News

#17

[10/9/14]

ILFORD Factory Tour 2013

A quick-fire tour of some of the salient points of film coating & packaging in the Harman ILFORD factory. We don't think they encourage photographs let alone videos, but as 8600 people have already watched it, it's definitely in the public domain by now!





#16
[14/9/14]

ILFORD Hoedown

Meanwhile 50 years back in a never-never land where Ilford are actually making colour film themselves, get a load of the action down at the ranch... maybe just as well Ilford exited smartly from the colour market, as those dyes don't seem to be standing the test of time.




#15

[22/7/14]
"the more I learn about Instant Film the more I realise why everyone wanted to stop making it" *

The makers to-be of new55 (Polaroid 55 replacement) are being completely candid about the direction the R&D for their material is going in. To the old established industry this would be absolute anathema - secrecy was paramount, photographic R&D was always behind closed doors & many layers of confidentiality agreements. 

However why not, new55 is a semi-publically financed project, and at the end of the day if Bob Crowley and his team are there first, it's not a trail that anyone is likely to want to repeat.

[* Christopher Bananos, New-York Magazine] 

#14

[20/7/14]

Vivian Maier
Documentary at Curzon cinemas this week

Undiscovered in her lifetime, a documentary of the mysterious street photographer Vivian Meier comes to The Curzon cinemas in Victoria, Mayfair & Wimbledon this week this week. Cinema link on the Curzon logo.

#13

[18/7/14]
A bit more on AEROCHROME

Dean Bennici - Kodak Aerochrome from Benjamin James on Vimeo.

Had almost forgotten DeanBennici, who took it on himself in 2008 to purchase, pack & distribute KodakAerochrome at the point where Kodak were discontinuing the material. Anyway he still has stock, including 120 format and 16mm in 400' loads! Link to his website 

HERE

#12

[16/7/14]
KODAK AEROCHROME IR RESUMÈ

In a stunning film, titled "The Enclave," photographer Richard Mosse captures the war-torn region of The Democratic Republic of Congo in colors straight out of a science fiction film. Using the discontinued false-colour infra-red sensitive Kodak film called Aerochrome, Mosse showcases the country's expansive landscapes and militant populations, all in the dazzling pink and purple hues of infrared technology.

Richard Mosse: The Impossible Image from Frieze on Vimeo.

Here's an additional video from 2011, in which Richard Mosse very succinctly explains the origins of the Aerochrome material, & his motivations in working with it;

There's also a strong movement pressing for a new making from Kodak over on

change.org;

Resume production of Kodak Aerochrome EIR film

"...just as a painter without the rights paints cannot paint, without the right choice of film we cannot create our products – be it for profit, pleasure, or both. We call upon Kodak Alaris and Lomographische AG to work together in order to resume production of Kodak Aerochrome EIR film..."

Maybe add some signatures to the petition? But probably it needs a bit more than 1000 names to get that particular ball rolling again.

#11

[6/7/14]
FILM COLOUR TIMELINE

The Timeline of Historical Film Colors is an extraordinary database of colour film technology, with great depth although still being actively developed. Starting at very beginning with the identification of colour theory in the 1800's, through every known colour process to the present day - loaded with images & downloadable source material. Although motion picture applications predominate, still a fantastic reference for still photography. The database was created and is curated by Barbara Flueckiger, professor at the Institute of Cinema Studies, University of Zurich. 
#10

[26/6/14]
SILVER - YOU'VE NEVER HAD IT SO GOOD

seems settled, at least for the present, at a comfortable level we have REDUCED our prices on silver nitrate, 25g to £23 inc. VAT, 100g to £77 inc VAT. 

A refeshing change perhaps. In the photo trade we've always been used to letters on the mat announcing film & paper price rises due to increased silver costs - but maybe one with better news is already in the post?

[Thanks to Dr V.L. who heads up the Fantasy Department at the British Photo Dealers Conglomeration :D ]

#9
[25/6/14]
SPECIAL EDITION COLOR 600 SKINS

"Usable in all Polaroid 600-type cameras and of course, the Instant Lab, Special Edition Color 600 Skins is a wild departure from the classic, square white frame. It features frames patterned with zebra, rattlesnake, tiger, crocodile, fish, giraffe, leopard and iguana skins."

inkjet

#8[25/6/14]

Traces of War - Landscapes of the Western Front

To mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, the Fleming Collection is showing an exhibition of work by Scottish photographer Peter Cattrell. Born in Glasgow in 1959, Cattrell’s interest in the Somme was originally inspired by the unearthing of a photograph of his great uncle, William Wyatt Bagshawe pictured along with three of his companions in the Sheffield ‘Pals’ Battalion.

The photographs he took of the landscape.... were the start of a project which led Cattrell to return on numerous occasions over many years, resulting in an expansive and emotive body of work. The landscape Cattrell captures is a contradictory one; witness to the horrors of war, yet simultaneously tranquil and softened by the constant renewal of nature.

10 June – 18 October, Galleries One & Two

#7[24/6/14]

 

from ~ Tina WeidnerDiary: the streets of London

"When strolling through London, my attention is often drawn to shops such as , or Kodak signs which tell me that Kodachrome used to be developed here. These shop fronts have often changed their face and now offer a wide range of services.Snappy Snaps

 

This is very different from my observations at Process Supplies – a professional photography retailer, in the same family for three generations and now run by three brothers. The shop display is very small, perhaps around 4 x 5 metres and most items I enquire about need finding first, either in the attic above, or by the man behind the counter disappearing down one of the two staircases that lead into the basement. This usually entails a short wait, which allows me to listen in on customer enquiries about developing chemicals, lenses or barite paper. This is so different from shopping online, I quietly think. Only recently, I was allowed to have a peek in their basement which is almost like a museum display covering the last 50 years of photography supplies. I was looking for archival packaging for the slide-based artworks to get them ready to go into the cold store, and found exactly what I was looking for: polyethylene sleeves that would fit into polyester pockets.

 

  Every so often, I take a break at , one of the few remaining professional analogue film labs in London to gauge what kind of jobs and customers the manager, Gary, is dealing with. The lab is conveniently just around the corner from Process Supplies at Mount Pleasant in Clerkenwell."ISIS[18/6/14]#6


FILM'S NOT DEAD IN CONVERSATION WITH STEVE BRIERLEY

 

  Steven Brierley is the Sales and Marketing Director at Ilford, & the probably the man most responsible for the Phoenix-like flowering of Harman from the ashes of the old Ilford when it foundered 10 years ago. He’s completely in love with film and traditional processes and is one of the driving forces behind many of these new products that you see coming out of Ilford each year. Films Not Dead were able to speak to Brierley about the future of film, how Ilford began, and his own opinion on why he feels film is important:[LINK: FILMS NOT DEAD, Stephen Brierley]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------#5
[18/6/14]

'NEW55' MADE IT

Kickstarter seems to be showing unerring ability to fund specialist photographic & equipment projects where any normal investor would fear to tread, & NEW 55 did very well indeed.

[LINK: KICKSTARTER]

rofessional darkroomless analog photography.  Here, we -- a group of artists (from every continent) -- will take up the means of production.  Where large-scale industrial capacity has failed to adapt to the major technological and behavioral shifts from the rise of digital photography, a small-scale factory that is modular, scalable, and humane in its flexibility will begin manufacturing an important and necessary photographic material -- New55 FILM.  We now have the opportunity and the responsibility to make it happen.""As a New55 FILM backer you will be making history.  But you will also be constructing the future of Post-Digital p

A project that tells the stories of photographers, inventors & others navigating the epic changes from film to digital in photography.A Kickstarter project to support the publication of the book FROM DARKROOM TO DAYLIGHT. The project began as a personal exploration of how the dramatic change in photography from chemical to digital processes has affected photographers and their work. At first a love letter to the silver process and darkroom, FROM DARKROOM TO DAYLIGHT touches on the history of photography, the coming of digital, and what became possible with digital methods.$18000 required, only $2380 in so far; follow it up on the ;Both these new Harman papers now available after a shaky start. From Harman's own technical data;-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  #4
[18/6/14]
KICKSTARTER - 'FROM DARKROOM to DAYLIGHT'





Kickstarter site

#3
[17/6/14]
ILFORD CLASSIC FB & COOLTONE



"MULTIGRADE FB CLASSIC is a fast exposure darkroom paper. The product has a short induction time of around 20 seconds for image appearance during processing; there is a closer speed relationship between grades; more uniform grade separation; sharp images; an extended low contrast at soft filtrations (00 end); a 50% reduction in wash times to save on water; whilst retaining all the handling and filtration during processing that you have come to expect from traditional MULTIGRADE FB papers.
It is also suitable for use in all types of darkroom enlargers. It is compatible with most safelights designed for black and white papers with a cut off no lower than 580nm. It is also fully compatible with the ILFORD chemistry range as well as the ILFORD optimum permanence wash sequence."

 

Out of the 14 Hasselblad cameras used on the moon during the Apollo Missions, the only one that made it there and back in one piece is expected to sell for a staggering  €150,000!

[Link: Filmsnotdead]

 

 Now that there seems to be a steady supply of at least one good B&W 70mm film (HP5 70mm, see below) it's worth taking stock of what's involved in working with this amazing format. Originally developed for industrial applications, especially aerial work, it's most famous role was during the Apollo moon exploration in the 1970's (see above) when a number of specially adapted Hasselblad 70mm cameras were used on the lunar surface. And stayed there, the film was returned but not the cameras or film backs, interesting archaeology at some future date.The lunar cameras, an example in the picture above, were basically production models but the controls were enlarged & simplified for use under the extreme conditions.#2
[17/6/14]
70mm to the People !

The standard 70mm cassette is like a 35mm cassette on steroids, the same basic metal + felt light trap construction scaled up for the larger format, which is really 6cm as per the roll film, but with added sprockets both sides. The main reason for wanting to use this format is that it allows a long film load, up to 50 exposures, & gets away from the Dickensian roll film format that has been both a blessing & a curse since it was invented well over a hundred years ago. Another possible advantage is that the film base is normally the same thicker acetate as used in 35mm, which has advantages in handling.There are several options for 70mm backs fitting standard cameras, & the most common is the A70 70mm Hasselblad magazine, pretty much the same one that went to the moon. They don't go for very much, here's a current (17/6) Ebay sales entries, there are usually several at any one time. You should find one for as little as about £50;Another option is Mamiya, who also catered for 70mm with the RB & RZ67;And how to process these gargantuan loads? Well Hewes the stainless-steel reel people still maintain the necessary 70mm reels;---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------'ULF' stands for 'Ultra Large Film', & this is your annual chance to get your hands on various sheet film formats that are not standard catalogue sizes. A bit of a misnomer, as there are many special sheet sizes that are quite small, as well as various special size rolls. A real rarity is their offering of 70mm HP5 in 50 foot rolls, although this is conditional on hitting accumulated world sales of 30 rolls - doesn't sound much, but that might be the stumbling block.At Process Supplies we're one of the participating dealers, so get your orders in, this years window closes on 27'th June.Link: Link:


Hass A70 Mag - Ebay Link


Mamiya 70mm Back - Ebay Link


Hewes Products - Web Link


#1
[17/6/14]
ILFORD 2014 ULF PROGRAMME




Ilford Pressroom

Dealer & Assortment PDF