Frugal Film Project 2025 - December

 My experience of the Frugal Film Project over the years has been very rewarding and occasionally frustrating. The 2025 edition was no exception and I come to the end of my year with a greater appreciation of the post WW2 German Camera Industry. I have also come to love Type 517 Cine Film for its versatility. For Decembers roll of Type 517 Cine Film shot with my Kodak Retina 1a, I kept it simple and stuck to what I know.

I have mentioned a few times about Type 517 being the ultimate barn find in film photography for many years. A refrigerated shipping container loaded with a cine film version of Ilford FP4 doesn't come around often, I doubt it will happen again in my lifetime. Kudos to the folks at Analogue Cameras for making the deal happen and bringing this to the market at a very affordable price. You can buy this film with confidence it is going to produce decent photos for you. 

As for my Kodak Retina 1a, what a bargain I got! I bought it in a bundle when I wanted something else and it turned out to be the best bonus ever! When Kodak wanted to expand into Europe between the wars, their decision to buy the Dr August Nagel Kamera Werk in Stuttgart was a very astute one indeed. By the time my Retina Ia was made in the 1950's, Kodak AG, at that point in West Germany, was producing quality cameras at an affordable price.
 
At 70 years old my Retina Ia is in fine fettle. The frame counter has never worked whilst in my ownership, but it hasn't bothered me all year, I just try to keep a mental note of where I'm up to, a task that sometimes is a tough one when I'm concentrating on getting a shot nailed down. The strength of my Kodak Retina Ia is its Schneider-Kreuznach 50mm f/2.8 lens. Matched to the Compur shutter with a decent range of shutter speeds and apertures, shooting an expired 100 iso film wasn't as daunting as it could have been. 

For this last roll of the year I just wandered around town and captured the day as I walked. I also winged it on the metering, trusting my Mk.1 eyeballs on a bright sunny Boxing Day afternoon. I tried to get different compositions, but there's always one or two that draw me to them time and again. That's fine by me. It didn't take me long to shoot my December roll of Type 517 Cine Film with my Kodak Retina Ia and I made my way home, happy that I had completed another year of the Frugal Film Project.

I developed my roll of Type 517 Cine Film in Bellini Euro HC 1+31 dilution B for 12 minutes at 20 celcius. Once dry I digitised it with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

My final roll of the year for the Frugal Film project 2025 turned out rather nicely. Being blessed with a sunny afternoon and a wander without having to worry about getting wet or being cold, or both was just what I needed to round out the year. With a dozen rolls of film used, I have found my personal sweet spot using Type 517 Cine Film in my Kodak Retina Ia. 

For me that's the take home from the Frugal Film Project each year. I have learned about a film I wasn't accustomed to in a camera that came in a bundle and turned out to be a great surprise that has earned a place in my regular rotation. Now we are into the new year I am getting stuck into Kentmere 400 with my Hanimex 35RAS point and shoot as we go around again for the Frugal Film Project 2026. 

If you want to try Type 517 Cine Film for yourself, you can buy it from Analogue Cameras right here in the UK using the link below. I am not sponsored by, nor do I get any kickback from Analogue Cameras this recommendation, I have learned that Type 517 Cine Film is a decent film and I still have a few rolls in my fridge to get through. 

Here's a few favourites from my December roll of Type 517 Cine Film shot with my Kodak Retina Ia for the Frugal Film Project 2025. I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film project 2025 album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them. 

Frugal Film Project 2025 - December 
Analogue Cameras - Type 517 Cine Film