Gast
Hello FOTOIMPEXers and Impex fans,
As a fan of classic (reportage) films, I’d like to stock up on a large quantity of CHM 400 (35mm and roll film). I’ve already ordered two rolls from Mirko to test and found that my EOS 30 was very stiff when rewinding, and despite reprogramming it, the film disappeared completely into the canister. This has never happened with other films.
What is the quality of the packaging like? Every now and then, there’s been talk of telegraph wires and light leaks with the 120s. I’d hate to have my fridge full of films that end up frustrating me!!!
Many thanks and best regards,
Paul.
Gast
Oops, I meant to say "ADOX CHM" and "quality issues", of course... it's just early in the morning...
Gast
Hi Paul,
As the film disappeared completely into the cassette, it’s unlikely to be a problem with the film itself.
If you’ve set the film leader to ‘outside’, it’s important to have one of the ‘creative modes’ selected when rewinding – otherwise the camera will ignore this setting. At least, that’s how it works on the EOS 50.
Best regards,
Andreas
MirkoBoeddecker
Hi Paul,
I’m a bit puzzled by all these rumours too.
The fact is that not a single one of these supposedly scratched films has turned up here yet, and I haven’t been able to see one myself either.
What does your film look like? Have you developed it yet?
I really do believe that this whole thing has more to do with the fact that we have a good product on the market at a great price, and competitors may be having sales problems and are now spreading rumours.
If films really are scratched somewhere before exposure, I’d love to see them, because then I can make a complaint to production and put a stop to it.
This Ilford raw material is much more robust than, for example, Efke 25 or 50, and these films have been on the market since 1972. If every second film were really scratched, as some people claim in certain online forums, then the company and all its distribution partners would have been out of the market long ago.
As for the cassette, the current batch consists of Spanish DX-coded cassettes and therefore has the same quality as the UP400, our profile films and all efke films since 1990.
This has the advantage that you can flexibly load small batches by hand and that the cassettes can be reused afterwards for your own film-loading projects.
However, the cassettes are somewhat more temperamental than those from the Far East, which are produced for large-scale machines.
We do, however, intend to improve this quality and, in this context, have introduced fully automated packaging with quality control. We expect the first films from this production run in December/January, as we first have to wait for the delivery of the cassettes.
The downside, however, is that the cartridges will no longer be DX-coded, which, for example, with your fully automatic camera, can result in the film being pulled all the way into the cassette, requiring you to set the ISO sensitivity manually.
However, this cannot be avoided because this fully automatic machine was built for volumes that make your ears prick up when you hear them, and consequently the minimum order quantity for cassettes is measured in millions of units. Ordering one million each of 25, 50, 100, 125, 200, 400 ASA etc. is not an option.
Best regards,
Mirko
Gast
Hi Mirko,
Thanks for your reply. I ordered my two CHMs from you in March and had them developed last week. They were spot on. I haven’t had any roll films yet.
Adjusting the ISO sensitivity manually on the 35mm camera should really be the least of my worries. The price is fair, and if the packaging is up to scratch and the risk of a light leak with the 120 film isn’t any greater than usual, this is the film for me.
I’ll just order about 20 rolls and give them a go.
Best wishes to Berlin...
PhilippReichmuth
Hello Mirko,
The downside, however, is that the cartridges are no longer DX-coded, which, for example, with your fully automatic camera, can result in the film being pulled all the way into the cassette and require you to set the ISO sensitivity manually.
If this is going to remain the case for the foreseeable future – would you consider adding DX stickers for the cassettes to your range and selling them separately, for people with automatic cameras? It would also be helpful for other films.
Philipp
MirkoBoeddecker
Hi Phillip,
We’ve already thought of everything. But have you had a look at the price of those things?
It’s cheaper to buy Ilford straight away ;)
Best regards,
Mirko
MirkoBoeddecker
Paul,
I’ve already written quite a bit about 120 film and the issue of light leak.
It’s certainly possible that there are differences in light resistance between ADOX, Kodak and Agfa (and possibly Ilford too – though to be honest, that would surprise me, as they use the same protective paper as we do).
A little light leak at the edges is almost always the case with ADOX films and has always been the case with Foma and efke films too. However, if you take the necessary precautions and use the black container supplied, this can be minimised to such an extent that the film can be used without any problems.
It’s best to test it for yourself.
Most of the time, the problem is that the film hasn’t been wound quite tightly onto the other reel after exposure – in which case, of course, there’s a very high risk of a light leak affecting the image. You absolutely must sort that out.
With the film wound tightly, changing the film in the shade and using the supplied container, there’s a bit of light leakage around the edges but it doesn’t affect the image.
Best regards,
Mirko
FrankJBeckmann
Hi,
With all the talk about DX coding, it’s worth bearing in mind that we’re talking about black-and-white film here. Their speed depends to a large extent on the developer used and is usually well below the nominal speed. So in almost all cases, you’ll need to set the desired speed manually on the camera, despite the coding.
Bye
Frank
Gast
I’ve never had any problems with FOTOIMPEX film, although I’m not counting the ‘new’ ADOX films as I haven’t used them yet. Neither the 35mm film nor the roll film has ever been faulty, nor have I ever had any light leaks. I don’t care whether it’s packaged in cassettes or not, or what kind of cassettes they use. The cameras I’ve used have handled it all without a hitch so far.
Best regards, Matthias
Gast
Hi Mirko,
I’ve never had any problems with light leakage at the edges before, but I have since the last delivery (this applies particularly to the CHS100). It’s still only at the edges, but it’s a bit worrying. And since you’ve mentioned it yourself, could it be down to the film being wound too loosely? But as it affects the leader and the first few frames, I don’t think it’s my camera...
By the way, the only real problem I have with the 400s is that my SQ-A keeps tearing off the adhesive tab at the end – a double thumbs-up to the black ones.
Regards
Martin
Gast
I’d also like to give a shout-out to the products from Foto Impex.
I haven’t had any problems with the stuff yet, and even if there were any, the low price made up for it.
PS
There’s a lot of rubbish posted on internet forums.
E.g. Can anyone give me a tip…?
Answer: Yeah, you can’t do anything about it because I’m not going to shave my balls either…
:-)
Blah blah blah
