graeme_mitchell Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 As far as I know you can't buy NHGII anymore (correct?), can anyone recommend a similar film. The 800iso is nice, but what I really appreciate is it's pastelly color pallete. I guy gave me a box of it and I ended up loving it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric friedemann Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I loved it too, because it was arguably an 800 speed film and it was swell. Its replacement is Fuji NPZ. We just had a loooooong discussion about this the other day. I shoot it at 400. Others shoot it at 500 or 640. Whatever you do, shoot a test roll befor you shoot it for something important. The only real 800 speed color print film Fuji makes is CZ800, the ametuer film in the yellow and green box. The price is right (under $10 for a four pack of 24s), but it isn't low contrast like NHG-II was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme_mitchell Posted August 24, 2003 Author Share Posted August 24, 2003 Eric, Was the long discussion here on photo.net, I must have missed it if it was. If so can you point me to it. I've shot the CZ800, and, although a decent film, I was unimpressed. I shot one roll of 1600 Press (@1000) the other night and found it to be somewhat similar to the NHGII, but still not as low in contrast and saturation, the 2 qualities I love about the NHGII. When I've used NHGII it almost has an unreal smooth, pastel quality to it, which is a nice option away from the super vivid, saturated films that are so abudent. I know there's the Portra films, but I never had much luck with NC, always found it a bit muddy outside of the studio. But maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emaxxman Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Here's the link to the other discussion: http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=005nfm&unified_p=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_tuthill Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 Hmm... I found NHG2 rather high contrast and very high saturation, so I can't explain the pastel phenomenon. NPZ is cooler, with much less ruddy skin tones, and also less grainy. The only 800 speed film that gives the warmth of NHG2 would be Agfa Vista 800, but it is grainier than NPZ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric friedemann Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 Bill, I think he just means that the film shoots flat. I would be really interested if you did another test of NPZ under different lighting conditions from 400 up to 800. I'd like to know your take on the best rating for that film. Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme_mitchell Posted August 25, 2003 Author Share Posted August 25, 2003 I'll be the first to admit that I'm terrible at describing film characterstics, so don't worry if I make little sense. But I know what I like when I see it... The film had expired in 2000 and had been sitting in a hot garage for years, so maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe I just like expired film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_tuthill Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 NHG2 was a "fun" film with great colors and forgiving characteristics especially for its time. I thought it performed exceptionally well as a rainy-weather film. Scott Eaton really liked its predecessor NHG 400, although I never got a chance to try it. NPZ is a little less "fun" and somewhat duller in overcast weather. Eric, I have an NPZ roll to test at 400/500/640 but haven't settled on test methods. In his Mar/Apr 2001 review of high-speed pro films, Ctein praised Optima 400 for pastel rendition, but that was the previous version. Oskar Ojala likes the new Optima and might remark about its pastels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric friedemann Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 "Eric, I have an NPZ roll to test at 400/500/640 but haven't settled on test methods." Bill, if I might suggest: a. bright sunlight like your last test, b. bright overcast and c. direct flash with people standing at 7-8 feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme_mitchell Posted August 25, 2003 Author Share Posted August 25, 2003 I'll look into Optima and give it a shot. I'm in Oregon, so I shoot a lot in overcast, cloudy, rainy, and indoor available light stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now