Cinestill 400D
CineStill‘s newest film is advertised as an all-new color film, and not just motion picture film with the remjet layer removed. The remjet, incidentally, is a black layer on cinema film that protects it from dust and scratches, static electricity and light halation. So great, new film… then I read on and read that it’s motion picture film made for still photography, and it never had a remjet. This has me puzzled, how is it designed for still photography, but still is considered motion picture film? If I had to guess it’s still a Kodak movie film emulsion (Kodak Vision3 250D, specifically) but manufactured in a different lab for different purposes.
So it’s still movie film, but an advancement in the “movie film made still film” industry (yeah it’s a whole thing). Whatever, I like film. I like when new film is being sold because it extends the lifespan of the hobby, and gives me new things to play with. Buy new films, try them out, don’t be another hater on the internet! Camera people are nerds and nerds can be purists with their opinions and we all seem to want to be the apex authority on our principle nerd-out medium. It’s fun. My people are fun. Fun but predictable.
The “D” stands for Dynamic! The exclamation point is optional but seems like the right thing to put at the end of a word like “dynamic.” What does that mean? Not sure. Probably just means the color tones are crisp and not muddy or blurry. After shooting on some I do like the results more than on CineStill50 and CineStill800T. Neither one of those titles compel me to use an exclamation point.
As with other CineStill films, halation will occur. Especially in the bright highlights, bleeding into the subject and leaving a reddish tint where it appears (you can see that best on my photo of the BMW motorcycle). My opinion – it is what it is. I didn’t buy this film to have an alternative to Portra 400 (which is something I’ve heard others have done). I use it to add a little variety to my shooting, and so the different nuances certain films can present are part of the experience for me.
The tones are interesting, gives it a bit of a “classic cinema” look without losing a lot of the detail, or looking like it was shot on old cheap film. It’s not cheap, mind you. CineStill400D! costs around 16 bucks a roll, it’s pricier than Kodak Portra 400 by more than a dollar a roll. It does have prettier results than many of its “movie film as still film” competitors, some of those are 16 bucks but kinda awful. No, this one I would buy again. I liked the results. It’s just not going to be an every-day film. More like a once-in-awhile film.
