5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

By Robert Kapp

Before I show you my 5 frames let me introduce myself. I’m Rob, 33 years old and my family and I are living in southern Germany. This is my first time trying my hand at writing and I hope i don’t screw it up. My film photography journey began 7 Years ago with an East German camera named Altissa Altix 5 and six rolls of Kodak Ultramaxx 400 which i saved from my neighbour’s trash can. Yes. In 2015, film was thrown away. What a waste. Maybe it was Kodak Gold I’m not completely sure. Not that it’s okay to throw Gold away!

However, my own inability to operate the camera correctly resulted in mostly overexposed results. So the Altix ended up in the drawer and, unfortunately, so did my hobby of photography as well, until the summer of ’21.

My first SLR camera

I saw this documentary on youtube. It was mainly about how film works, but also that there is kind of a renaissance of film. They also showed how film is developed and scanned and I found it all super interesting and exciting. So, I jumped on the hypetrain and bought my first SLR. A Minolta x-300 with a MD 50mm f1/.7 lens. Both in pretty neat condition.

Wow I was completely over the moon. It has a lightmeter and I can see what’s ACTUALLY IN FOCUS!! Nothing my Alitx Altissa 5 could provide. It was soo cool.
Several Cameras followed. But the x-300 is the most beloved one (at least for now. I have an SrT 303b in repair and maintenance).

The lens

The lens I used for the photos is the Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4. This lens was available in 4 different versions. In contrast to the first 3 variants of the lens, the last version “MC-II” from 1968/69 can convince with its performance. You can recognize it by the focusing ring. Earlier versions have a focus ring with a flat surface. The latest version’s focusing ring is not flat but “wavy” or as we call it in german “mountains and valleys” (Berg und Tal).

The soft colors and the magical bokeh of this lens are a joy to look at, AND adapted to my Fujifilm X-T1 with APS-C sensor (I use it mainly for Scanning of negatives), I can use it as a portrait lens, since the smaller sensor results in an effective focal length of 87mm (58 x 1.5).

First try with Kodak Ektar

So here are my 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100. The first and so far only time that I have used this film. We went on a little Sunday trip and i had time to take some photos.

A waterwheel with drops falling of
A water wheel in front of our house.

Yes, I like flares. And in this case, they even fit into the composition quite well. For this photo I chose a fast shutter speed to “freeze” the drops flying off the wheel.

The ropes of a climbing frame in a playground
After getting some ice cream we went to a playground nearby.

The rich red of this climbing frame is spot on. I love the high saturation. No post edit needed! Like always on this lens, the bokeh is…mmmh.

My daughter playing with my wife
Honestly, when I saw this picture of my daughter for the first time, I got tearyeyed.

The focus isn’t spot on, but my daughter was in fast motion and the lens opened wide. I love those beautiful, beautiful colors.

ivy growing over a wall
ivy growing over a wall at a cemetery.

This might be not necessarily a good photo but I love the bokeh. It looks like a watercolor painting.

leaves on a tree with shallow DoF
Just love the colors of this leaves. I just like to look at it. The lights and the shadows. Kodak Ektar is awesome!

Addition: The following wasn’t done with the 58mm, but with the MC 35mm f/2.8. I adore those vibrant colors.

church with blue sky and tree
This is the evangelical Church of St. Joseph in my hometown.

So finally, yes, I will definitely have to put some more rolls of ektar in the fridge.

Thanks for reading guys! If you want to see more of my pictures, please visit my instagram at
https://www.instagram.com/finding_the_view/

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Comments

Ken on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 21/07/2022

Most excellent sir..love the water droplets.
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 21/07/2022

Thank you so much Ken! Yes I also like the droplets. I made another Photo with a slower shutter speed, but i like this version more :)

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Wayne on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 21/07/2022

Hi Rob, I’m also a recent convert to the 58mm focal length and your enthusiasm has inspired me to leave the HP5 in the fridge this week and pick up a roll of ektar. Thanks for sharing!
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 21/07/2022

Hi Wayne, thank you so much! This really makes me happy right now :). Oh I love HP5 a lot as well. Enjoy your shoot with Ektar and I hope you will love those colors as much as I do ;) :D. What lens are you using? I had an Eye on the Helios 44 2/58mm recently.

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Michael J on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Those are good- the one of your daughter is really wonderful, and not surprising that it moved you so much. I'm more optimistic than I was for Ektar 100- I've never used it but there is so little colour negative film in 35mm available in the UK at the moment so I've just bought some out of desparation. Good luck with your photography, and thanks for sharing.
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Thank you so much Michael J! I really appreciate that you like my photos. Absolutely right. I had the chance to buy 6 Rolls of Kodak Gold in a local drugstore in packages of 3 for 13€ (!). That's cheap. I don't know how they do it but well... I think what Ektar does is, it provides insanely good colors, no matter what time of day you are shooting. With other color negative film stocks i feel like i have to use them in the morning or late afternoon to get some nice colors (speaking of gold). But that's just my opinion. I hope you will enjoy your shooting with Ektar as much as I did! Cheers - Rob

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Molly Kate on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Hi Robert, really lovely post! The images are *mwah* and I love Minolta. That bokeh is stunning!
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Hey Molly, *mwah* :D yeah, that was pretty much my reaction too! I'm totally into Minolta. I got a SrT303b in a shop for a cla and repair since April(!!!). I can pick it up now and i'm so excited :D. Thanks for your comment Molly! Cheers!

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John Squillace on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Hi, Rob -

All I can say is ausgezeichnet!! ????
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Hi John, so happy that you find my photos ausgezeichnet :D. Really appreciate it!

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Matthew Bigwood on 5 Frames of Kodak Ektar 100 rendered thru a Minolta MC 58mm f/1.4 – By Robert Kapp

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Great shots, particularly the water wheel.
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Robert Kapp replied:

Comment posted: 20/07/2022

Thank you so much Matthew! Cheers!

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