I’m always reading things about photography in all of it’s many and varied aspects. Hardly a day goes by when I don’t think to myself “I never knew that” or “oh that’s why that is so” or “oh that’s why….”. This is a sample from this last week!
DX Coding. Well we all know about that don’t we? Or do we? I’ve kept a bag of 20 200 asa cassettes, as the next bulk roll I plan on using is Foma 200. Some of my cameras are DX coded, EOS 30 for example. It’s easy enough to change, but with a little forethought once, it’s easier to pop a roll in, and not have to remember to check it every time! I picked up the bag and they all fell out onto the floor, and as I picked them up I notice they had two different codings for 200 speed. Strange I thought – surely all 200 should be the same? I knew DX coding would let the camera know what speed the film was, I didn’t know that it also told the camera the length and the latitude! All about DX Coding, Films and Cameras by Belinda Jiao educated me with everything I needed to know!
So what am I buying here? If you look at the place of manufacture on either of the two common 35mm Fuji films, at least those in the UK, 200 and 400 speed, are both made in the USA. I have no issue with that at all. But who is making it? The only people I know manufacturing colour film in the US is Kodak. So IF that’s the case, if what I’m really buying is Kodak Color Plus and Ultramax then I’d rather just buy the yellow box and not the green one! That of course is why one would never get a straight answer from Fuji, as that’s what they don’t want me to do. It maybe a Fuji emulsion (formula) manufactured for them, who knows? Let’s not kid ourselves that it’s not wide spread. There was a fire at the factory that manufactured Bourbon biscuits here in the UK once, and suddenly they were missing in action from Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Marks and Spencer and Asda – what does that tell us!! Neither is it a jibe at Fuji/Kodak. I also discovered this week that the “new” packing for Ilford’s ID11 states it’s also made in the US! So that begs the question would I be buying ID11 or D76? Again if I wanted Kodak’s D76 – that’s what I’d buy. It’s all very good and well having “such a wide choice these days”, but it seems in many cases that choice is simply what packing you’d like to throw away!! (Recycle please!)
A little French. I had reason this week to look at the Bergger website. First off I hadn’t realised until this week that they were French. I’ve fancied trying a roll or two of their film for ages, but since “Speedgraphic” (the UK online retailer rather than the camera!) closed it’s doors it’s been a bit difficult to get hold of. What amused me was that they seem to offer Paper, Chemistry and Dandruff! If you buy A film, it’s a film. If you buy many, they are films – no surprise there! According to Google translator, rather than my basic schoolboy French, the French word for film is “pelicule” but if you just stick an S on the end you get the word for Dandruff. I’m not sure if this is incorrect Google or one of those weird things that can make learning another language fraught with problems. Either way, if any non-French person looks at their website and just hits “google translate” – they’ll need to “read between the lines”! I once purchased a small blue plastic Smurf in a little French toy shop, (they are from Belgium after all!) and that nearly caused an international incident and much laughter! ….au revoir pour l’instant!
S.H.O.U.T. 