#FP4Party - Fun and frolics with Ilford FP4+ 125

The #FP4Party began in 2016 when Emulsive.org used it as a means of bringing people together to enjoy the delights of Ilford FP4+ 125. You can read about the origins on the Emulsive website via the link below. Needless to say it was a success and was a regular feature on the film photographers calendar. I took part in my first #FP4Party in March 2020, just before we got locked down for the summer thanks to our microscopic nemesis, Covid 19. 

I had a lot of fun, shot a few rolls of film and continued my fledgling education in developing film at home that I had started in January that year. It was my first collaborative event and gave me a great appreciation for Ilford FP4+ 125. Sadly it became dormant over the last couple of years until recently when fellow film photographer Paula Smith over on Bluesky proposed having another #FP4Party in April 2026. I jumped at the chance and checked my stash to see if I had any in stock. 

Collaborative events like the FP4 Party are fun ways to get out and shoot some film then share your photos with the film photography community. It never ceases to amaze me at the creativity people have when challenged to use one particular film in the camera of their choosing. I have no doubt whatsoever that it will be the case this time around too.

My first roll was duly loaded into my Minolta X-700 with MD 50mm f/1.7 lens and a yellow filter added. My plan was a simple one, have a wander around Wigan Pier and the first couple of locks at the bottom of the Wigan Flight of 23 locks that rises 217 feet in the space of 2.5 miles. This was the last stretch of the Leeds & Liverpool canal to be completed with a grand opening ceremony at Britannia Bridge in 1816. 

It was at Britannia Bridge where I finished my roll of FP4 in my X-700. A walk up the Wigan Flight is not on my bucket list, but I may walk down the flight from the Top Lock, in stages as Im an old man, my legs are old, my eyes are dim, my nose is knackered! I switched to my second roll, this time in my FED 2 with Jupiter 12 35mm f/2.8 lens and took a few shots around Wigan Pier and a couple in town as I made my way home, thoroughly worn out, but happy with a very productive day in the spring sunshine.

I would like to say that Spring is officially here now, but Winter had other ideas and it blew a hooley for the rest of the week. Thankfully it had mostly cleared off by Saturday afternoon and I was able to complete my plans for the week.I finished my roll of Ilford's finest FP4+ 125 in my FED 2 with a gentle stroll in my local countryside. I had my trusty Gossen Trisix to help me with my exposure settings and it's good to give the old skills a run through. Once I had finished my roll in my FED 2, I got my Agfa Isolette out and shot a roll of FP4 in 120 medium format to round off the afternoon. I still had a fair distance to walk so it gave me something to do as I headed home for a well earned cuppa. 

I developed my three rolls of Ilford FP4+ 125 with Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B, for 8 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had them hanging to dry in my bathroom. I digitised them with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2,5 macro lens, Valoi film holders, Pixl-Latr and A5 sized led light pad. I processed my RAW files with Affinity Studio. 

First impression of my films as I hung them to dry was very favourable. I had well developed negatives which made it easy to digitise and process with Affinity Studio. I was happy with my choice of a yellow filter I used on my Minolta X-700 on that first beautifully sunny afternoon. I got great photos and may even print one or two in the not too distant future. 

My roll shot with my FED 2 was a different vibe. No filter used meant no real definition in the sky, but I'm OK with that. It was also the roll that bridged the gap between the rolls of film shot with my Minolta X700 and Agfa Isolette. The first half was in the late afternoon as I made my way home from my walk along the canal and the second half was the first half of my gentle walk in my local countryside. I could easily have been happy with one full roll, but after finishing the week with my Agfa Isolette, I'm happy I got 3 rolls and that will do for me.

Here's a few favourites from my 3 rolls of Ilford FP4+ 125 shot for the return of the #FP4Party. I had a lot of fun getting out and about and really appreciated the workout I got, both physically and mentally. Well, maybe not as much as I would when I was younger and much fitter than today. 

The important thing was having fun along with the good folk of the film photography community who chose to take part. It doesn't matter how many rolls we shoot or even if we only get one sheet of 4x5 done. "The King Of Trichromes", Andrew Keedle got into the spirit of the event with a superb 7"x17" trichrome shot on FP4 that you can see on Bluesky or via the link below. As always I have posted these and more in my albums on Flickr you can visit using the links below. I hope you enjoy them.

Emulsive.org - Introducing The FP4 Party
Ilford FP4+ 125 - Minolta X-700 
Ilford FP4+ 125 - Fed 2 
Ilford FP4+ 125 - Agfa Isolette 
Andrew Keedle - Trichrome on FP4 

Lucky C200 - A Brand New Colour Film From China

 The Lucky Film Company in China were once one of the major contract coating plants that produced film for Kodak for the massive Asian market in the golden age of film. Declining sales with the advent of the Digital Revolution saw Lucky Film slowly wind down, cease production and mothball the facility in the mid noughties. It was just one plant amongst many around the world that closed or was mothballed as demand for photographic film plummeted.

The Film Renaissance we have been enjoying over the last decade has seen Lucky Film restart production with a 100 iso Black & White film that is available in 35mm and 120 medium format. My friends at Nik & Trick Photographiques got hold of a few rolls and found it to be an excellent budget B&W film. Then came news from the company that they were bringing back colour film in the form of Lucky Film C200.

Nik & Trick went straight to the source and talked to the manufacturer. The initial production runs were purely for the Chinese market and, after some discussion, Nik & Trick were able to order some and asked the community to pre-order at least two rolls in 35mm and/or 120 medium format to make the size of the order worthwhile. In a short space of time, enough folk pre-ordered and it arrived at Nik & Trick just in time to get it sent to those customers before Christmas 2025. It's also competitively priced, A 36 shot roll of Lucky C200 in 35mm is around the same price as the equivalent roll of Kodak ColorPlus. 

I bought 2 of each format. No sponsorship here or a crafty roll sneaked to me by a stranger in a trenchcoat wearing a fedora. I paid for it with my own cash. I loaded a roll of 35mm into my Canon EOS300, a roll of 120 medium format into my Agfa Isolette and got stuck in. The 35mm film is DX coded and set at 200 iso automatically upon loading. Packaging is well designed with bright colours on the outside and all the information printed inside the box is in Chinese. Well, it was made for the Chinese market. When it is officially released into the wild here in the UK it will have all that info in English. 

Christmas time is always full of colour, from decorated trees to people dressed up as Santa for the occasion. The slight problem here in Wigan is it's a bit grim weather wise in winter. My photos were taken in a range of lighting, both indoors and outside. Thankfully my Canon EOS300 has a built in flash and it made life easier for me indoors. I shot my medium format rolls outdoors on the rare sunny days over the festive season. Once done, I sent my film back to Nik & Trick for developing and scanning. 

When I got my scans back I was pleasantly impressed with the colours. Indoor photos were well exposed and outdoor shots taken on Boxing Day to finish my second roll really showed off the colours produced in bright sunshine, a commodity in short supply over the winter of 2025-26. Getting to shoot this film outdoors as well as indoors gave me a good range of lighting conditions and a chance to experiment a little.

I am a Kodak ColorPlus fan. Kodak's cheapest colour film has been my personal choice of colour film for a long time, through all it's incarnations. I could tell immediately that Lucky C200 is NOT repackaged Kodak ColorPlus. The colours are different enough to be able to distinguish between them quite easily. Also, it is NOT repackaged Kodak Gold. Again, different colours, easily distinguishable between them. I also don't think it is repackaged Kodak Aerocolor IV. I have shot a roll of Santa Color 100, which is definitely repackaged Kodak Aerocolor IV and it too looks very different to Lucky C200.

What it does remind me of is the film I used extensively when I returned to film back in 2017, Agfaphoto Vista 200. It has a similar rich and vibrant palette of bright reds and deep shades of blue that is very pleasing to see in a new film. They are rendered beautifully in my obligatory photo of the Uncle Joe's Mint Balls sign. Wigan also has a lot of terracotta clad buildings, built during the golden age of the Coal and Cotton industries that transformed Wigan from an ancient market town into the thriving Metropolitan Borough of today. They too have rendered beautifully on Lucky C200.

Would I use this film again? Yes! Because it is available in 120 medium format as well as 35mm, this is a film that I will definitely consider when choosing colour film in the future. Are there better films from Kodak? Yes! Gold, Ektar and Portra all hoof this film into the weeds, but for an alternative to ColorPlus it's a big contender, especially with it being available in 120 medium format. ColorPlus isn't available in 120 medium format and, as far as I know, never will be. I am very impressed with Lucky C200 and will definitely be using it again soon.

Here's a few favourites from my photos taken around Wigan on Lucky C200 with my Canon EOS300 and Agfa Isolette. If you fancy trying the film for yourself, visit Nik & Trick and pick up a couple of rolls. I'm glad I did  I have placed these photos and more in albums on Flickr you can visit using the links below. I hope you enjoy them.

Lucky 200 - Agfa Isolette 
Lucky 200 - Canon EOS300 
Nik & Trick Photoworks Lucky C200 35mm colour negative film
Nik & Trick Photoworks Lucky C200 Colour 120 roll

Olympus OM-1n - Kentmere 400

 I seems that I can't leave my Olympus OM-1n alone since It was serviced and that's a good thing. I loaded a roll of Kentmere 400, fitted my Zuiko 28mm f/3.5 with a yellow filter that I hoped would help me get some decent photos on a sunny day and went for a walk in Mesnes Park. There were some changes happening as several trees that had succumbed to disease were being felled. I wanted to document the changes and get some more experience of using filters whilst I was there. 

Sunshine has been in short supply so far in 2026 and I made the most of it on the day. It also gave me a chance to see how well my OM-1n metered the light with filters fitted. On that score I needn't have worried as the meter is doing just fine. I photographed familiar landmarks in the park and tried a couple of different perspectives as I explored for photos. 

I headed off towards the Fountain and took a few photos as the wind was blowing the water off to one side. I tried to capture that movement, but wouldn't know how successful I was until I developed my film. I was really enjoying my photography on this day and before long I had finished my roll of Kentmere 400 in my OM-1n and could concentrate on finishing the roll of film in my OM-2, yep I was pulling double duty again, before heading home for a well earned cuppa.

I developed my roll of Kentmere 400 a few days later using Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to 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.

I developed this roll with my Frugal Film Project roll of Kentmere 400 shot with my Hanimex 35RAS and yep, it suffered due to this half wit forgetting how many films had been dunked in that particular mix of developer. If you ever doubt yourself, don't risk it like I did, mix fresh developer. I also have absolutely no doubt I will do this again and have to give myself another kick up the backside.

Having said that, Affinity Studio is a powerful beastie and I was able to sort through my photos with relatively little hassle. I was hoping for smooth grain, but the exhausted developer and standard developing time gave me thin negatives and a lot of grain in the final photos. A daft mistake can often be salvaged and it gave my photos a very unique look, thus enabling the "Lomo Clause!"
 
Here's a few of my favourite photos from my roll of Kentmere 400 shot with my OM-1n. Kentmere is a contrasty film anyway, but the yellow filter really did bring out the definition in the clouds. As always, I have placed them and more in an album on Flickr you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Olympus OM-1n - Kentmere 400