Alright folks, here's part 1 of who knows how many blogposts about shooting film. These are basically a collective brain dump that have accumulated in my head over the course of the past few years of working with the medium. The vast majority of these posts are adopted from some info I recently put together for a brand new Facebook group geared specifically towards Washington, DC Film Shooters, but some of the info is pretty generic and should apply to film shooters located throughout the world.
The thoughts, words & opinions that make up this series are of my own and should not at all be considered gospel. They are simply my general thoughts on a number of aspects of the film photography work flow, and should be looked at as a guide for avid film photographers as well as digital photographers that are looking into trying film for the first time. (It doesn't hurt, trust me!)
The first installment of what might become many will be some general thoughts about the primary film stocks offered by what I will call The Big Three film manufacturers today; Kodak, Ilford & FujiFilm, plus some additional info about Lomography and Instant Films.
I have a considerable amount of experience with Kodak and FujiFilm stocks, with a taste of Ilford too, so some of these thoughts are coming from personal experience. The rest is from the endless study and review of various films and their behavioral qualities. This list will only try to capture what is sold brand new, today from the big three and will not be a collection of every single expired/discontinued film known to mankind. That is a task for someone else.
A quick tip before putting the spaghetti in the machine: FLICKR GROUPS are your friend when trying to research the characteristics of a film type. There is a Flickr Group for nearly every single film stock out there plus a number of fantastic groups for the general practice of shooting film. Links to these various groups will be peppered throughout this rambling blogpost. Most film stocks will have a link to a great corresponding Flickr group. Featured images will most likely be mine, unless otherwise noted. Enough of the pitter patter though, let's get started!
Film Types - they're like Pokemons; you gotta shoot 'em all. Below are some quick tips and descriptions of the most popular film types available today. (Again; the amount of expired/discontinued/old & cool selections of film are seemingly endless and this list is just a quick reference for the most readily available. If you happen upon something cool but don't know how to shoot/process it, a quick google search should help)
There are three main film types readily available today: C41 Color Negative, True B&W, and E6 transparency slide film.
Most film types can be found in three primary sizes: 135 (aka 35mm film), 120 Medium Format & Large Format (4x5 INCH negative or larger; think Ansel Adams big cameras)
Kodak, Fuji, & Ilford are considered (by me) to be the big three remaining bulk providers of standard film stocks and their associated sizes.
Kodak (USA! USA! USA!) (now known as Kodak Alaris) has recovered from bankruptcy and is now controlled by a British pension fund investment group (so UK! UK! UK!), but it has promised that the production and sales of film and associated development chemicals are still a major portion of the company's long term business plan. So Kodak Alaris plans on producing film for a number of years. Unfortunately, a majority of Kodak's film types have been killed off for a (understandably) more streamlined product line. They no longer produce transparency slide film, but do offer a number of professional and consumer grade C41 Color Negative and True Black and White films, as well as development chemicals.
Kodak Color:
Portra160, Portra400 and Portra800
Their "new" professional line of portrait and general use C41 color negative film that is available in 135, 120 and Large Format varieties.
 |
| Portra400, Leon Nicaragua |
 |
| Portra400, Ponaloya Nicaragua |
Kodaks most saturated & nearly grainless C41 color negative film that is most geared towards vivid landscapes, products & travel. Some say Ektar's vibrancy can be harsh on skin tones, but some users are producing great portraits with this film. So read up and experiment. Available in 135, 120 & Large Format sizes.
 |
| Ektar100 |
Kodak still makes it's ubiquitous consumer grade Kodak Gold200 speed 135 film. It's tough to find but can produce great results with relative ease. It's not available in 120 or larger sizes, to the best of my knowledge.
 |
| Kodak Gold200, Washington DC |
A 400 speed version of KodakGold. A super cheap well-rounder that can also produce great results if you are working with a lot of light. It is usually rebranded as "CVS Color" or whatever other pharmacy you are in, and can be had for as cheap as a dollar a roll.
 |
| Ultramax400 |
 |
| Ultramax400 |
 |
| Ultramax400 |
Kodak B&W
Tri-X 400 (400TX)
The behemoth. King Kong. The only film that matter(ed). Kodak's classic Black and White film that photojournalists used to document the middle decades of the 20th century. Still available in 135, 120 & Large Format sizes
 |
| Kodak Tri-X 400TX |
 |
| Kodak Tri-X 400TX |
 |
| Kodak Tri-X 400TX |
 |
| Dan Mills, Singer/Songwriter Extraordinaire; 400TX |
TMAX100 & TMAX400
An alternative line of true B&W Kodak films that offer fine grain, vast exposure latitudes and sharp results.
 |
| Kodak TMAX400 |
FujiFilm mounted a considerable challenge to Kodak's reign over color film throughout the 80's, 90's, and 2000s and is still producing a number of color, b&w and slide films today. They are known for their incredible line of E-6 Color Slide film, and FujiChrome Velvia is an institution in the world of color slide photography. Caution, though; FujiFilm is going through the "right-sizing" of its product line that Kodak went through in the 2000s and is canceling film stocks by the year, so tread cautiously. Your favorite type of FujiFilm could disappear at any minute. They have even admitted as a company that film is dead to them but they will probably settle on 3-4 pro grade films for the near longterm, much like Kodak's current business model.
FujiFilm Color Negative Films
Pro160NS
Beautiful, saturated color film primarily suited for portraits. Available in 120 and Large Formats, no 135
Pro400N
Fuji's do-it-all professional grade color negative film, available in 135 & 120 sizes, no Large Formats
Superia200
Vibrant consumer grade daylight film, great for casual shooting. Sometimes rebranded as CVS/Walgreens pharmacy specials. Super cheap and super good value. Only available in 135
Superia X-Tra400
Fuji's answer to Ultramax and a fantastic choice for almost any well lit scenario.
 |
| FujiFilm Superia Xtra400 |
 |
| FujiFilm Superia Xtra400 |
Superia X-tra800 & 1600
Faster variances of the more ubiquitous 400 speed Superia. It's great that Fuji still produces 800 and 1600 consumer grade color negative films. Only available in 135 sizes, no 120 or Large Format
FujiChrome Transparency Slide Films
FujiChrome Velvia50
This stock is the only reason Fuji is still in the business of making film. The best color film I have ever used, period. Available in 135, 120 and Large Format sizes. Every human (photographer or not) should shoot at least one roll of Velvia at some point in their life.
 |
| FujiChrome Velvia50 |
 |
| FujiChrome Velvia50 |
 |
| FujiChrome Velvia50 |
 |
| FujiChrome Velvia50 |
A 100 speed version of their venerable Velvia50, but not nearly as saturated and over the top whacky as its slower, 50 speed counterpart. Available in 135, 120 and Large Formats.
 |
| FujiChrome Velvia100 |
Provia is a "new" line of color transparency slide films that Fuji introduced for the age of digital scanning. It is designed with digital conversion in mind and is a good for extreme saturation when scanning to digital files. Available in 135, 120 and Large Format sizes.
FujiChrome Provia400X
A rare high speed color transparency film available in 135 and 120 sizes.
FujiFilm True Black and White
Neopan100 Acros might be the only remaining FujiFilm true B&W film still in production. Listed on B&H in 135, 120 & 4x5" Large Format sizes.
Ilford Photo
Ilford is a UK based company that specializes in B&W film, chemicals, & paper. Everyone talks Kodak Tri-X when it comes to black and white film, but no one would still be shooting or printing B&W if it wasn't for Ilford's commitment to every aspect of B&W film photography. They currently produce & sell ten (10!) different lines of B&W films, so there is something on offer for every taste, project, concept, or preference, plus a full line of developers, fixers, darkroom equipment and papers.
PanFPlus - 50 speed film available in 135 & 120 sizes
FP4 Plus - 125 speed film available in 135, 120 and Large Formats
HP5 Plus - 400 speed film available in 135, 120 and Large Formats
Delta 100, 400 & 3200 speed films are Ilford's lineup of professional B&W films, available in 135 & 120 sizes, Large Format sheets available in Delta100 only.
 |
| Ilford Delta100 |
 |
| Ilford Delta100 |
 |
| Ilford Delta400 |
SFX200 - a B&W film with extended red sensitivity, so it is probably super contrasty and interesting. Available in 135 & 120 sizes
FPC Process Controlled film is pre-exposed out of the factory so you can check the status of your development chemicals.
OrthoCopyPlus - a fine grain Large Format sheet film for copy work and reproduction
Lomography Film is arguably one of the main catalysts for the recent resurgence of the amateur film photography market. The Lomography scene and shooting style generated considerable interest in film for a large number of photographers that started in digital, and they preach the realm of plastic cameras, alternative (cross) processing techniques for shooting and developing film color films, and sell a variety of rebranded films at a considerable markup.
Instant Films
The instant film market is controlled by two major players; FujiFilm Instax and The Impossible Project. Fuji produces a great line of (funny looking) but impressive instant cameras and instant film, and have created a niche market of instant film enthusiasts of their own. The Impossible Project bought one of Polaroids European Production Labs a number of years ago and is reviving Polaroid style instant film for old Polaroid cameras. Their efforts and mission are to be commended, and their products are slowly getting better. They recently launched the Version2.0 of their main product line and it is supposed to be quite impressive.