Kodak E200 pushed

I've heard that rating E200 at 320 and giving it a 1-stop push

increases saturation but with little effect on grain. Just wondering

if anybody can confirm this or elaborate on it.

I haven't pushed it to 320--but according to Kodak you can push it

to 640 with little effect on grain. I pushed it to 800 once out of

desperation: images were grainy, but color was consistent and

saturated. Somewhat decent slides turned out; awful scans,

though.

Yes, you are correct. The saturation goes up and the contrast goes up slightly. since this film is slightly low in contrast and natural color at EI 200/normal, pushing it 1 stop @ EI320 is a nice variation and very pleasing for a faster film option.

My job requires a lot of photography in room light. I have shot hundreds of rolls of E200 at EI640 and processed for a two-stop push (this combination and the 320/one-stop mentioned above are Kodak's recommendations). I have found it to be the best solution for higher speed slide images. E200 starts life with lower than average contrast and saturation (making it a good choice for high contrast situations) and gains both as you push it.

 

Naturally, it also increases grain, but to my eye, the grain of E200 at 640 is more pleasing and less obtrusive than any of the alternatives including Provia 400. In the sort of light I often have to shoot in, the increased contrast is welcome and the color saturation at that EI is quite nice.

 

I'm shooting for publications and these photos don't get used bigger than about seven inches--at that size they still look good. I use them often for slide shows and they are fine there as well (that size vs. viewing distance thing), although not dazzling like slower films. As with any push (and especially with slides) there is a greater tendency for shadows to block up.

 

Shooting this film at 320 has never impressed me as being that much better than at 640 so I've shot only a few rolls at that speed.

 

I'm quite fond of this film for my application and would recommend it to anyone who needs to shoot slide film in low-light.

 

Robin Dreyer