All of Analog.Cafe, Page 3

655 Reviews, Guides, and Essays

Accidentally Wes Anderson: Adventures
Book Review
October 22, 2024
Accidentally Wes Anderson: Adventures is the second book from the Webby Award-winning namesake team, Accidentally Wes Anderson. Like the first edition, this book contains a collection of photography created and selected for its embodiment of the filmmaker’s cinematography. Yet, I think this second book is a little better than the first.
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Nikon FE Film Camera Review
Zero Compromise for Purpose and Price
October 21, 2024
Nikon FE is an SLR with a delicate balance of features to accommodate portability, practicality, build quality, speed, and price. It is also built with exceptional attention to detail.
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Lomography Color Negative 800 Film Review
A Portra in Disguise?
October 18, 2024
Lomography Color Negative 800 film is a high-speed medium-high saturation film sold in triple packs of 35mm and 120 rolls. It features accurate colour reproduction and fine grain. Though Lomography does not reveal the exact origins of this film, it’s most likely manufactured by Kodak — but it’s not the same as Portra 800 — as the controlled experiments suggest.
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Minolta MC TELE Rokkor-X 135mm 1:2.8 Lens Review
A Beautiful, Well-Built Portrait Lens for SR Mounts, One of 16 135mm Models
October 15, 2024
Minolta MC TELE Rokkor-X 135mm 1:2.8 is an affordable, well-built manual focus lens for Minolta SLRs. It has enough speed and focal length to capture fast action at a distance and bokehlicious portraits up close. One of the nicest lenses (by feel and looks) in my collection!
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SMC Pentax-M 100mm 𝒇4 Macro Lens Review
October 14, 2024
SMC Pentax-M 100mm 𝒇4-32 is an affordable macro lens with 0.5x max magnification that can be converted to 1:1 with extension tubes or used as a telephoto.
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Shooting Northern Lights on Film
No Screens, No Distractions: Just You and the Nature
October 11, 2024
Learn to pick the most appropriate film cameras, lenses, and accessories for photographing northern lights, select the best films for the job, understand your exposure settings, and how to apply appropriate development and scanning techniques for the cleanest results on film.
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How to Remove Remjet & Develop Cinema Film in C-41
Also, What Is Remjet?
October 10, 2024
Kodak is the world’s leading producer of colour-negative film, but not all of it is meant for still cameras. In this guide, we’ll examine Kodak’s cinema film options, what makes them unique, how to use them in still cameras (your regular rangefinder/TLR/SLR), and how to develop them at home or in a lab.
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Hands-on With ZH1, a WORKING LEGO Film Camera
Made From Just the Official LEGO Components, It Takes Real Photos on Film
October 8, 2024
This August, I had the chance to interview Zung Hoang , the inventor of the first fully functioning (yet to be official) LEGO film camera over chat. A few weeks later, I met with the man to learn more about the project, see the camera stripped down, and borrow it for an entire month. This is the story of LEGO ZH-1, a fully functional film camera and its creator.
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Becoming a Creative Professional
A Brief History of Analog.Cafe, a Side Hustle That Changed My Life
October 7, 2024
I worked on this blog for so long that I can no longer imagine my life without it. In this essay, I’d like to take you on the journey of this creative project’s evolution — which ultimately transformed me into a full-time, independent film photographer.
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How to Bulk Load 35mm Film
October 3, 2024
Bulk loading film saves money, frees you up to use any (reasonable) film length in a canister, helps upcycle 35mm canisters, and even simplifies home film development. With the right tools, you can roll your own cinema film or stage photography experiments that wouldn’t be possible with store-bought film rolls.
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How to Develop Black-and-White Film at Home
As an Absolute Beginner
October 1, 2024
It’s easy to develop black-and-white film at home. The choice of chemicals, timings, and formulations may seem daunting at first, but once you understand how it works, you’ll find it to be a simple, forgiving process with lots of opportunities to excel and advance the quality of your images.
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How to Use Extension Tubes on Film Cameras
Macro Photos for Less
September 30, 2024
Extension tubes are simple mechanical devices that let you to focus your regular or macro lens closer to your point of interest. This can help you fill more of your frame with your tiny subject. However, there are some limitations and a few formulas that you should be aware of.
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Fujifilm Fujicolor PRO 400H Film Review
Discontinued but Not Forgotten
September 27, 2024
Fujifilm Fujicolor Pro 400H is a pro-grade colour negative film with excellent dynamic range and unique colour reproduction thanks to its fourth colour layer. In this review, I’ll cover my experience with this film in 35mm and medium format, share a few samples, and discuss its technical properties.
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Kiki Pan 320 Film Review
Meow 🐾
September 26, 2024
Kiki Pan 320 is a medium-speed black-and-white film by a Hong Kong analogue photography distributor, Camera Film Photo. Kiki Pan is a German-made emulsion packed in a super-cute box with its DX-coded canister and negatives featuring a design inspired by the shop’s resident cat, Kiki. 🐾
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Kosmo Foto Agent Shadow 400 Film Review
Tested at ISO 6400 and Box Speed in Various Developers, Featuring My Impossibly-Cute Puppy!
September 25, 2024
I was one of the project’s original backers, which gave me a chance to buy a “Briefcase Box” pack with five rolls and a delightful graphic novel by My Mate Does Art. Alas, by the time I got to writing this review, the film was no longer available for sale. Not even on eBay. So this review is more of a retrospective, useful to those who still have a roll somewhere. This film is said to be technically identical to Kentmere 400, so you can try the tricks in this article with that film for similar results.
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Film Photography News — September 2024 Recap
LF Camera Gear, Phoenix in 120, Daylight Enlarger, Fix Cameras, Develop C41
September 24, 2024
A new modern lens and shutter for large format cameras from Intrepid and an upcoming “hand-held” large format camera from Smartflex, Phoenix 200 in medium format, an upcoming daylight enlarger from Jagglé, a new stand-alone film inversion software from Chemvert, new guides for fixing and selling film cameras, plus a rewritten tutorial for developing colour film at home.
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Yashica T2 Film Camera Review
Carl Zeiss P&S for Less?
September 21, 2024
Yashica/Kyocera T2 is a relatively affordable point-and-shoot camera with a fantastic Carl Zeiss Tessar 3.5/35mm T* lens in a somewhat bulky but very fun package. This camera is a lot of fun to use and it can produce sharp images with unique rainbow flares.
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Fixing and Selling Film Cameras
A Monthly Newsletter for GOLD Members
September 20, 2024
This month, the focus is on maintaining, fixing, and, if you so choose, selling film cameras (as well as a few other things). I’ll also explain how I’ve been continuously improving the content on Analog.Cafe, what’s coming next, and some of the relevant industry news in this September letter for the GOLD members!
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Minolta X-700 Film Camera Review
Affordable, Fun, Beginner-Friendly Vintage SLR With a Cult Following
September 19, 2024
Minolta X-700 is one of the easiest and most fun film SLRs ever built. This vintage camera can suit almost anyone, and the expansive Rokkor lens selection is considered by many to be the best quality per dollar spent. But no gadget is perfect. In this review, I’ll cover my extensive experience with the camera on the road and in my mini-studio, its strengths and quirks.
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Home Film Camera Maintenance and Basic Repair Guide
Tools, Techniques, and Advice
September 17, 2024
How you take care of your gear should depend on the size of your collection, the shape your cameras are in, and their various ages and kinds. This guide takes a measured, customized approach that focuses on preservation and minimal meddling with the gear.
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