NEW COLOR FILM - Orwo Wolfen NC500 C41 color film FIRST LOOK

[@steven1000000000]

It's awesome that ORWO has launched a new colour film to go with Kodak's and Fuji's. It's great for the future. It seems to me to have a little of the bleach- bypass look. Almost like "Saving Private Ryan" - Low saturation, high contrast. Not that it's a bad thing. It's a cool look and will probably work for many people. Whether that's the look in other lighting conditions will have to be seen though. Fantasic to have more choices.

[@ribsy]

Def good for the future

[@Andr3]

i hope there will be this future, film it's limited quantity now

[@poniatowski3547]

very interesting - has a metropolis vibe to it. I think its good that its different though, Its nice to have choice.

[@ribsy]

It does. May be the same

[@MIKIZAZPIKI]

ORWO is a great film company for many years. Love to see that they are launching a new colour film too

[@ribsy]

Yea I’m rooting for them

[@IvarsDayLab]

Wow! I have heard that ORWO is working on some new film but I never knew that it will be a colored one! Awesome! I want to buy a couple of rolls to shoot. Looks like for now a preorder is closed/sold out and who knows when it will be opened again - Fingers crossed 😉 Thank you Ribsy for awesome news and review 👍

[@ribsy]

Yup. Hopefully more available soon

[@wblynch]

Neat. I’d be curious to see how the film does in reversal processing without the strong orange cast. Plus it would be interesting to see what effect ECN-2 would produce. It’s great to have new color films. It seems Ferraria has failed in their efforts. Kudos to ORWO

[@ribsy]

Ferrania? Yea … no clue what’s going on there

[@oliverlison]

Ferrania seems to be kind of back. I am still having some of their film on stock. Need to shoot it at some point.

[@wblynch]

@@oliverlison - their whole thing 5 or 6 years ago was they were going to revive color film. As far as I know the best they did was create a poor black and white stock and don’t seem to have moved beyond that.

[@Mayankgupta0809]

@@wblynch I remember seeing sth from them early this year (or 2021) about still planning to make colour slides, but idk

[@oliverlison]

@@wblynch creating a colour film is something only very few companies can do. To get a laminar flow going and applying 12 to 14 layers is very difficult. A offering n of a variety of different colour film consist of over 200 different chemicals. Black and white film is a lot easier to manufacture. Far less coatings and ingredients. Ferrania has had problems with a steady flow of production. I have used that film but I only recommend this film to be used on overcast days. The highlight will be burnt out easily in direct sun light. I love the contrast and sharpness.

[@brenshaw]

Great video review of this. I love the look of this film and how different it is from many of the standard choices available

[@ribsy]

It’s def very different. Look of it’s own

[@SplicesAndCelluloid]

Thanks for the awesome review! Glad to see more new color film, even if it's not a "typical" filmstock. Not a look I'd use for everything, but those prints look really great.

[@ribsy]

Yea agreed!

[@dahterrasse]

Awesome to see a new film stock! It's a unique look and definitely suits the vibe of the photos you shot

[@ribsy]

Yea I think it was leaning in the right direction

[@BillSmith1]

Thank you Ribsy for doing this review. I hope ORWO films will be more widely available in North America soon. I love their UN54 black and white film which I buy in 100' rolls.

[@ribsy]

Yup!

[@ReimannPembroke]

Great video man! I really like the grungy desaturated look of this film!

[@ribsy]

thanks! not my favorite look

[@0action847]

I'm loving the look of this film.

[@ribsy]

It’s not my favorite 😅

[@0action847]

@@ribsy your shots in the record store reminded me of the Dj Shadow Endtroducing album cover.

[@xwingfighter999]

What a fascinating stock. Those blues just POP! I can't wait to test it

[@ribsy]

yea i want to try more

[@BernardGarceau]

Looks incredible - excited to see more tests! And hopefully it’s back in stock soon!!

[@ribsy]

Good luck!

[@holasoyjuansm]

This is the first video of yours I’ve seen but I gotta say: great job! Perfect balance of accesible while also getting into the very technical aspects of photography that most photographers on KZbin just gloss over. Nice.

[@ribsy]

Thanks for watching

[@MichaelZieschang]

Yay, East German here, I've known ORWO since my childhood. I will try this of course.. Reminds me of Metropolis in some scenes.

[@ribsy]

Yup it does

[@sliepa]

New film, great! Looks a lot like Lomography Metropolis without so much green. I like it.

[@ribsy]

Yea def! Very similar

[@ManyNex]

This film really reminds me the Lomo Metropolis, I just got back from the lab a roll of that and the colours are muted with a good contrast as with this one, really like this look. Thank you for this video, really glad Orwo started producing a new colour film from scratch!

[@ribsy]

Yea this is def feeling like metropolis

[@user-ti9zc1xv2b]

That is because ORWO is the company that actually made that film for Lomo...

[@md3631363]

Awesome video sir. Those are some great looking photos from that film stock. :)

[@ribsy]

Thanks for watching!

[@wiankellerman8979]

Really good video!

[@ribsy]

Thanks for watching

[@rhineriversurf5594]

Can’t wait for mine!!

[@ribsy]

😀

[@chilecayenne]

Hi Ribsy!! Another great video and am excited about this new film!! I am to understand that motion picture film, this one like the Kodak Vision-3 films, are all designed to come out of development to be desaturated and a bit flat on PURPOSE. This is done, as I understand it, to allow for wider range of color grading in post. Much like how with digital video they shoot in log or full RAW, in order to be able to do a lot more grading in post. So, I believe that is why you see this film coming out the way it does straight out of development. Again, another great presentation and looking forward to getting my hands on it!!! CC

[@ribsy]

i agree with your statement about vision3, but i don't think it applies here. the colors are difficult to manipulate with this film

[@krishnansrinivasan830]

Awesome & Thanks :)

[@ribsy]

yup!

[@djnato10]

This film almost has that Lomo Metropolis look. Almost a desaturated color palette. I like this a lot, nice video.

[@ribsy]

Glad you like it

[@bratspinat]

i really like the look!

[@ribsy]

it isn't my favorite for $15

[@bratspinat]

@@ribsy ye true, the price is heavy :/

[@SiggyPony]

I think I have 5 rolls ordered. Can't wait :D

[@ribsy]

Enjoy

[@Lucho_Torsa]

Jason, from grainydays will really love this film stock.

[@ribsy]

interesting

[@erichartke4331]

I really dig the look!

[@ribsy]

Yea it’s interesting

[@BobOgden1]

It would be interesting to see a print from a digital scan compared to a print direct from film to see how the negative pro is handling the conversion

[@ribsy]

Word

[@moritzengel]

I really like the look. It somehow has a bleach bypass look.

[@ribsy]

It does!

[@BerndtOtto]

Thanks for introducing this film. Didn’t know about it. Wouldn’t be my favorite film for nature photography, but it could definitely shine in an urban environment. Certainly difficult to scan properly though. 🤔

[@ribsy]

Yea would be a good choice for some street

[@kilianhzh]

Late to the party, but whatever… The NC500 is a 400iso film, i think they only recently changed their data sheets and packing. From their homepage i would guess that this is actually intended for ECN2 „[…] whether it be ECN2 or C41 making your productions faster, reliable and greener!“. In the data sheet for the bulk roll they state that ecn2 gives a flatter picture

[@ViaOjo]

Went to order some as soon as it came out. I waited one hour. Got back to my computer and it was all sold out. Waiting for December.

[@ribsy]

let's see if they ever ship it

[@JacobCarlson]

Curious where you printed the photos. Looking forward to hearing more about it. I'd love to find a good place to learn and print close to home in Brooklyn

[@ribsy]

lots of different darkrooms in Brooklyn . i went to Photo-Lab NYC

[@very-ratti]

Exciting to see new emulsions! Especially with Fuji seemingly giving up. Don't want to sound greedy, but I wonder if we'll ever see a 120 variant.

[@ribsy]

Yea I dunno

[@chrisperceval193]

Perhaps the lack of the orange contrast reducing mask in the film is a part of the reason for the high contrast?

[@ribsy]

dunno - i don't like it

[@devroombagchus7460]

To my surprise, the shots resembled the unsaturated ones I took in the early 70’s with ORWO. The negatives had opposite colours. No orange film at all. Not a bad film, but simply a bit grayish blue. I shot my 2 rolls in England, so perhaps the images reflected reality much better than other brands. 😂

[@ribsy]

Interesting! I think they were def going for something retro

[@tlatosmd]

I do agree with your theory that this new ORWO film may struggle a bit with overcast situations, as the results on the official ORWO blog look more saturated in sunlight. When I first saw their link to your results, I first thought you'd gotten this first badge processed as ECN-2, as they're so different from the ones on the official blog.

[@ribsy]

Yea no one’s photos seem to match what is on their blog. It’s puzzling

[@enricodeharder4984]

At 2:51 i got completely distracted. Crate digging, Notorious BIG, Big Daddy Kane, KRS One,,,,,,,,,, Next time i'm in NYC i need to visit some record stores... Back on topic, looks like a great film. I would love to get my hands on some rolls.

[@ribsy]

haha yes. its a great record store

[@enricodeharder4984]

@@ribsyit’s not photography related. But i could use some record store tips for my next NYC visit.

[@JammiYork]

Yeah boyeeeee!

[@ribsy]

💪🏽

[@jhogan54321]

I'm being a bit cheeky sneaking in an off-topic question but I've been looking through your videos to see if you made specific mention about using a Canon lens pouch on the lens when you are scanning negatives. I saw it first in the video regarding the negative holders.... I haven't found anything so if you can point me in the right direction I'd be very grateful. BTW... love your content and above all, your presentation

[@ribsy]

no official video about it. but i basically just took a lens pouch and cut the bottom off it, creating a "bellows" of sorts. its fabric so i can use it for a few different lengths

[@jhogan54321]

@@ribsy thanks!

[@michaelsherck5099]

I have no idea whether it's meaningful or not but the two colors which seemed the strongest, blue and orange, are complimentary colors (opposite each other on the color wheel.) When you combine opposites while painting, it reduces saturation and darkens the color.

[@ribsy]

Interesting

[@hippo_hq]

Shouts to A1!!

[@ribsy]

What you mean

[@erichung9043]

Looks like a cross between Metropolis and Cinestill daylight. The former has rather coarse grain too. How 's the latitude? Can you overexpose?

[@ribsy]

i don't think it has good latitude. colors get washed out it seems

[@chumleyk]

It looks like the muted color grades that were popular in photography 5-10 years ago. I think it has a valid place as an original color film stock. They should just call themselves Agfa right? Maybe when they get their formulation and manufacturing consistency improved.

[@ribsy]

not sure. i really didn't like it

[@SinaFarhat]

nice! :)

[@ribsy]

🤟🏽

[@j.zuberi]

Really fux with this stock. Perfect for concrete jungles and street photography. Cant wait to cop some & try it.

[@ribsy]

Yea it has a certain look

[@hydrodynamica9233]

Interesting about the blues, the way film is layered (traditionally) the blue layer is the first layer at the top followed by the green and red. Obviously i'm not aware of how they are manufacturing specifically but perhaps the light hitting the blue layer first is absorbing some of the light from hitting the other color layers. Maybe this could be why the film base is slightly more transparent than traditionally? maybe they were having trouble with the amount of light exiting through the blue layer and hitting the green/red . Maybe i have absolutely no idea what i'm talking about 😂anyway looks cool i'll definitely buy a few rolls.

[@ribsy]

Thanks for the comment! I’ll experiment more

[@eric.ross.art1]

Looks very much like Lomo Metropolis. Anyone else agree?

[@ribsy]

That’s what everyone saying

[@jparsonsfilm]

Been looking forward to getting my roll in the mail soon. The colors are very reminiscent of the old AGFA films. Orwo isn't very clear in their website: is this a daylight balanced film? Lots of motion picture films were tungsten balanced, but performed *ok* without a filter.

[@ribsy]

Yea they aren’t super clear. I still haven’t gotten the rolls I purchased either

[@Kitsaplorax]

Cine film-so you get a color slide in C41? I'm confused, as ORWO said this would be an ECN2 cine film in an email to me. How can they have a tinted base and claim it is a slide/cine film? You'd have to remove it in a computer or with a filter. That doesn't sound like a cine film.

[@ribsy]

this is not an ecn2 film. it is intended to be processed in c41. this is also not a slide film, it is a color negative film.

[@theyou0345]

All cinema camera film (except for ektachrome or other cinema slide films) have an orange base. This gets cancelled out during either scanning or the original intended analog printing process (the print films used cancel it out)

[@brineb58]

It feels like Lomo Metropolis!!!

[@ribsy]

Definitely does

[@BlackOrdinance]

I'm digging this film stock brotha, excellent shots and review. This a tungsten based film?

[@ribsy]

Na this is daylight balanced I think

[@b6983832]

How much magenta correction do you need when printing from a negative with a green backing instead of the standard orange? With modern papers you already need more magenta correction than with the older ones, as "digitally balanced" paper is more sensitive to green light. It is not nice if you need maximum settings, and maybe it is still not enough.

[@ribsy]

I don’t remember the exact settings but they were quite balanced. Did find that I had to compensate for magenta tons

[@drewh79]

How do you feel it handles skin tones compared to other colour films? I think it has a very different look which is a plus for a new film but that grain is pretty prominent. Also, Brooklyn, such a cool place, miss it.

[@ribsy]

I don’t think this is the film for skin tones. This is more of a stylized film with a heavy look

[@drewh79]

@@ribsy Thanks for the reply, much apricated

[@Sashalexandros]

Does this develop in Cinestill's 2liquid bath kit? Some say that it's a cross process, but it's not ECN from what I know.

[@ribsy]

You can dev in whatever you want. However c41 is the ideal process to this according to orwo

[@Zetaphotography]

It's Kodak made for ORWO specs

[@ribsy]

i dont think this has anything to do with kodak. where did you get that idea?

[@fabiob90]

It seems metropolis by Lomography

[@ribsy]

Def feels similar

[@gomahony6282]

The sky. The sky is blue.

[@ribsy]

Yes, I forgot lol

[@robifleming]

Look like Fujifilm’s classic chrome.

[@ribsy]

Yea a lil bit

[@user-ti9zc1xv2b]

Many people that are involved in film manufacturing highly question if this a indeed a new film or a film made by old (Agfa) raw materials.

[@ribsy]

Yup, I don’t have those answers

[@user-ti9zc1xv2b]

@@ribsy Some do, this is shared on photrio

[@filmhowyalike]

Strong Metropolis vibes, even down to the base color. Is it far-fetched to assume this is in fact Metropolis or a next-generation evolution of that film?

[@ribsy]

Not far fetched at all … pretty sure they are made at the same factory

[@filmhowyalike]

@@ribsy ​ I just recalled I wrote an article for 35mmc about shooting Metropolis in the Philippines & I explicitly mention how blues really pop, not unlike your experience with NC500.

[@ribsy]

@@filmhowyalike interesting! the metropolis rumors keep popping up

[@amiruladli1506]

Did they make this film from scratch or is it treated kodak vision?

[@ribsy]

This was made by/for them in Germany. It’s not Vision3 film at all

[@WietsedeJong]

NC, i think means natural coulor. I saw this on older sock that does not exist any more.. the right chooise i think. there is room for a NC film in this market

[@ribsy]

Yea that would make sense

[@dominicknepper2082]

Already sold out on their website.

[@ribsy]

yea this presale happened months ago

[@GlaciaDay]

It really looks like lomo metropolis to me. Also it has to be canistered in China? And there’s only a limited run of this film? I am more than happy to have a new color neg film but this Orwo one seems a bit dodgy if I am being honest with you.

[@ribsy]

we'll know more once its out for real

[@otroargentinocamioneroenes5805]

Hi, new subscriber, can you recommend a lab to develop and print3 in new York ,thanks!

[@ribsy]

Hey, you can use any lab. It’s c41

[@otroargentinocamioneroenes5805]

@@ribsy OK, I been used one in Amsterdam Ave but they don't scanning as I want or print...thanks for answering, I shoot both c41 and E6.

[@thomaspopple2291]

Looks a lot like Metropolis film.

[@ribsy]

Yup indeed

[@oliverlison]

This film is produced in Germany and then shipped to China for packaging? I wonder why can it not be made entirely in one place? Kind of sad. Is it so difficult to put into canisters? After packaging it I assume it will be shipped back to Germany for further distribution? Kind of a strange practice without the CO2 footprint in mind? Can someone clear this up?

[@ribsy]

Yea no clue

[@plasticpaddy5278]

as ribsy indicates this a limited run, finding qualified people in germany to cut it down for commercial sale is not cost effective,

[@oliverlison]

​@@plasticpaddy5278 There are certain companies that did a limited run. Also smaller sized companies than ORWO did it. I bet many companies in Europe would have collaborated with them in term of packaging. Especially when not opposing a threat to their own business because there are many that companies that only produce bw film. However: Adox Color Mission was a limited run as of now or sold released/sold in batches for 13EUR (not cheap either) Ferrania always had struggle with their production of P30 in Italy. They could have been supported and in return of packaging. They are also a much smaller company than ORWO. Some Rollei factories in Belgium that belonged to Agfa etc..or even Foma in the Czech Repuplic. I am sorry, they did not have to go all the way to China (probably Lucky Film) in my opinion. Well, anyway it should not be a political or economic rant but it makes the interest for me less attractive if things need to be shipped around the globe 5 times to save some pennies. A company should a responsibility of an ecological footprint and conserve the environment.

[@plasticpaddy5278]

@@oliverlison this d be like kodak asking ilford to cut down black and white vision 3 . hey ilford, fancy doing us a favour so we can steal your marketshare. for the other companies it s an issue as it s a new film they have to warrant they can deliver as a packaged product. no one wants that kind of issue for the minimal return. very little to do with cost savings for orwo , this was more than likely the only way they could get other people to test their products and generate publicity. send ribsy 2 rolls , $50 tops. hire a NY pro to shoot 2 rolls and give up rights $000s

[@SiggyPony]

My understanding, sorry it was a few months ago were I read it. Was that it will be packaged and shipped from China, not shipped back to Germany. If it was that would certainly add to the cost.

[@timeremapperegor1249]

finally ! someone achieved bleach-bypassed look without modifying a standard process :)

[@ribsy]

Something like that 😃

[@TaylerAleks]

It's not for CINE because of perforation. It cannot be used in Cine cameras. And green color says about very expired I think it's expired stock, not new

[@ribsy]

Take it up with orwo

[@AK88Photography]

​ @Ribsy yep. My friends from Moscow lab "Perspektiva" made all vision3 film of kodak without rem-jet like cinestill - very interesting result with Vision3 200T (but cinestill does not use this stock)

[@ChrisVidouras]

The scans looked terrible tbh, maybe the scanner operators will create appropriate presets in the future for this stock. You managed to get great prints however, congrats!

[@ribsy]

Not sure the scanner is to blame here. Pretty sure this film is the same / similar as metropolis. Thus the funky color

[@BennyToribio]

Diablo y ese papi???

[@ribsy]

ya tu sabe 😂

[@adamszuszkiewicz1709]

Too bad it's only 35mm, I only took my Bronica with me to Europe for 6 months 💀

[@ribsy]

oh wow! only one camera?

[@adamszuszkiewicz1709]

@@ribsy just the Bronica sq-a for film, I also took my Sony a7 with me (gotta scan my film somehow). I usually travel with too many cameras and gear because of the whole "what if" thing, so I decided to travel light. As light as a Bronica sq-a with a prism finder allows, I suppose.

[@strangestudiosphoto9697]

Looks like neutral color stocks of old, thats probably why colors are so flat and muted.

[@ribsy]

yea. i will see how it is when i get the "real" rolls

[@Luis7062]

The Orwo Wolfen NC500 is - or at least seems to be - a fraud. I made a pre - order of 2 (and pay) on the begin of july 2022 ... but no product !!!

[@ribsy]

we will see!

[@petemark7186]

Definitely not the same material ORWO showed samples from. This one screams: Metropolis

[@ribsy]

Agreed. Still waiting on an explanation

[@Vertacos]

Look like a very expired film... I kinda like it tho...

[@ribsy]

Yea def looks like expired film

[@fosterhart2013]

Filmy look and not digital looking !

[@ribsy]

Yea definitely