News broke yesterday that Kodak was launching a new color film, Kodacolor 100. The company has officially unveiled the new film, plus a second one, Kodacolor 200. The 35mm format film is now available and marks a bold change of pace for Kodak. The early sample images look quite striking.
After Kodacolor 100 popped up at retailer Unique Photo this week, it has begun filtering through to additional retail channels, including B&H, CineStill, and Blue Moon Camera and Machine, to name a few.
Kodak still manufactures several professional still photography films, including popular choices like Ektar 100, Gold 200, Portra 400, Tri-X 400, and more. Still, Kodacolor 100 and 200 are notable because they are new product offerings from Kodak. Despite the resurgence of analog photography in recent years, which has led to the introduction of new films from numerous smaller companies, Kodak, a legend in the analog photography space, has remained relatively quiet.
The release of Kodacolor 100 and 200 marks a shift for the company, reflecting its new investments in film manufacturing and development.
“To help meet the growing demand for film, Kodak is excited to announce the launch of two color-negative films, Kodacolor 100 and Kodacolor 200, in 135 format rolls,” Kodak says.
Kodak Alaris handles much of Kodak’s photographic film products, but Kodacolor 100 and 200 are under Eastman Kodak’s umbrella. And for the first time in over a decade, Kodak is selling these two new films directly to distributors. The company says this is “in an effort to increase supply and help create greater stability in a market where prices have fluctuated.”
“These films are sub-brands of existing Kodak films and offer the same high quality you’ve come to expect from Kodak,” Kodak continues in a statement.
The company adds that the launch of Kodacolor 100 and 200, along with the introduction of Kodak Super 8 motion picture film camera in 2024 and revived Kodak Ektachrome 100D Color Reversal Film in 2018, reflects the company’s “ongoing commitment to supporting the long-term health of the film industry.”
As for Kodacolor 100 and Kodacolor 200, the film is available for order now and in stock at many major retailers. Although prices vary slightly among retailers, the cost is around $9 per roll for 36 exposures, which is a competitive price for color negative film.
Kodak says Kodacolor 100, a low-speed, daylight-balanced color negative film, delivers “fine grain, saturated colors, high sharpness, wide exposure latitude, and consistent color reproduction.” These qualities make it well-suited to many general photographic situations, including landscapes, portraits, and travel.
As for Kodacolor 200, which is still a relatively low-speed offering, Kodak states that it shares many of the same qualities as Kodacolor 100. Naturally, it should perform better than Kodacolor 100 in situations where light is scarce, but it is still not a fast film by any stretch.
Unique Photo describes Kodacolor 100 and 200 as offering “true-to-life” colors without excessive saturation. It says Kodacolor is a better choice than Kodak Gold 200 for photographers seeking natural colors, and a superior choice compared to Ektar 100 when photographers don’t want especially punchy colors.
PetaPixel‘s editor-in-chief and passionate analog photographer Jaron Schneider is keen to get his hands on rolls of the new Kodacolor films.
“The promise of less saturation than Ektar is definitely visible in these samples, and I see that the tendency toward warmer and slightly green color tonality is also present,” Schneider says. “I actually really like the softer look to the tones overall while they still seem capable of delivering reds really nicely.”
While Kodak won’t comment on its future plans, it is refreshing to see the company launching new film products in 2025 and reiterating its commitment to supporting analog photography. Kodak is a legendary name in photography, and it’s always nice to see its classic logo emblazoned on new dedicated photography products.
Film photographers can get their hands on Kodacolor 100 and 200 color negative 135 format film right now.