Film Review: CineStill 50D VS. 800T

A hands-on look at the two most bizarre yet gorgeously delicious film stocks: CineStill 50Daylight and 800Tungsten.

Cinestill 800 T Taylor Pendleton 19


CineStill 800T. Both are modified to allow it to be developed with the C-41 process instead of the Eastman Color Negative process.

So, which one is right for you and your creative prospects?

Hot Tip: Want to send in your rolls to a lab you trust? Check out FieldMag's article on the top 10 best mail-in photo labs across the USA.

CineStill 50D by @westcott

CineStill 50D by @westcott

To Know:

Producing some of the film world's finest grain, it has an ISO 50/18° speed daylight balanced (5500K) motion picture emulsion. Prepped and rolled for clean, safe C-41 standard development as an ISO 50 film. It may also be processed in motion picture ECN-2 chemistry. CineStill is standard daylight- and tungsten-balanced film stock that render accurate, true-to-life colors when exposed, developed, and scanned correctly. If the oddly warm colors shine through broad daylit images, they’ll hold a chromatic vibe with high clarity and an edged sharpness.

What We Love:

High Quality Metal Cassettes for Zero Light Leaks

Factory spooled into new high quality Dx-Coded Cassettes.

FINE GRAIN

Incredibly fine grain and the ability to shoot wide open in bright conditions.

Excellent Dynamic Range

Unrivaled highlight and shadow latitude.

The Details:

Brand: CineStill

Product Type: Comes in both 35mm and 120 medium format.

Best For: (Photographers needing a low-speed film that excels in bright, daylight
conditions with incredibly fine grain for high-quality results.

Shop CineStill

CineStill 800T by @christophersturm

CineStill 800T by @westcott

CineStill 800T by @westcott

To Know:

Rated ISO 200-1000! It can be pushed to 3200! This 800-speed tungsten-balanced color-negative film is prepared from the same motion picture film stock used by top cinematographers worldwide. This film is designed for difficult low-light tungsten and may be used in many different lighting situations to achieve a variety of visionary scenes. CineStill 800T has quite the signature vibe, categorizing it as a better purchase than the Kodak Vision3 500T. Although the two products are intended for different purposes — Kodak Vision3 500T is made for motion picture, whereas CineStill 800T is made for stills; a comparison between the two should be squarely focused on a description of the different look each provides. Without an anti-halation layer, a red glow may appear around overexposed point light sources. It is not lens-specific but can be decreased with diffusion such as with the CineBloom filters.

What We Love:

Be a Still Cinematographer

3200K Tungsten Balanced color negative motion picture film stock for use as still photography film.

Made for Difficult Low Light Tungsten Situations

And makes it look cool, too.

Go Crazy Bright

Acceptable for push processing up to 3200 ISO.

The Details:

Brand: CineStill

Product Type: Comes in both 35mm and 120 medium format.

Best For: Photographers wanting a more fun, film noir vibe to their images explicitly made for low-light tungsten situations.

Shop CineStill

CineStill 50D by @westcott

My Consensus

CineStill serve various purposes but are similar in their experimental upbringings. Amid our analog renaissance, from returning photographers to first-timers, people worldwide want a film stock unique to their taste and creative vision.

They both mimic the findings from a cinematographer’s perspective, serving as a choice for artists wanting a storytelling aspect.

How We Tested

The Moment team is full of film photography buffs; we geek over which cameras to use, the difference in film stocks for specific environments, and which vintage strap from Grandpa’s closet will look best with our medium formats. CineStill and want to continue shooting with them in our camera bag repertoire.