October 2025 has brought a series of unexpected developments, including the launch of the new Kodacolor line and Lomography's first autofocus point-and-shoot camera. In this newsletter, I will share my experience comparing various Kodak films and the subtle differences I discovered between them. This insight could prove valuable considering the surge of new color films arriving this year! Additionally, in honor of Halloween and to celebrate the three new film cameras released this month, I will discuss homemade cameras and my own creation using a rather spooky pumpkin. š In this newsletter: Free film, accurate film comparisons, and DIY cameras. Support this blog and enjoy premium features with GOLD memberships! On the left: a DIY gingerbread camera featuring a sugar lens āself-portraitā taken on Instax Square via a mirror. On the right: a homemade pinhole camera inside a pumpkin, capturing a āself-portraitā on redscaled Harman Phoenix through a mirror.
Free film. If you haven't subscribed to GOLD yet, hereās a little motivation: Iāve been giving away 3-packs to random winners each month ā and you could be next! To participate, simply subscribe and await the announcement on the last Tuesday of every month. Currently, you have three chances to win, with the last drawing set for December 2025. Details.
Making accurate film comparisons. I have yet to encounter film packaging that truly reflects its contents. Even marketing materials and samples can be misleading, as seasoned photographers know that different development, scanning, and editing methods can greatly alter results.
In fact, many film comparisons found online are somewhat biased due to a lack of control over lighting, development, scanning equipment and software, suitable color balance adjustments, and several other factors. Errors in these areas have caused some individuals to identify and share nonexistent differences between identical films.
As a consequence, some people waste both time and money. When Kodak announced its Kodacolor 200 film earlier this month, some retailers priced it significantly higher and many quickly ran out of stock. While the packaging may seem worth the cost and wait for some, the Kodak Kodacolor 200 is, in fact, identical to Kodak ColorPlus, as revealed by my findings and the identifying features on the film itself! Kodakās three ISO 200 color films include ColorPlus, Kodacolor 200, and Gold.
October 2025 has been full of surprises: from a new film release by Kodak to Lomography's inaugural autofocus point-and-shoot camera. In this newsletter, I will share how I compared various Kodak films and discovered the subtle differences among them.