Fujifilm Fujichrome Velvia 100

I've been a working pro for over 30 years. For the last many years I've been a devoted shooter of the Velvia 50 and was certainly disappointed when they decided to discontinue that film. So I did some research and it would appear the Velvia 100 Professional (NOT the F series film) was the way to go. The F series 100 Velvia didn't seem to have many fans. Well...I shot this Velvia 100 Pro alongside the old Velvia 50 and also some Kodak E100VS. I tested film from two different emulsion batches, just to be sure. Cameras used were several Nikon F5s, F100s all with latest Nikkor lenses. Processing was done by A&I color in Hollywood--a top drawer pro lab. Both times this film was a terrible disappointment. I did mostly outdoor shooting with plenty of blue sky, white snow, green trees along with my wife dressed in various shades of reds, blues, oranges, yellows, you name it. I used the same lens on each of the cameras with the different films in place. The Velvia 100 Pro has a strong shift to a red cast which made green trees a bit on the brown side. Reds of different shades and oranges nearby just ran together providing for very poor color contrast. Even though Fuji claims this to be sharper than Velvia 50, they are kidding themselves. I took my results to a master printer who frankly was stunned at how disappointing the results were. His comment was that the film just didn't seem to "capture all the information" available in the image. The Kodak E100VS was actually fairly similar in sharpness and general characteristics to the Velvia 100 Pro. But perhaps the Kodak had a tad less of a red cast. I also shot these films indoors with Bowens studio strobes in reflective umbrellas against a medium grey backdrop. My wife's hair is dark blonde to light brown. Her hair was almost reddish and the grey backdrop had a distinctive red cast to it. Her skin tone was terrible. While many will say how bad skin tones are on Velvia 50, it nearly looked like a portrait grade film (though it certainly is NOT that) next to the Velvia 100 Pro. The Kodak E100VS was very poor under studio strobe as well. I wanted to like this film, as I really need to keep a high quality product going forward for my clients. But I will either have to seriously consider going digital, or I am currently keeping things rolling by finding suppliers who still have the old Velvia 50 left in stock. For casual vacation & travel photographs, this film would probably suffice. But it certainly does not warrant the "Professional" designation.

The old Velvia 50 was/is probably more like an ASA 40 film. This Velvia 100 Professional is right on the money 100 ASA. That's about all I can say that is good for it. It is handy having the 100 film speed, but not at the loss of the quality degradation compared to old Velvia 50.

While some would diss the old Velvia 50 for its "funny" colors, they were at least true in the sense that green was green and blue was blue. No strange shifts of greens turning kind of brown like this new Velvia 100 Pro does. Also, this film has poor color contrast--causing similar colors nearby one another to blend together in a harsh interpretation of the original image. It just doesn't have the snap, color integrity, and overall sharpness that gets an editor's attention. If you are selling a pro film, that is mandatory.

Kodak Professional Kodachrome 64, Kodak E100VS, Fuji Provia 100F, Fuji Velvia 50

When I called Fuji for information before I actually bought a bunch of this film, I was told one of their tech people would call me back within a half an hour. A guy from LA called me back a WEEK later. He talked so fast and gave me such an intense rap, I couldn't really tell what he was trying to relay to me--lots of "downtown" lingo and salesmanship with little concrete information. He promised to send me some samples of the two Fuji Velvia 100 products (both the F and the Professional). Of course they never showed up and I just went ahead and purchased the film outright for the tests.

Beautiful colours, magnificent sharpness. The 100 speed is really handy in low light conditions. My favourite transparency film for landscapes. Use this film if you want your images to have real impact. Captures early morning and late afternoon light with magic.

Colour and sharpness. Images come alive.

Limited exposure latitude. Shadow detail wanting.

Provia, Sensia, Ektachrome & Kodachrome

This is an excellent film for outdoor photography. The film is similar to Velvia 50. Colors are still vivid, and I've noticed slightly more detail in the shadow areas. The extra speed is a plus when a tripod isn't available. What surprised me was that flesh tones are no longer horribly red. It's still not a good film for portrait work, but flesh tones looked nicer. I wouldn't load this film into my camera knowing I'll be taking photos of people; Astia would be a better choice. Still, I wouldn't hesitate finishing off a roll with portrait shots now and avoid mid-roll rewinds.

More shadow detail, flesh tones a little better.

None so far.

Provia, Astia

I was given a free sample to try as a test, and was very happy with the results. Having been a long time user of Velvia 50, where I have over 1000 rolls under my belt I was skeptical at first. Fuji's first Velvia100 a year or so ago shouldn't be confused or compared to this emulsion.

The apparent strength of this film is the grain, and the color redendition. Of course the first queston that any Velvia affecinado will ask is how is the contrast and saturation? This film will not dissapoint you in the least. Colors pop off the emulsion, and the contrast is strong yet more natural than Velvia 50. Velvia 100F is also easier to scan which was the achillies heal of the Velvia50, which is horrendous to scan if you are not experienced. I was able to scan and get a reasonable scan on the first attempt on my Nikon 8000 scanner which was a faster learning curve than before. Having more speed in the film is also a strength because you can gain more shots without a tripod. While a tripod is a outdoor photographer's best friend, you can now bring this film on the street and shoot handheld a lot more often.

It's new, and people hate change. The cost is also higher than Velvia 50 so you will have to pay for the new technology of the film even when you can still buy the old film for less.

Velvia 50, Provia 100, Astia 100