Can One Even Purchase a Decent Roll of Aerocolor IV?

First let me say that Kodak Aerocolor IV in its various brand guises is my favorite color film. As advertised it has a great exposure lattitude and exceptional although selective saturation. Actually I think that somewhat selective saturation of Aerocolor is part of why I find it so intriguing. It's a very forgiving film to work with and thus a lot of fun to shoot.

My first introduction to Aercolor was through Film Washi X. I've been a big fan and advocate for all things Film Washi, but lately I've experienced consistent quality control issues with their products. With Washi X I've had enough rolls of film come unmoored from their cartridges that I quit buying it.

I recently bought a few rolls of Flic Film Elektra 100 (also Aerocolor IV) and while I've only shot two rolls of it thus far, I've had color problems with both rolls. Both had a dull yellowish cast and general desaturation that made them look like expired film. To be fair, it could be the lab I'm using for development, but for the few years I've been using them they've been incredibly consistent, reliable and just plain excellent.

The flaws with the film are nothing I can't fix in post. I even made a Lightroom preset for this current batch of Elektra 100, but the film wasn't exactly dirt cheap and I was hoping for more usable results right off the scanner.

My next step after finishing these rolls of Elektra will be to try Santa Color 100, yet another brand of Aerocolor and see how that goes. I'm not at all ready to give up on this film but I'd like to know what I'm getting when I buy it.

This roll was shot with my Leica Ic and Voigtlander 21mm lens on a ride through Reno's more industrial sister city of Sparks. People say that Reno is so close to hell you can see Sparks!