Film Review Blog No. 83 – Film Washi Type “I”

This month, we're sticking to an X-Ray theme with a new film stock from Film Washi. While I use the term 'new' only to indicate that it is a newly available stock through Film Washi. I found this film through the Film Photography Project Store through their email newsletter and was drawn to the fact it was available in 120 formats, so I jumped at the chance. The film stock was initially used for industrial non-destructive tests like welding quality checks. Being coated on each side of its thick blue polyester base and without an anti-halation layer will give the pictures a unique look. And after seeing the exciting results I got from last month's review of Washi F, I was looking forward to seeing something different.

Film Specs
Type: Orthochromatic X-Ray Film, B&W
Film Base: Blue Polyester, 175 μm
Film Speed: ASA-80
Formats Available: 120

Roll 01 - Ilford ID-11
The original Washi datasheets called for a development time of 4.5 minutes at a 1+1 dilution. This time and dilution struck me as odd for two reasons. The first reason is that the rule of thumb for development is that you need times above five minutes for consistent results, and the second is that short of a development time for a dilute mix doesn't add up. So I went with the HP5+ time of thirteen minutes. And I'm glad I did, although I wish I had bumped it a little more to say 14.5 minutes. I will assume that the datasheet is a misprint missing the 1. Thankfully in scanning, I recovered some of the images with a bit of heavy editing. I'm reasonably happy with the results, the grain is a little more noticeable than I expected, but the photos are clean, sharp, and have high contrast. I can see that ID-11/D-76 is an excellent choice for Washi I. Only make sure to meter for your shadows and give it that 14.5 minute time in the 1+1 dilution.

Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 13:00 @ 20C

Roll 02 - Ilford Ilfotec HC
I stuck with my goto Ilfortec HC times for HP5+ for this time around, running with thirteen minutes at a 1+63 dilution. There was undoubtedly an improvement in my negatives, especially those where there wasn't much difference between the shadows and highlights. Going with the longer development time and a more dilute developer certainly helped along the way, and I think some extra time in the tank might have helped. The grain and sharpness are improved with Ilfotec HC; I believe the lower dilution helped also tame the contrast slightly. At this point, I think that Washi I has a limited latitude and given its original use, I'm not surprised, X-Ray film is designed to do one thing under tightly controlled conditions.

Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 13:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 13:00 @ 20C

Roll 03 - Adox Rodinal
Having seen poor results in the previous two negatives, I decided to change a couple of things this time around. Thankfully despite being incredibly cold the day I was out, the sun was bright direct and starting to pop up over the horizon. First of all, I pulled my trusty Pentax Spotmeter V out to handle the metering. I tried as best to run average metering, taking a reading from the highlights and then again from the shadows; most of the time, I had a nice, even five-stop difference. Still, I favoured my shadows being perfectly okay with sacrificing my highlights when I didn't. Secondly, I upped my development time, going with the HP5+ times for Rodinal at a 1+50 dilution. And the negatives looked much better, still not where I want them but certainly better. Sadly when scanning, the troubles came back, the images still seemed a little undercooked, and I'm still dealing with extreme contrast. Although the quality I do see is a sharp, fine-grained image with high contrast. And thankfully, all without any real increase in visible grain.

Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 12:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 12:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 12:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 12:00 @ 20C

Roll 04 - Ilford Ilfotec LC29
It was time to put everything together, it only took three rolls, but I think I have this film nailed. I again took out my Pentax Spotmeter V to handle the metering running averages between the shadows and highlights. Next, I went with the listed LC29 development times and upped the time by a minute and a half. And it worked. Finally, the negatives came out cleaner. However, we're not escaping that contrast. It's still there, and while certainly better and a much clearer picture of the film's actual contrast, it's high. However, you get a better idea of the film's orthochromatic nature; it seems to not see blue, again right in light with most other x-ray films. When you get past the moulting on the film, thanks to the backing paper and packaging. In LC29, you have no grain and sharp results.

Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec LC29 (1+19) 8:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec LC29 (1+19) 8:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec LC29 (1+19) 8:00 @ 20CMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 35mm 1:3.5 N - Film Washi Type I @ ASA-80 - Ilford Ilfotec LC29 (1+19) 8:00 @ 20C

Final Thoughts
The Washi datasheets say that this film has a thick base; that is an understatement. The first roll I loaded onto the reel in the dark felt like cardstock, a departure for other Washi films. This film is easy to work within the dark bag and loads onto Paterson reels without any fighting. My Mamiya m645 handled the film well, although it struggled near the end of the roll, and the rolls seemed to be a bit fat after being wound up but didn't spill past the reel. Either way, I scotch-taped down the end tongue and put the film back in the container. And thankfully ended up without any light leaks or fogging. My one suggestion is that you need to watch which camera you load this into, the Mamiya, Pentax, and Hasselblads would handle the film well, but a box camera or even a TLR might struggle a bit with such a thick film base. If there's one thing that I finally figured out by the fourth roll, add 1.5 minutes to HP5+ times, have good accurate metering, and you'll get results each time. I've reviewed some trying films, and I can now add Washi I among those films. You'd have better luck working with Washi F and getting consistent results than Washi I, and I am glad to be done with the film.

Further Reading
Don't just take my word on Film Washi Type "I"; you can check out the reviews by other excellent reviewers!
No Other Reviews Found.

RETO UltraWide & Slim – A First Look

In the 1990s, a particular bread of camera was cheaply made, often in mass quantities and questionable quality. While many have been passed off these days as cheap and trash cameras, some achieved a bit of a cult following. One such camera was the Vivitar Ultra-Wide & Slim (VUWS). Vivitar never made the camera itself; instead, it was marketed and sold under the name. And actually, I don't think Vivitar ever made anything of their own. What set the UWS apart from the other contemporary trashcams of the 1990s; it featured a simple 22mm f/11 ultra-wide lens, something that most well made point-and-shoot and toy cameras of the day didn't have. Ultimately, production of the UWS ended. It was picked up by another firm, Superheadz, who produced a sub-standard (even compared to the original) copy but added multiple colours to the camera. But earlier this year, the company RETO began production, a far more faithful reproduction of the Ultra-Wide & Slim. I managed to get my hands on a charcoal coloured copy, and here are my initial impressions of the camera.

I've had a chance to shoot a single roll through the original VUWS, and I can honestly say I must have had a terrible copy because I never got a good shot out of the camera. At least by my standards of that day, I probably had some unrealistic camera expectations. But the camera itself described in a single word is cheap. And I don't mean that inexpensively. It felt cheap, light, brittle, and of poor build quality. I mean, it makes the Holga look like a well-made machine. Of course, now I have a better idea of what to expect from cameras like the VUWS, and the RUWS certainly holds to the original. The box arrived in felt far too light to have the camera, and I think the packaging and packing materials weighed more. The RETO copy felt the same way, cheap, poor quality, and could break if you looked at it incorrectly. So in every word, exactly like the original. It's almost as if RETO got their hands on the original moulds and put them back into production. The one thing that sets the RETO apart is the multiple colours but lacks the terrible coating that Superheadz applied to their copies, which got grimy and degrading overuse.

RETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20C

It also seems that the RUWS also fixed the issue that if you shot a 36-Exposure cartridge, it would start to jam up past frame twenty-four; while I didn't shoot the roll to the end, I did get to frame thirty without any trouble. Overall the camera is as simple as possible; there's no meter, and everything is fixed and tiny. You will have to watch out that your fingers don't get in the way of the lens. Pick your film based on the lighting conditions and ones with a decent level of forgiveness, noting that the shutter speed is approximately 1/125″ and the lens has an aperture of f/11. Given that the lens is 22mm, you can have almost everything focused on that much depth of field. While there is a viewfinder, it is there primarily to give you an idea of composition, but most of the time, I ended up shooting straight from the hip. Overall the quality of the lens is surprisingly sharp throughout most of the frame, especially in the middle. But then a lovely fall-off towards the edges and a touch of vignetting in the corners. It certainly has character.

RETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20C

While the RUWS isn't a camera for those who like control and high-quality images, I'm sure many will say don't waste film through this piece of garbage. I'll respond that the camera is fun, a nice departure from my high-quality total control cameras. While it won't be a daily carry for me, it might show up at a photo walk and would be a good thing for world toy camera day or Lomography day. Plus, it's different and doesn't take up extra room. My full video review of the RUWS is due at the end of this year, with the written review scheduled for January 2023!

Film Review Blog No. 82 – Film Washi Type “F”

When it comes to Film Washi, they certainly have gotten their hands on some interesting film stocks. And after enjoying some of their products last year, one of their products I've wanted to try. But with any repurposed film stock, you have to wait for the raw materials to become available. Thankfully after watching out on the Film Photography Project's store I saw them come back in stock thanks to their email newsletter. Type "F" is a special X-Ray film used for mass lung disease diagnoses; according to the Film Washi website, it is truly a unique film that offers, coated without an anti-halation layer, a high diffusion effect beautiful grain.

Film Specs
Type: Orthochromatic X-Ray Film, B&W
Film Base: Polyester, 100 μm
Film Speed: ASA-100
Formats Available: 135 (35mm)

Roll 01 - Ilford ID-11
I didn't know what to expect from these negatives; they looked decent, a bit dense, but nothing too terrible out of the tank. Silverfast, however, made the initial pre-scan look overcooked. Thankfully once I got the frames set up, things started to look better. There is undoubtedly an ethereal quality to these images, a soft fuzziness around the edges. Almost as if you're looking through the world with dirty glasses. You do lose your highlights but get excellent shadow details. Probably the one thing that caught my attention is how grainy the film is, not that I'm complaining; we are talking cut down x-ray film here, so a bit of grain is to be expected. But the images have an excellent sharpness about them, which only adds to the film's overall feel. And for a first roll, I think I'm going to enjoy the film moving forward.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20C

Roll 02 - Ilford Ilfotec HC
After seeing the results, I got with the first roll. I decided to play off my strength and see if I could push the film towards that same ethereal look. Rather than go with the dilution and time on the Washi datasheets, which called for 4.5 minutes in a dilution of 1+15 (Dilution A). I felt that the time was too short and the dilution too strong. Thankfully, Washi tells you an alternative source for times, so I went with a sixteen minute time in 1+63 (Dilution H). Although the film probably would have done better in either the 1+15 or 1+31 dilutions, it would have bumped up the contrast. I am, however, happy with the results I got; you got that same ethereal glow about the images and a certain drop in the visibility of the grain; I did have to dial things back in editing, so maybe drop the development time to fifteen minutes or go with a more substantial dilution.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20C

Roll 03 - Adox Rodinal
I'll admit I was torn when picking a development using Rodinal. On the one hand, I knew that I would get some increased amount of grain no matter which dilution I went, but I wanted to see a bit more contrast from Washi F. In the end, I went with a tried and listed time, going with a 1+25 dilution for nine minutes. After pulling them from the tank, the negatives looked like the rest, which is a good sign. They are a bit overcooked; thankfully, a bit of work in post-processing did drag a bit of detail back out of those highlights. Some of the times are a little off on the datasheet, and I would go with at least one minute less on all listed times.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20C

Roll 04 - Flic Film Black/White & Green
The joy of running these films sequentially is that I can make adjustments as I go along with developing the rolls. In the case of this last roll, I took my advice and went with one minute left on development. Here I went for the FP4+ times again and used the Flic Film Black/White & Green, which is liquid Xtol, hoping it might tame the film. Sadly it did not, and despite shooting under wildly different lighting conditions, the film came out of the tank looking like every other roll. In fact, despite being developed by four different developers, everything looked the same. There's the same ethereal look to the images, loss of highlights, tonnes of grain and sharpness.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20C

Final Thoughts
Washi F is not for the faint of heart; it's a film that has specific tolerances and has very little in the way of forgiveness when outside those tolerances. And that isn't surprising for me, it is a film with a single purpose, and here I am taking it well outside that purpose. An X-Ray camera does one thing well and does it the same every time. On that side, if you're into this look, then Washi F will give you a fun film to experiment with ethereal portraits and landscapes and certainly makes you embrace the grain. And no matter what you develop the film in, it will look the same. The one thing I did note with his film is how difficult the handle is. The first thing is that the base is thin, not super light like other Washi films, but thin enough to give my F5 some headaches when loading. The second is handling when loading onto plastic reels, the first roll through bound a little during the process. Thankfully, I kept the film rolling with a bit of luck and a touch of violence. The thin base did allow the film to dry flat, but it did tend to roll upon itself. It also tends to suffer from light piping, so keep the roll inside the canister until you're ready to use it and load in dim light. The canister recommends shooting six frames, but four seems to do the trick. If you're looking for Washi F, it can be challenging to obtain as Washi is a small company out of France, thankfully they have a long reach, you can find a complete list of retail partners over on the Film Washi site.

Further Reading
Don't just take my word on Film Washi Type "F", you can check out the reviews by other awesome reviewers!
Emulsive - 5 Frames with Film Washi Type F
Analogue Wonderland - Washi F Film Review
Filtr Film Cameras - Film Review - Washi F

Film Review Blog No. 82 – Film Washi Type “F”

When it comes to Film Washi, they certainly have gotten their hands on some interesting film stocks. And after enjoying some of their products last year, one of their products I've wanted to try. But with any repurposed film stock, you have to wait for the raw materials to become available. Thankfully after watching out on the Film Photography Project's store I saw them come back in stock thanks to their email newsletter. Type "F" is a special X-Ray film used for mass lung disease diagnoses; according to the Film Washi website, it is truly a unique film that offers, coated without an anti-halation layer, a high diffusion effect beautiful grain.

Film Specs
Type: Orthochromatic X-Ray Film, B&W
Film Base: Polyester, 100 μm
Film Speed: ASA-100
Formats Available: 135 (35mm)

Roll 01 - Ilford ID-11
I didn't know what to expect from these negatives; they looked decent, a bit dense, but nothing too terrible out of the tank. Silverfast, however, made the initial pre-scan look overcooked. Thankfully once I got the frames set up, things started to look better. There is undoubtedly an ethereal quality to these images, a soft fuzziness around the edges. Almost as if you're looking through the world with dirty glasses. You do lose your highlights but get excellent shadow details. Probably the one thing that caught my attention is how grainy the film is, not that I'm complaining; we are talking cut down x-ray film here, so a bit of grain is to be expected. But the images have an excellent sharpness about them, which only adds to the film's overall feel. And for a first roll, I think I'm going to enjoy the film moving forward.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford ID-11 (1+1) 11:00 @ 20C

Roll 02 - Ilford Ilfotec HC
After seeing the results, I got with the first roll. I decided to play off my strength and see if I could push the film towards that same ethereal look. Rather than go with the dilution and time on the Washi datasheets, which called for 4.5 minutes in a dilution of 1+15 (Dilution A). I felt that the time was too short and the dilution too strong. Thankfully, Washi tells you an alternative source for times, so I went with a sixteen minute time in 1+63 (Dilution H). Although the film probably would have done better in either the 1+15 or 1+31 dilutions, it would have bumped up the contrast. I am, however, happy with the results I got; you got that same ethereal glow about the images and a certain drop in the visibility of the grain; I did have to dial things back in editing, so maybe drop the development time to fifteen minutes or go with a more substantial dilution.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Ilford Ilfotec HC (1+63) 16:00 @ 20C

Roll 03 - Adox Rodinal
I'll admit I was torn when picking a development using Rodinal. On the one hand, I knew that I would get some increased amount of grain no matter which dilution I went, but I wanted to see a bit more contrast from Washi F. In the end, I went with a tried and listed time, going with a 1+25 dilution for nine minutes. After pulling them from the tank, the negatives looked like the rest, which is a good sign. They are a bit overcooked; thankfully, a bit of work in post-processing did drag a bit of detail back out of those highlights. Some of the times are a little off on the datasheet, and I would go with at least one minute less on all listed times.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 15:00 @ 20C

Roll 04 - Flic Film Black/White & Green
The joy of running these films sequentially is that I can make adjustments as I go along with developing the rolls. In the case of this last roll, I took my advice and went with one minute left on development. Here I went for the FP4+ times again and used the Flic Film Black/White & Green, which is liquid Xtol, hoping it might tame the film. Sadly it did not, and despite shooting under wildly different lighting conditions, the film came out of the tank looking like every other roll. In fact, despite being developed by four different developers, everything looked the same. There's the same ethereal look to the images, loss of highlights, tonnes of grain and sharpness.

Nikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20CNikon F5 - AF Nikkor 35mm 1:2D - Film Washi Type F @ ASA-100 - Flic Film Black/White & Green (1+49) 11:45 @ 20C

Final Thoughts
Washi F is not for the faint of heart; it's a film that has specific tolerances and has very little in the way of forgiveness when outside those tolerances. And that isn't surprising for me, it is a film with a single purpose, and here I am taking it well outside that purpose. An X-Ray camera does one thing well and does it the same every time. On that side, if you're into this look, then Washi F will give you a fun film to experiment with ethereal portraits and landscapes and certainly makes you embrace the grain. And no matter what you develop the film in, it will look the same. The one thing I did note with his film is how difficult the handle is. The first thing is that the base is thin, not super light like other Washi films, but thin enough to give my F5 some headaches when loading. The second is handling when loading onto plastic reels, the first roll through bound a little during the process. Thankfully, I kept the film rolling with a bit of luck and a touch of violence. The thin base did allow the film to dry flat, but it did tend to roll upon itself. It also tends to suffer from light piping, so keep the roll inside the canister until you're ready to use it and load in dim light. The canister recommends shooting six frames, but four seems to do the trick. If you're looking for Washi F, it can be challenging to obtain as Washi is a small company out of France, thankfully they have a long reach, you can find a complete list of retail partners over on the Film Washi site.

Further Reading
Don't just take my word on Film Washi Type "F", you can check out the reviews by other awesome reviewers!
Emulsive - 5 Frames with Film Washi Type F
Analogue Wonderland - Washi F Film Review
Filtr Film Cameras - Film Review - Washi F

RETO UltraWide & Slim – A First Look

In the 1990s, there was a particular bread of cameras, cheaply made often in mass quantities and of questionable quality. While many have been passed off these days as cheap and trash cameras, some achieved a bit of a cult following. One such camera was the Vivitar Ultra-Wide & Slim (VUWS). Vivitar never made the camera itself; instead, it was marketed and sold under the name. And actually, I don't think Vivitar ever made anything of their own. What set the UWS apart from the other contemporary trashcams of the 1990s; it featured a simple 22mm f/11 ultra-wide lens, something that most well made point-and-shoot and toy cameras of the day didn't have. Ultimately, production of the UWS ended. It was picked up by another firm, Superheadz, who produced a sub-standard (even compared to the original) copy but added multiple colours to the camera. But earlier this year, the company RETO began production, a far more faithful copy of the Ultra-Wide & Slim. I managed to get my hands on a charcoal coloured copy, and here are my initial impressions of the camera.

I've had a chance to shoot a single roll through the original VUWS, and I can honestly say I must have had a terrible copy because I never got a good shot out of the camera. At least by my standards of that day, and I probably had some unrealistic camera expectations. But the camera itself described in a single word is cheap. And I don't mean that inexpensively. It felt cheap, light, brittle, and poor build quality. I mean, it makes the Holga look like a well-made machine. Of course, now I have a better idea of what to expect from cameras like the VUWS, and the RUWS certainly holds to the original. The box arrived in felt far too light to have the camera, and I think the packaging and packing materials weighed more. The RETO copy felt the same way, cheap, poor quality, and could break if you looked at it incorrectly. So in every word, exactly like the original. It's almost as if RETO got their hands on the original moulds and put them back into production. The one thing that sets the RETO apart is the multiple colours but lacks the terrible coating that Superheadz applied to their copies, which ended up getting grimy and degrading overuse.

RETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20C

It also seems that the RUWS also fixed the issue that if you shot a 36-Exposure cartridge, it would start to jam up past frame twenty-four; while I didn't shoot the roll to the end, I did get to frame thirty without any trouble. Overall the camera is as simple as you can get; there's no meter, everything is fixed and tiny. You will have to watch out that your fingers don't get in the way of the lens. Pick your film based on the lighting conditions and ones with a decent level of forgiveness, noting that the shutter speed is approximately 1/125″ and the lens has an aperture of f/11. Given that the lens is 22mm, you can have almost everything focused on that much depth of field. While there is a viewfinder, it is there mostly to give you an idea of composition, but most of the time, I ended up shooting straight from the hip. Overall the quality of the lens is surprisingly sharp throughout most of the frame, especially in the middle. But then a lovely fall-off towards the edges and a touch of vignetting in the corners. It certainly has character.

RETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20CRETO Ultra Wide & Slim - Ultrawide Lens F=22mm f:11 - Shanghai GP3 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 10:00 @ 20C

While the RUWS isn't a camera for those who like control and high-quality images, I'm sure many will say don't waste film through this piece of garbage. I'll respond with the camera is fun a nice departure from my high-quality total control cameras. While it won't be a daily carry for me, it might show up at a photo walk and would be a good thing for world toy camera day or Lomography day. Plus, it's different and doesn't take up extra room. My full video review of the RUWS is due at the end of this year, with the written review scheduled for January 2023!