5 Frames with RETO Amber 800T, Contax G1 and 28mm f/2.8

I was looking for color film stocks I had not tried before at my local camera shop and purchased a couple of rolls of RETO film. I had never heard of the company. I usually look up sample images before purchasing a new film, but this time I decided not to. Decided on letting myself be surprised. Glow and Aqua variants of Retocolor 400 films were tested previously.

This time? A third RETO film.

Interestingly these are 27 exposure rolls instead of the 24 and 36 exposure rolls I am used to.

Camera? A favorite rig of mine. The Contax G1 and Zeiss Biogon 28mm f/2.8

A fantastic camera and lens. I normally go with the 45mm f/2, but given the 800 ISO and expected tight quarters, I went with the also great 28mm f/2.8 instead. I once owned the G2 also and as seems contrary to popular opinion I preferred the G! Personal preference.

• Smaller and lighter.
• Less precious. At a fraction of the cost of the G2 I find it preferable to carry with.
• On the very rare occasion that I would use MF the distance scale on the focus wheel here is preferred to the unmarked vertical scroll wheel.
• Some malign the AF but it works just fine for my purposes.

The G2 is a fine camera and I understand why someone else would go with that instead. Whatever floats your boat.

As usual, developed at home with Cinestill CS41.

These images were taken one recent evening while singing with 100 Men In Black Male Chorus ensemble for the dinner crowd at Urban Ministries in Durham, NC. It was a great day. I got to sing, spend time amongst some wonderful people, and capture images with film. It does not get any better than that. Here are my 5 favorites from the roll below with some thoughts after.

At the close, a young man named Adonyah approached us, spoke with us for a while, and blessed us by singing a song himself.

Last thoughts.

I like this film…. But unlike the two previous RETO films there are no caveats. No excuses. This film creates clean images with a pleasing color cast. As stated above, I am a fan of mainstream emulsions. But I am easily swayed when an interesting film comes along. Well, this film can now be added to my list of favorites.

Would I buy it again? Yep. My usual reluctance due to price does not apply here. Reasonably priced, especially if purchased directly from RETO (as of the date of this post). I also really like supporting smaller companies. It does help that I develop at home which offsets some of the cost of film photography.

I appreciate having this opportunity to share my experiences with these lenses.

Eric L. Woods

I shoot a variety of new and old digital and film cameras. Industrial Engineer by education, IT is my vocation, and I really enjoy using, testing, and writing about cameras. All three of the latter are very therapeutic exercises for me. If you are so inclined my blog address is ewoodsphoto.com and I can be found on twitter and Instagram. All the best to you.

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