Subject:	Used it, love it (+)
Author:	drdread
Date:	10/1/2001 4:30:34 PM
Message:

I'm currently in the midst of a battle with myself over which film will be my standard for the coming year(s). I used Sensia II (i.e. "Provia") for a couple of years, from 1997 through ~2000. In 2000 I switched over to Kodak E100VS, which gives better saturation than Provia but less than Velvia, at grain levels comparable to Provia's. I also like the color balance of E100VS better underwater than Provia.

I bought 10 rolls of Provia 100F early this year, and used them in Curacao in June. For WA work I think I still prefer E100VS, but for macro work Provia 100F is definitely the way to go. The fine grain is really amazing, and lets you do enlargements that extend the magnification range by 2x easily. That is, you can enlarge Provia 100F about twice as much as Provia 100 and see similar grain in the print (or the copy slide). It's not 2x better than Velvia, but it's good for probably 50% extra or so.

OK, so the question internally for me is E100VS or Provia 100F? Until I saw the macro results, "E100VS" would have been my instant answer, but now it's a little muddier. E100VS captures blues and greens with an intensity that I just don't see from 100F. I figure that with all the blue & green underwater, getting the most from it is a "good thing." OTOH, when shooting macro, the blue & green components aren't as important, which is why I think 100F really takes the cake there.

For me, I intend to carry both films for the foreseeable future. It sounds like you're not interested in E100VS, so if that's the case I would definitely recommend replacing your Sensia II with Provia 100F.

Cheers,
D

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