Test about different film labs?

[schlicksbier]

Does anyone know about a test about the main film labs out there? I always stumble upon 3, 4 labs (Canadian Film Lab, MeinFilmLab, Carmencita, Indie Film Lab) but never found a real test comparing these labs ...

 

[Andysnap]

I think the only test is to use them and see what you think. I haven't personally used any of the labs on your list but I believe both Carmencita and Canadian FL are highly regarded. Can I assume you are not UK based?
I use Film Dev in the UK and they have proven to be very reliable so far as are Peak Imaging.

Oh, and welcome to the best bit of the forum.

 

[Carl Hall]

I've only heard personal accounts from people who have used different labs and given their opinion, I've not seen an actual comparison with images to look at. I've used Carmencita and Canadian Film Lab (well, when they were UK Film Lab) and I found them to be very similar.

You could always do the comparison yourself and post the results, we'd all be very interested!

 

[schlicksbier]

Thank you for the warm welcome . Indeed I'm not UK-based but from Germany - so MeinFilmLab would be the obvious choice but I'm not totally satisfied with them.

One could indeed test all labs like this but apart from the money one would have to spend for it, it's also a bit timeconsuming so it would have been nice if such thing would already exist :-D. I've asked the "PhotoKlassik" magazine about such test but they didn't seem to be interested ...

 

[Carl Hall]

I've been tempted to do a test with different labs before, but with identical films so that it's a better comparison. I think the best way is to have 3-4 film backs with the same film loaded in each, and then each time you take a photo, mount each back in turn and take a shot with the same settings. As you say though, that would cost a bit of money and time, and also mean having extra film backs.

 

[skysh4rk]

Does anyone know about a test about the main film labs out there? I always stumble upon 3, 4 labs (Canadian Film Lab, MeinFilmLab, Carmencita, Indie Film Lab) but never found a real test comparing these labs ...

I think it's unlikely that you will see a fair comparison conducted between these various labs. Even if someone did bother to test all of these labs, I would doubt that such a test would have the necessary controls to actually tell us anything meaningful unless a huge amount of time and effort were invested.

However, someone did try to compare the former UK Film Lab and Carmencita, although I would take these results with a grain of salt: https://www.ruudc.nl/carmencita-vs-uk-film-lab-comparison/

I have used UK/Canadian Film Lab extensively (hundreds of rolls) and have used Carmencita for a couple dozen rolls (mostly in the interim period between the packing up of UK Film Lab and the start of Canadian Film Lab). My strong preference is for Canadian Film Lab if not only because their scans are incredibly consistent, but their service is top notch too. Carmencita are solid enough though.

I suppose the decision regarding labs will ultimately prove quite personal.

 

[FruitFlakes]

As long as my negs come back clean and scratch free I'm happy - I do all my scanning and printing myself. C41 is a pretty standard process so what you're really comparing with places like IndieFilmLab and Carmencita (aside from the obvious customer service/turnaround/meeting the basic level of producing usable negs) is the look they can get out of a negative scan. Each lab will have their own look when it comes to post-processing, and I'd feel that looking at examples online, via their own sites or others' posts on Instagram/Flickr you'd get a good idea for each labs' aesthetic.

 

[schlicksbier]

Even if someone did bother to test all of these labs, I would doubt that such a test would have the necessary controls to actually tell us anything meaningful unless a huge amount of time and effort were invested.

That's why I was hoping for "PhotoKlasik". It's the only German magazine for analog film and they even want to launch an international magazine. So who would be more fitting for such a job. But somehow it seems that they can't be bothered.

For a real test one would have to test C41, E6 and b/w of course - esp. with b/w there can be lots of differences. At the moment I'm leaning towards b/w and C41 CFL, E6 Carmencita and 110 film MFL (since noone else does this format) ...

 

[ChrisR]

I think Peak might do 110.

I had an E6 film processed (by Peak I think) for home scanning. I didn't like my results; there's a thread here somewhere (but probably got destroyed in the Photobucket debacle). We had a bit of discussion. Then I sent the processed film to two other labs, Photo Express in Hull and also UKFL (now CFL). The point of this is that the scans were very different, even though the processing was the same.

I also use Filmdev for C41 and black and white (unless I process it myself) now. Good results and good prices. You might need to contact them about return postage abroad but I do think they are worth a try. They can work with you to develop the look you want, IIRC.

 

[excalibur2]

Well as an ordinary amateur, tests are irrelevant but would be interesting....so for me I think a reasonable price and to choose a place that would not scratch or leave dust spots etc on your negs and a quick return is useful..... viewing results from different places wouldn't bother me as if they look different then Photoshop is an equalizer.
For 35mm ATM I have my chosen place and for 120 film had no complaint for filmdev..cheap and quick and have used http://www.snapsphotoservices.com/ with no complaints.