HELP!!! - Fujichrome Processing Problem

[Gordon George]

I shot four 36 shot rolls of 35 mm Velvia and Provia Professional slide film when I was on a trip of a life time recently.

Now, I know the weather was crummy - rainy, overcast etc but I've just got the slides back and I am really disappointed.

I dropped them off at Don's Photo in Winnipeg, Canada. Don's Photo is a fairly big photo operation across western Canada with centres in Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton.

Anyway, I noticed on the package that the slides came back in, that the processing or sales people had ticked off the "Ektachrome" box. I called the store and noted that the film was professional grade Fujichrome. The fellow I spoke with told me ...... "Fujichrome processes the very same as Ektachrome."

Does that sound right to you? Almost every slide came back quite darkish and with a noticeable red tinge to it.

It seems to me if one buys and uses Professional grade Provia and Velvia Fujichrome that it shouldn't be processed as Ektachrome. Or am I missing something here????????

Appreciate any thoughts.

 

[Alex_B]

Well Velvia and Provia need E-6 (reverse) processing. That is pretty much the same with most colour slide films.

The pro (and the pricing) stems from the ultra fine grain, and the rather specialised properties.

Velvia is a high contrast and high saturation film, so it is not always easy to expose properly when out in the field. You easily lose detail in the shadows and blow out the skies/highlights ... as a pro film it needs pro exposure. With the right exposure it can produce stunning images though.

Another possibility might be that it was correctly exposed, but your film was maybe too old? got too much heat? They are rather sensitive to such things ...

I am pretty happy with Velvia, although I fail exposure more often that with cheaper film.