After getting high on the Kodak Gold 200 film stock for a while, I had finally decided to change it up a bit and get my hands on a different film stock. With Google search to thank and a handful of other brilliant reviews on the internet, my decision landed on Fujifilm’s Fujicolor c200.
Fujicolor c200: Cold Hard Facts
The Fujicolor c200 is Fujifilm’s consumer-grade color negative film that is built for 35mm format film cameras. As you may have already known, the consumer-grade label means that the film roll is designed for casual photographers rather than the pros. And if there’s one good thing about being an ordinary photographer, it’s that you can get your consumer-grade film rolls almost anywhere (online or in-store), for affordable prices as well. Typically sold in 36 exposures, the Fujicolor c200 retails for around EUR 6.20, only ten cents cheaper than Kodak Gold 200, and yet some 20% cheaper than the Fuji Superia 400.
As the name suggests, Fujicolor c200 features a shutter speed of 200. According to the official Fujifilm product information bulletin, this film roll is designed for daylight photo-taking, although it performs just as well with flash under poor lighting conditions. And although this may be Fujifilm’s one ISO 200 film roll, the company does take pride in their only child’s ‘refined sharpness’. To quote Fujifilm, Fujicolor c200 provides you with “the kind of image quality and clarity you expect from ISO 100 films”.
In addition, the film also features wide exposure latitude. This is a good thing for non-professionals, as these film rolls tend to give stable results under a variety of different lighting conditions.
Now, enough factual talks, and on to the feels.
Fujicolor c200 in Action
To answer my own question at the start of this post -- I love it.
I shot the Fujicolor c200 during my trip to Sweden with the point-and-shoot Olympus AF-1, and my use of the film roll has been strictly during summertime. I have to say, the resulting images have definitely surpassed my expectations. The images have come out with amazingly balanced color in, what I would say, low to medium-contrast. The tone is warm, and the resulting feeling you get from the photos is this feeling of a slightly more mellow and subdued summer.
In terms of grain quality, the Fujicolor c200 definitely features fine grain, although I wouldn’t go so far as to say that it has “the kind of image quality and clarity as you’d expect from an ISO 100 film”. The grain is fine enough to give clarity, and yet not too fine to still give it the characteristics that are unique to film photographs.
Fujicolor c200 in Comparison
Not to cheat on my first love, the Kodak Gold 200, but I can honestly say that I love the two equally. I can see how using one too often might dull your eyes a bit, but switching them up, in this case, would be a great idea. With higher saturation, richer colors, and that touch of golden highlights, I think the Kodak Gold 200 gives you more of that magical summer feeling. Whereas, the feeling you get from Fujicolor c200 is of a more low-key and subdued summer. So you see how switching up the two might be a good strategy.
Final Verdict
As I’ve said, I love this film roll. And if I have to sum up the top 2 reasons for why I love it, it would have to be for these:
Color balance -- I love the feeling it gives with its warm tone, low-medium contrast, and slightly muted colors
Wide exposure latitude -- Gotta love a film roll that is flexible and reliable enough to take photos in different lighting conditions
If you haven’t tried the Fujicolor c200 film roll, I would definitely urge you to try it. Even if you don’t end up loving it, it’s definitely a must-try.
But enough of my Fujicolor c200 review, check out these other reviews if I haven’t successfully convinced you: