Multi-speed film For color negative pixmen, there is one film that is designed for use in multi-speed configuration - actually, it is nothing more than an ISO 640 film that has a wider exposure latitude, enabling the photographer to shoot at settings between ISO 100-1000, which are 2-1/3 stops of overexposure and 2/3-stop of underexposure. But this film is no longer available and was replaced by a newer, professional-type ISO 800 color negative emulsion with exceptionally fine-grain and high contrast film. These photos below are some of the subjects where I used the said multi-speed film, with the Photokina shots rated at its ISO 640 speed and the scenes of Manhattan's Museum of Modern Art at ISO 800. Candid shot in Photokina '96 Performance at the Canon booth     Scene outside the Modern Art museum Inside the Modern Art museum The performance at the Canon booth - some of you may remember that another photo of this scene was used in issue No 11 of this column, on Manual Exposure. That photo was shot on ISO 100 film color reversal, at 1/15 sec. at f/1.4. Knowing that I might end up with camera shake or blurred photos of that performance, the next roll that I loaded into my Canon New F-1 was the multi-speed film. The photos of the Modern Art Museum had to be shot on the multi-speed film (the only non-ISO 100 that I have) because flash photography was not allowed inside. ISO 800 film There is only one reason to use an ISO 800 film - available light shooting in situations where flash photography is not allowed, like a stage drama, concerts and indoor sporting events. Today's ISO 800 high speed color negative films (not available in reversal format) have finer grain, sharpness and contrast than even the ISO 400-type available in the mid-80s. In fact, you will find that it is quite impossible to know whether an available light scene was actually shot using an ISO 400 or 800 film nowadays. Anita Mui in action Mui and her protege     One of the dancers Mui dressed in a white gown The above photos were scenes shot during the concert of one of Asia's superstar artistes, Anita Mui of Hong Kong. Metering can be tricky but the use of Spot meter feature enabled me to narrow down the emphasis on the faces of the artiste as well as her current protege and dancers without the overall exposure being affected by the darker surroundings. Since flash photography was not allowed, a high speed film like an ISO 800 type was required. The scenes were actually quite bright for an ISO 400 film as well but the extra stop provided by the ISO 800 emulsion ensured that a higher speed could be used whenever the dancers increased their beats. << Back to Main . 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .