Kodak Royal Gold 400 Speed 24 Exposure 35mm Film

Rating:
Summary: Always crisp shots, pulsating color
Review: ...And I'm just an amateur photographer! This film lets you take photographs that are consistently fantastic -- the color is great, with little evidence of grain (which is usually my own fault for using the wrong speed) so the photographs can be enlarged and look as good as the original! It's DEFINITELY worth the extra cash to step up from the basic Kodak Gold or Kodak MAX *shudders* that you can pick up just about anywhere. My only fear is that this film, in any speed and exposure, is becoming scarce -- perhaps Kodak is discontinuing it?

Rating:
Summary: Worth the upgrade from ordinary consumer film
Review: It is a real shame that more consumers do not know about Kodak's Royal Gold line of film. I would expect that most people normally buy the Gold (low speed 100 or 200) or Max (high speed 400 or 800) series of film simply because it is the only type of film sold in nonspecialty stores. Don't -- it's a mistake. "Royal Gold," even though a little more expensive, is much better, and you will certainly appreciate the difference in quality.

As you are probably aware, film comes in various "speeds," which allow you to shoot in differing light conditions. The higher the number, the less light needed. Thus, 100 film often requires bright outdoor sunlight, whereas 400 and 800 film is used for indoor or "high speed" (sports) photography. The problem with high-speed film, however, is that it is grainy. In order to get the film to react more quickly to light, the film needs to use larger silver crystals. Result? Your pictures will tend to be comprised of "dots" rather than smoother blends of color.

Despite improvements from 400 and 800 films of the past, Kodak's current low-end consumer film (i.e. Kodak Max) still suffers from excessive graininess. With everyone switching to 4x6 and 5x7 prints nowadays, pictures shot on these low-end consumer films will often still show "dots" when observed up close. If you want pictures to be treasured for years to come, do you really want dots? When I started doing more serious amateur photography, I tried these consumer films, and I was really disappointed. The solution is Kodak's Royal Gold series. Despite the high speed advantages of Royal Gold 400, it maintains a remarkably small grain size. Thus, you get the best of both worlds -- less graininess and good responsiveness in darker situations. I couldn't recommend a better film selection. Obviously, if you are shooting outdoors, make sure to use Royal Gold 100, but for an all-purpose film, there is not much better than Royal Gold 400.