, learn how to fix Polaroid SX-70 film ejection at home, gleam a few insights about the new Widelux camera, download, and print the internet’s most complete “Guide to Film Photography,” invert film negatives online with film Q, and, sometimes, win free film!
In this newsletter: What’s new? Is Kodak in trouble? Comparing the only two C-41 films that aren’t made by Kodak. Leica’s commodity fetishism. A new Widelux camera. DokaLab: a cardboard darkroom. A foldable & pocketable Instax Square SLR. 617/612, 4x5, 5x7 and 8x10 point-and-shoot cameras! CineStill’s massively improved scanning light. Free film! Latest on Analog.Cafe. Support this blog & get premium features with GOLD memberships!
Is Kodak in trouble?
This month’s Kodak quarterly report sank the company’s stock 25% in a matter of hours. The company disclosed a massive yet-to-be-paid debt due this year that doesn’t have guaranteed assets to pay it off.
The news spread across large outlets, like CNN, and throughout the photography community on blogs and social media. A day later, Kodak released a statement clarifying that they do have the money ready to pay the loan.
☝︎ Further reading: “Kodak may be in financial trouble (again).”
Comparing the only two C-41 films that aren’t made by Kodak.
Have no fear, Kodak is still here, but what if it weren’t?
Kodak makes the vast majority of all colour-negative film. According to my recent tests, Fujifilm 200 is nearly identical to Kodak Gold, which appears to confirm that virtually all fresh colour-negative film sold today is made by Kodak (often under a different name).
However, there are three more factories on our planet that are making new colour-negative film:
InovisCoat GmbH (better-known as ORWO) in Germany, Harman (known for their Ilford b&w film) in the UK, and Lucky in China. But only two of these factories’ products are on the market today.
To see direct comparisons of the only two non-Kodak colour-negative films you can buy, see “Comparing Two Newest Colour Films: Phoenix vs. NC200.” 💛
Leica’s commodity fetishism.
Leica’s social media marketing team made a post (now deleted) so cringy it went viral.
A new Widelux camera.
My car broke down in the middle of a desert: the AC ceased in 99-degree heat. The result was a travel slowdown that almost cost me a meeting with Charys Schuler, who was to host the only talk outside of Europe about the new Widelux camera that she’s working on in collaboration with the acclaimed actor Jeff Bridges and the owner of a magazine you may recognize: Silvergrain Classics.
Being stranded on a hot desert road is a story for another time; what matters is that I made it, and I’ve learned a couple of things that aren’t articulated publicly yet. Namely, the price, the design, the materials, and compatibility with the existing Widelux models.
This month’s GOLD members’ newsletter has the details.
Dokalab, which comes from the Dutch word for darkroom, donkere kamer, was created simply to bring the fun of the darkroom to a wider audience.
DokaLab: a cardboard darkroom.
Setting up a home darkroom may feel like a rite of passage until you see the grand total at the checkout: thousands of dollars.
DokaLab simplifies the process significantly by relying on your phone and an app to make your first black-and-white hand-print. The kits sell for €36 on dokalab.com and come with everything you need, including the photo paper, chemicals, safety glasses, and safelight.
The kits are currently sold out, but I expect more to be available soon — plus, look out for a review on Analog.Cafe.
A foldable & pocketable Instax Square SLR.
10ARTCC is working on a foldable Instax Square film camera based on the iconic Polaroid SX-70 design.
If the above combination of words is making little sense to you, imagine the world’s best instant film camera, Polaroid SX-70, but for a slightly smaller format (Instax Square), built in 2025.
The project is ongoing, although the first batch of units has already sold out.
617/612, 4x5, 5x7 and 8x10 point-and-shoot cameras!
Modular medium format panoramic point-and-shoot cameras, compatible with large format cameras in numerous configurations with nearly endless possibilities for ultra-high resolution film scans. This is what Miroslav (CCB) is working on out of a small Canadian town.
CCB modules are made of high-quality plastics in industrial-grade machines to tightly snap together, forming huge projections on roll and sheet film — depending on your configuration.
The CCB Master Set, which includes a 617 panoramic back for roll film designed for absolute flatness, a helicoid lens board (lens not included), a Short and Long Graflok adapter, a 40mm and 75mm Pinhole cone, and a Ground Glass attachment, is selling on CCB’s fully-funded Kickstarter for around $467.
But there are many options and configurations that may take some time to examine. Thankfully, you got it: the project is open until Thursday, September 11, 2025, at 6:54 AM PDT.
CineStill’s massively improved scanning light.
Scanning film is tricky, particularly with digital camera rigs, which can make colour interpretation difficult if the light is not managed correctly.
This month, CineStill launched their completely-redesigned (and relatively affordable) light source, CS-LITE+ SpectraCOLOR™, that features spectral response fine-tuned specifically for colour-negative film.
✪ Note: GOLD members get to use film Q in addition to all the special features on Analog.Cafe which inverts your film negatives without altering the colours or any part of the film profile in batches online (no Lightroom needed).
Free film!
I’ve been giving away film to GOLD members at the end of each month all summer.
This August, Marcel Beekman gets three 35mm 36exp. Cinema Shorts-branded Kodak Vision 3 film rolls (with remjet and instructions for removal) — Congrats!
The next winner will be announced same time next month.
Thank you for reading. 👋