ISO-101: Experimental photography, camera reviews, and photo sharing

Cross processing is fun. Anyone who has ever deliberately defied the manufacturer's recommendation knows that the inherent civil disobedience is half the joy of dropping a roll of C-22 process film in a container filled to the brim with C-41 chemicals. The other half, however, is getting a good image, and that part isn't quite as easy. If it's your first time cross processing a certain type of film, then you don't really know what that particular type is going to yield, and that can be enough to make you consider sacrificing the enhanced aesthetic for the cold comfort of traditional chemistry. DO NOT fall into the trap of complacence. Cross processing isn't just the hipster photographer's method for hiding the fact that he isn't very good, it is a long standing tradition that has been used by such photographic authorities as National Geographic and Life magazine, one that can add an interesting lo-fi vibe to your film. So don't be afraid to experiment.

A good starting point for experimentation in cross processing is Fujichrome Provia 100F. This is a gorgeous slide film with fine grain and medium saturation and contrast, yielding nice, natural shots... when processed traditionally at least. Slide film usually requires C-22 or E-6 chemistry, and Provia is no exception, but what happens when you process THIS film in C-41? Well that all depends on how much you expose it. The chemistry behind this is rather complicated, so I won't go into it now (look it up), but the long and short of it all is that underexposed Provia 100F is almost unusable and saturated in red, slightly underexposed and normal shots turn green, and overexposed shots come closer to natural colors, but are still green tinted and somewhat washed out.

What to expect:

On the verge of being unusable, this shot was underexposed when my camera didn't sync my flash with the shutter speed (damn unpredictable Holgas). I like the vignette, and the color is interesting, but I had to do some retouching to make the shot remotely bright enough

Yes, this is the same picture I use as this page's main photo. I like it. It was exposed correctly according to what my Canon 50d said about the lighting in the room.

For this one, I had set my flash to full power, which called for about 25 feet between me and my target... not 5. It's a little washed out and slightly less green, but otherwise it looks a lot like the normal exposures.

In conclusion:
Expect green (or red) tinting. Provia is great film, and I highly recommend, but it isn't for the colorblind, or Christmas haters. Share this post :