French film brand Film Washi’s latest experimental film stock is a first for the French film brand – it’s made from industrial film used for printed circuit boards.
Called E, the film – which was launched in France in time for the Bievres International Photo Fair in early June – is for 120-format cameras and has an ISO of 3.
Film Washi’s founder Lomig Perrotin told Kosmo Foto: “This come from the electronic industry as it is used to create Photomask that is used in Photolitography process to create a printed circuit board.
“For this industrial process, this film is optimised to be exposed with red laser light so it is of course red sensitive; as there was no use for green light for this process, they simply do not add the green sensitiser into the film emulsion, making it green-blind. It is also of course still blue sensitive as this is the basic colour sensitivity of all black-and- white emulsions.”
Perrotin said the film has to have high contrast and low grain because in its original application it needs to create very clear pattern of the circuit design.
“It can be processed the same way as B&W printing paper, with of course green safe light instead of red or total darkness,” Perrotin said. “I was very interested to hack this kind of film because I was curious about this green blindness as it could help create odd pictures and landscape.”
He added: “Being available only in large and thick 180-micron polyester sheet, I can cut it in sheet-film and also 120 format, but not 135 as it is impossible to perforate properly.”
The film is available to order now from selected stockists, and costs around €7.50 per roll.
Perrotin said: “Fun fact: when I requested test samples from the factory which produces it, their technical department warned that I will ‘never get images with such a special film’. Obviously, they were wrong!”
Perrotin also said the film was a good choice for photographers using devices like the Street Box Camera, which normally shoots photo paper rated at ISO 3. “This is very convenient as it does not change their workflow, while in the same time they get a true transparent negative that can be enlarged. Also, being red-sensitive, it is a better choice than B&W printing paper for taking portraits (better flesh tones).”
You can see more images taken on the film below, provided by Film Washi:
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
