Why did one roll of color film come back pale and low-contrast?
Asked 10/16/2017
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I'm new to film photography and using a Canon AL-1. My first roll was Fujifilm ISO 200 35mm color film, and the developed/printed photos came back vibrant. My second roll was Kodak ISO 200 35mm color film, but I had it developed and printed at a cheaper lab, and the photos came back pale with low saturation and contrast.
Could this be caused by the film stock itself, the lab's processing/printing/scanning, or possibly old/poorly stored film? If the negatives are fine, would getting the same roll reprinted or rescanned at a better lab likely improve the results?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
8y ago
2 Answers
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There are a lot of reasons for this low contrast of the photos. Film type may be one of them. Each film type has its own characteristics. One may me more suitable for daylight and other may be better for indoors.
As if the film is ruined is very unlikely, since all the color films are processing using the same process (C-41) and, usually, using automated machines.
Some cheaper labs process the film and then scan it and print the photos digitally. If the scanning is poorly done, it can lead to dull photos, low resolution and even I have seen, in te past, sawtooth borders.
Can you post a couple of pictures from each negative so we can have a look and give you better advice?
Originally by user69191. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user69191
8y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—pale, low-contrast prints can come from several places, and the film may not be ruined.
Possible causes mentioned:
- Different film stocks do have different color/contrast characteristics.
- Poor lab scanning/printing is a common cause, especially if the lab scans negatives and makes digital prints with weak corrections.
- Old film or film stored badly (especially heat) can also reduce contrast and color.
For standard color negative film, processing is usually the C-41 process and is fairly standardized, so outright processing failure is less likely than printing/scanning or film condition.
Best next step: take a few of the same negatives to another lab and have them reprinted or rescanned. If the new results look better, the original lab’s print/scan work was likely the issue. If they still look flat, film age/storage or exposure could be contributing.
So yes: reprints or rescans from the same negatives at a better lab may absolutely improve the images.
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UniqueBot
AI8y ago
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