Fujichrome Provia 400F Expired Film Review

Provia 400F is the second generation of the Provia 400 fast slide film series with a finer grain — an RMS granularity of 13, compared to 15 for the original. It is the second-to-last Fujifilm innovation in this line.

The final iteration in the series is Fujichrome Provia 400X, which was discontinued in 2013, along with dozens of other stocks the company axed semi-recently. The 400F was discontinued in 2006.

Provia 400F is an emulsion with its ups and downs. It should be used as a specialty film, as it will not perform well on all occasions. Though when it does, it does so beautifully.

In this review: Avoid low-contrast scenes. Be mindful of high-contrast scenes. C.R.E.A.M. Scanning Provia 400F. Support this blog & get premium features with GOLD memberships!

I got my first taste of Provia 400F on the cheap, having bought a couple of rolls from the discount bin at Beau. After getting the first few slides back from the lab, I fell in love.

The way this Provia renders colours is simply incredible. True to life, with a barely-noticeable hint of blue contrast that some may say, is a Fujifilm trademark. Its textures appear creamy and are very pleasant to look at. The skin tones are very accurate, quite flattering, if I may say so.

✪ Note: I only tested photos of light skin with this film.

Being a slide film, this emulsion has its limitations. 400F requires a relatively specialized lab — ask for the E-6 process if that’s how you develop your film. And it comes with a few downsides, particularly in acutance; 400F is no longer produced, and thus its miraculous eBay appearances should not be taken for granted. For that reason, it pays not to waste frames on scenes that would look sub-par.

In this article, I will do my best to suggest the best use cases for this film, starting with my advice on what not to do with it.

Avoid low-contrast scenes.

This film does not do well in low-contrast scenes. I find it somewhat misleading considering it is a fast emulsion — you might do so as well.

400F is quite grainy, though, unlike certain C-41 and monochrome films, those grains aren’t well-defined and lack the “crispness,” typically expected of 35mm scans and prints. Even modern lenses with tons of contrast and resolution struggle to bring out the acutance on this emulsion.

When this film became first available twenty years ago, it was revolutionary in its ability to resolve details at this level and speed. Of course, the grains it produces do not yield the “pop” that C-41 does as they have little to no silver content and are practically just dye clouds due to E-6 chemistry’s nature.

In some images, this lack of micro-contrast was so pronounced it made me wonder if there wass something wrong with my camera.

Be mindful of high-contrast scenes.

Your goldilocks range with this film is somewhere between 7-10 stops of light variance. 400F is slightly more forgiving than Provia 100F, though not by much. It will not clip like the digital sensors, though its graceful degradation may not be much of solace when the details you watned are gone.

Provia 400F is quite pesky when it comes to lighting conditions. Though if I were made to choose between overly high- and low-contrast scenes, I’d pick the former. While there is a decent chance of losing some of the visual information in high-contrast situations, this Provia will not smudge or drop gradients. I would rather forfeit details in the fringes than suffer from lack of acutance in the entire scene.

C.R.E.A.M.

Fujichrome Provia 400F is like a skilled painter. It could make an incredible rendering of the reality with depth and character if you step back, yet it has distinct brush strokes should you look closely. Getting the best photos with this film isn’t about your light meter or lens resolution accuracy. It has more to do with your ability to see the scene as a whole, as well as accepting and understanding this film’s limitations.

This emulsion could look better in larger formats, though its 35mm version may still enchant you and your audience with its ability to transition between hues in a soft, gentle fashion. If plaid right, 400F’s lack of sharpness can be interpreted as an advantage — not necessarily something other low-acutance emulsions can do.

Yes, confusingly, this film both performs best in higher contrast scenes and tends to clip in harsh light. But if you can find that sweet spot, it will do wonders.

​✪ Note: I use this method to scan all film for my reviews. It creates consistent results that make understanding and comparing the emulsion’s colour/contrast attributes possible.

Scanning Provia 400F.

I love scanning slide film. It makes for the easiest colour grading: should there be any doubts about how things are ought to look, I refer to the original — the slide. Provia 400F is no different; it could essentially be used to calibrate your scanning workflow. Though it’s somewhat thicker than monochrome and some C-41 stocks, 400F dries flat and is a treat to handle.

Everything you see in this article was put through PrimeFilm XA dedicated 35mm film scanner with either ViewScan or SilverFast 8 software.

❤ By the way: Please consider making your Provia 400F purchase using this link  so that this website may get a small percentage of that sale — at no extra charge for you — thanks!