Re: Elitechrome slide processing

[Michael Kurkowski <mk@netstra.com.au>]

Hi James,

the best thing you could try is,

Put a few rolls of film through the camera and take them to different 
places for processing. (Just do it with 100 asa print film, for cost 
reasons, try a few different one hour labs).

Out of interest where do you get yours processed? Who do they use to 
process the slides?

I use Fuji Sensia II (either 100 or 200) and have found it a far superior 
film to the Kodak Elitechrome, but that's personal preference. I get mine 
processed via a place in Ivanhoe, who outsource it to a company in 
Caulfield I believe. Price for me is the same, $15.95 for processing. I 
have also experienced one long scratch from a couple of rolls. This has 
only happened in the last two months. If the place you use, uses the same 
company to develop the slides, the boxes will have changed colours from 
black (about 3 months ago) to red, now back to yellow in the past few 
weeks.

As far as film prices for the Fuji goes, i pay $8.95 per roll for 
100asa/36exp at Camera House on Elizabeth Street, for the 200 asa / 36exp 
its a bit more expensive, averaging around the $16-$17 mark. For the price 
difference between the Fuji and Kodak though, I much prefer the Fuji still.

As far as the life of films goes, modern E6 films (i.e. Fuji Sensia, Kodak 
Elitechrome, Ektachrome, etc) aparently last quite a lot longer than 
previous films of similar type. Kodachrome is nice if you can put up with 
things like two week turnarounds for processing, and the high risk that you 
will never see it again, but most importantly, the hopeless colour 
reproduction (Since when did freightcorp have a black livery?). My slides 
will be digitally archived by the time they start fading (aparently, no 
less than about 20-30 years if kept well).

Earlier Ektachrome films though, aren't so lucky. I remember one of my very 
first gunzel shots, when I was 6 years old, with an instamatic camera I got 
for my birthday. The photo was an R class locomotive, taken out the side 
window of a Comeng. It was the first time I had ever seen a steam loco 
other than Wheezing William (coff coff, Puffing Billy even). The photo (for 
the record, taken in 1985 or 1986) has been kept under pathetic conditions, 
and has slightly faded already.

Anyways, any Kodachromies out there, please feel free NOT to shoot me down 
in flames.

Regards
Michael

James Brook said in message <3858E7B2.3AB83FA4@ozemail.com.au>, I therefore 
quote:

>I use Elitechrome (Its the new name for Ektachrome Elite II) slide film
>and I was wondering if any of you used it and if you've had the problems
>I've had with the developing. Every now and then I get back the slides
>and they have a very deep scratch on part of the roll. I got back one
>today with a scratch on the bottom of the slides for about half the roll
>of film. Although it doesn't happen often, it does happen and when you
>pay $12.95 for the film and $15.95 for the processing this just isn't
>acceptable. I've confirmed that it isn't my camera and I was wondering
>if any of you have had a similar problem with Kodak's processing of
>slides. Apart from this the film itself is excellent and the colour
>reproduction is very good. I would recommend this over Kodachrome any
>day. The only problem is I don't know if the colour will last as good as
>the colour in Kodachrome slides.
>

-- 
Michael Kurkowski
Email: mk@netstra.com.au
Website: http://www.netstra.com.au/~mk
ICQ: 1459118
Telephone: 0416-044-124

What is the point of having quotes at the end of your .sig?