Is CineStill's 400D Film Good?

Several weeks ago we stumbled upon this incredible location filled with antique cars.  I didn't have any film on me at the time, so we made a plan to go back with our cameras and film.  This felt like a great opportunity to test out CineStill's 400D film!

CineStill is a film company that takes motion picture film and re-packages it to be used in still photo cameras.  Motion picture film has a special coating that isn't needed for still photography.  The coating protects the film as it speeds through a cinema camera.  Most photo labs cannot process film with this coating, so CineStill sells their film without the coating.

The lack of this coating makes the film highly susceptible to halation which is when light spreads beyond its proper edges in a bright image.  Personally I love the look of this effect and think that it gives a retro feel to the images.  CineStill 400D seemed like the perfect film to capture some old cars on a bright day!

I love how the roll turned out and am glad that I tried this film.  The halation is especially noticeable on the lighter parts of the cars.  This effect isn't always desirable, but I think that it works well for this particular subject matter.  Since I shot the photos mid-afternoon on an extremely bright day, the halation is probably more pronounced than usual.

This film stock is significantly more expensive than your average Kodak roll of film.  I wouldn't use it as my every day film because of that, but if you are looking for an especially retro vibe I recommend giving it a try!