Tried and Tested Thursday: Image Pro Perfect – Canon Z135 with Kodak Pro Image (Expired and Pushed to 200)

For today’s Tried and Tested Thursday, I will be talking about shooting Kodak Pro Image (expired and pushed) on Canon Z135.

Pushing film has become a favourite of mine recently, since it has a few advantages. From a post not too long ago, I had pushed a roll of Ilford FP4 a stop higher on my Olympus XA2, on my trip to Butlins/Bognor Regis, plus Arundel. Today’s post is from the same trip, but this time in colour on another film and camera. I had brought along four rolls of Kodak Pro Image, which all expired in May 2020, which were all shot exactly a year later (and originally bought around a year prior in 2019). The film was pushed from its 100 speed to 200 when developing.

Shingles Scene: Bognor Regis is full of rocks, and I don’t mean the candy rock

Kodak Pro Image was a Film Friday earlier this year, expired from January 2020. Unlike the Pro Image used while in Butlins, I had purchased the Film Friday five pack film when it already expired.

The camera used was a Canon Z135, a simple Point and Shoot. I didn’t use it for a while, and I wanted to bring a lightweight camera to carry around, especially for long walks. Great for simple functions and settings, as well as ideal for quick snaps. Sadly, the Canon Z135 doesn’t have a setting to change the ISO, hence why the film had to be pushed when processed.

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A Source of Natural Light: Arundel Castle may have had its moments with light sources, the natural light available came from the stained glass windows. Some snaps were a little shaky though

Once all four rolls were developed, I scanned them on my Epson V550 at home. I was anticipating the results. So my thoughts?

Interesting, very interesting. The quality from the scans weren’t always consistent with the outcome varying, in particular the colour shift.

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Snaps Apart: Notice the change in colour? No editing, no Photoshop – the film colour quality changed in a space of a couple frames. Shot on the same day

I think that I played it safe to have all four Pro Image rolls pushed to 200. 400 would have been better, probably for low light shots or night photography.

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Bognor Blues: Shot frames apart on the same day, the colour quality isn’t the same; two shades of blue, one washed out and another a gradient in the sky

The beach shots stood out for me the most, although after a time, it did get repetitive shooting them everyday. It was fascinating to see the colour quality differ in each shot from the beach – the blues and beiges weren’t consistent; colours shifting in various contrasts and tones. These are negative scans of course, however the quality might be different when printed in the darkroom, all thanks to manual settings and controls.

All Seagulls in a Row in Bognor Regis

The local funfair shots did surprise me the most. As someone who wouldn’t dare to shoot with a film below 400 ISO for night photography (100 speed for the odd occasion), I was impressed with the outcome, mainly the LED lights from the rides. No flash was used as it was late evening, there were surrounding light sources at the funfair, mostly artificial lighting. Fortunately, there was hardly any camera shake when taking the photos.

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Fun Faired Well: Considering its speed, the shots came out the way I wanted. It feels warmer, even with the LED lights

I have been shooting with expired film for a few years, at times you don’t know what to expect after processing. It can either come out good or bad; in the rare instance, almost blank negatives which have happened to me before… In this case, the expired Pro Image came out better than expected and I am satisfied overall.

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Fine in Felpham: The quieter side of Bognor Regis, I highly recommend to anyone who are seeking for peace and calm

I have two Pro Image rolls left, both expired from last year in January. I do hope to shoot them at some point in the near future, maybe on another Point and Shoot like the Canon Z135.

Take care and stay safe