Blue has always been my favorite color, but not when it shows up in my 35mm film scans. The appearance of a dominant blue hue can wreak havoc on pictures. That said, I was curious to see what would result if I shot a roll of CineStill 800T in broad daylight with my Yashica T5. Given that CineStill 800T is a color-balanced tungsten negative film, and my Yashica T5 is a simple point-and-shoot camera that doesn’t accommodate filters of any kind, I had no idea what the pictures would end up looking like. Would the bright sunlight be too difficult to balance out properly? Would the pictures end up awash in blue and therefore be rendered worthless? There was only one way to find out.
I loaded a fresh roll of CineStill 800T into my Yashica T5 and hit the streets on a bright sunny day in Southern California. I took pictures of anything and everything that seemed interesting, and that would present me with nice-looking images. These included storefronts, classic automobiles, vintage signs, and old buildings. I made a point of shooting with as much daylight as possible and, as a result, my Yashica T5’s flash never fired. As the late afternoon shadows started to appear, I had already shot two rolls of CineStill 800T. I put both rolls into my camera bag and called it a day.
The film lab I use specializes in C-41 processing and has high quality Noritsu scanners, so I was really looking forward to seeing my pictures. When I did, I was pleasantly surprised. Thanks to the work of the film lab technician who corrected color balance and density during the scanning process, I was pleased to see vivid colors, sharp contrast, and the fine grain that CineStill film is known for. There is only a slight blue tone on several pictures, and it looks really good.
In summary, I know that Cinestill 800T is ideal for low-light situations like indoor shooting, nighttime shooting, or under warm tungsten lighting, but given the right process, it is also great for the outdoors. Street scenes look fantastic, and the occasional red or orange halation might appear when shooting with strong backlight. I am a fan of 1970s motion pictures and television shows, so this greatly boosts my appreciation for CineStill 800T film.
I hope you enjoyed this article and the images.
You can see more of my film photography work on my website.
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Gordie on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
Comment posted: 01/06/2019
Kurt Ingham on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
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Peter on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
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Kate on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
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hateful critic on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
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Martin Hugh Henley on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
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Clive W on 5 Frames With CineStill 800T and a Yashica T5 taken in Broad Daylight – By Kevan Wilkinson
Comment posted: 21/02/2020
But the frame I like best of the five is the one of the ‘Warwicks...’ (why the dots?) sign. The blue-shifted colours go with the dated script to evoke the era of independent stores that were once fixtures of our towns and are now almost gone. It’s more poignant on Cinestill than it would have been on, say, Ektar.