Shooting Expired Fuji Astia 100
The bright and colourful fairground makes for a great subject for nighttime photography. 1/2s 110mm F11 Bronica SQ-A.
Fuji Astia is a discontinued slide film that I’ve long wanted to get my hands on. Currently the only E6 films that Fuji still makes (just about) is Provia 100, Velvia 100 and Velvia 50. All three of these are known for the strong contrast and Velvia especially is known for its vivid purple colours that made it such a popular film stock amongst landscape photographers. Even now I find myself shifting my digital images away from a green colour cast towards magenta almost reflexively. Such is the impact it had on people’s perception of photography, even for those of us who are too young to remember the days when it was commonly used.
I was really surprised when I first saw this image on the light table, as this as when I realised how good the images on this roll had come out. It’s a great example of how good slide film can shoot at night. 1/4s 50mm F3.5 Bronica SQ-A.
Astia on the other hand is not like this. It is technically a lower-end consumer slide film that has less contrast and softer colours, giving the final image perhaps a more realistic and true-to-life look. I picked up six rolls off of eBay, which again is another roll of the dice, however despite the fact these rolls expired in the early 2000s they must have been cold stored because the results seemed to be little different than if I had had shot a fresh roll. I did however shoot the roll at a slightly slower speed of ISO 80, as usual to try and overcome the expiry date, but not giving it too much light as to start overexposing it. Unlike the 35mm Sensia 100 & 400 I blogged about recently, these were rolls of 120 and were shot with my Bronica SQ-A.
This image shows off Astia’s lower level of contrast in comparison to other Provia & Velvia. 4s 110mm F9.0 Bronica SQ-A.
The frantic motion blur captured during a running ride. 4s 150mm F16 Bronica SQ-A.
Having had a great time shooting Kodak Ektachrome at night in London earlier in the year, I really wanted to get back out again with slide film under the cover of darkness and luckily enough the local roaming fairground was back in town. This often draws in photographers as there are lots of bright and vibrant subjects, mixed with plenty of action. Unfortunately, the night I went had been quite wet, and so the numbers of visitors was rather low. This did mean however, that I was both largely undisturbed and not in anyone’s way. Using a tripod was of course essential given how dark it was.
This was another image that really surprised me with its high levels of detail, that are more typical of what I would expect from much fresher film. I feel I got the exposure bang on here. 4s 110mm F11 Bronica SQ-A.
The images look great, I just love the punchy contrast that slide film gives at night, and while it can be a bit tricky getting the exposure right, I do feel that despite what some people say, there is enough dynamic range here to make it all work. Colour negative films (like when I shot the fairground with Fuji Pro400H the previous year) are certainly more forgiving with a wider dynamic range, but when you get it right, there is just something special about slide film.
The Crazy Jungle sinks into the inky black of night. 2s 150mm F11 Bronica SQ-A.
Certainly a strange looking carousel. 1s 150mm F8.0 Bronica SQ-A.
It's hard for me to draw any serious conclusions as I’ve only shot one roll of film that’s not much younger than I am. Although the sad reality is that it’s unlikely, I will ever shoot a roll better than this, seeing as Fuji no longer make Astia. I did shoot a single image in daylight, of the Virginia creeper that grows every year not far from where I live. This does give you a sense of how different it is to Provia & Velvia, and you can really see that it has less contrast and more muted colours in comparison. To my eyes the rendition was pretty much perfect, that’s almost exactly what they looked like in real life, and that required very minimal tweaking in Lightroom. Perhaps the images come out with a slight magenta colour cast that wouldn’t be there if the rolls were fresh. However, having never shot any fresh rolls it’s hard for me to understand what it should look like.
This image really pushed the limits of the dynamic range of Astia and only the very brightest highlights have begun to blow out. 4s 50mm F11 Bronica SQ-A.
Many attractions at the fairground reference touchstones of popular culture. 1s 50mm F8.0 Bronica SQ-A.
As much as a like Provia & Velvia it would be good to still have this as an extra choice for situations where I do want more life-like colours. Though at least that is serviced somewhat by Kodak Ektachrome. With a handful of rolls left I will certainly be careful in what I shoot with Astia, though I hope you enjoy next week’s blog where I shoot a roll at night along the Thames in London.
The one image I shot in daylight was of this richly coloured and textured Virgina Creeper, which shows off the lower levels of contrast and softer colours in comparison to Provia and Velvia. 1s 110mm F8.0 with polariser Bronica SQ-A.
If you have enjoyed this blog then please consider leaving a tip below.
