Lucky C400 vs Kodak Ultramax – Battle of the 400s

Finally I got my hands on the not-yet-released Lucky C400 test rolls. I put it into direct comparison with its main competitor: Kodak Ultramax 400.

Camera used was Canon EOS7+50L, both rolls shot at box speed and self-developed in the same tank using standard C41. Scanning was done with Canon R6 and NLP inverted with no further post-processing. Each comparison set is Lucky first and Kodak second.

Outdoors under natural light:

Indoors under LED light:

Here is my opinion.

Grain

Ultramax has a finer grain structure. The grain level of Lucky 400 is probably similar to Kodak’s 800 film in disposable cameras. While Lucky C200 is actually similar in grain to CP200, Lucky C400 does not compare as favorably to Kodak. However, it is much better compared to non-Kodak films like Orwo NC400 and is fully usable as an everyday emulsion.

Colors

Under natural light, Lucky appears noticeably yellow, while Ultramax is cooler. This again differs from Lucky C200, which has a reddish tint and is harder to correct when self-scanned. Lucky C400, on the other hand, is easier to process.
Curiously, under artificial LED lighting, the situation is the opposite: Ultramax is warmer (which is understandable as color temperature was lower), while Lucky leans more towards the reds.
Lucky C400 shows slightly more halation than Ultramax around highlights, but the extend is limited.

Dynamic Range

Contrast of Lucky C400 is significantly higher, resulting in inferior latitude compared to Ultramax with its more gentle tone-curve, especially in the highlights.

Sensitivity

The sensitivity of Lucky should be at least 400 or even higher. Under consistent exposure parameters, it is about half a stop brighter than Ultramax, which is also one of the reasons why its highlights look clipped. Lucky retains its tradition to label speed conservatively, more honest than some other brands, which I won’t mention to be Harman or Orwo.

Quality control

Lucky C400’s finishing is much better than Lucky C200 upon its initial launch. Despite being test rolls, there is no banding nor apparent blue dots visible. Lucky has made improvements.

Conclusion

Lucky has done it again, successfully providing film nerds a quality 400-speed emulsion alternative to Kodak. The grain might be more coarse to Kodak, but looking at Orwo 400/500 which is almost a special effect film, it is apparent how challenging it is to produce a 400-speed film suitable for daily usage. It is even more remarkable considering the short time period between C200 and C400, which is less than a year. According to Lucky, the official release will be in July. If it is priced similar to C200 which is CNY43 (~US$6.3) here in China, it is definitely worth for long-term use.
Can’t wait for the slide film of Lucky. Heard that test rolls might be available in July.

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