Classic Monochrome: First Impressions with the Potsdam Kino Film

The hype and buzz for the new B&W 100 35 mm Potsdam Kino Film continues as more art photographers have tried and tested this powerful panchromatic film. Inspired by German cinematics in the mid-20th century, the Potsdam Kino film's been collectively known to provide an elegant and lavish mood with its wide tonal range and exquisite fine grains. Hear out these established photographers wax poetic about the film.

Model: Clara Eon; Photos: Yoann Leveque (FR), Peter Bedrosian (USA), Daniel Schaefer (USA)

A Black and White Gotham by Peter Bedrosian

American photographer Peter Bedrosian's approach with his camera is to capture daily life and visualize the emotions we overlook. When shooting with black-and-white film, Peter focuses more on the relationship between the subject and the environment around him. When he got to try the new B&W 100 35 mm Potsdam Kino Film for the first time, he chose to display the ever busy streetscape of New York City. Peter liked how the Potsdam Kino managed to capture so much of his subjects with tonal balance, even in low-light and overcast weather. He says:

"I really liked how they turned out. It wasn’t too contrasty and played well in low light. Shooting on 100-speed film can be tough in the overcast weather but it held up really well in a point-and-shoot camera."
Photos: Peter Bedrosian (USA)

Yoann Leveque's Timeless and Archival Portraits

Lomographer Yoann Leveque is often an experimentalist when it comes to his portraiture. Yoann would usually use black-and-white for documentary or experimental purposes, but for the new B&W 100 35 mm Potsdam Kino Film, he wanted to try something new. Using his Petzval Bokeh 58 Bokeh Control Art Lens along with model Clara Eon, he opted for a simple photo shoot with a sober and neutral mood. Yoann would converse with Clara in between the shoot, making the photographs even more candid. Yoann liked the wide tonal range and shades of grey found in the Potsdam Kino film:

"It’s a very nice surprise! I really enjoyed the grain and the tone of greys. I had a great surprise with an underexposed picture with an aesthetic result that I like very much and that I’ll certainly use this in the next trials with this film."
Model: Clara Eon ; Photos: Yoann Leveque (FR)

Documentary Art by Daniel Schaefer

Analogue photographer Daniel Schaefer has been on a love-affair with recent products of Lomography, and the B&W 100 35 mm Potsdam Kino Film did not escape his radar. For black-and-white photography, he'd rather have his shots styled simply and cleanly. Daniel was more curious as to how the Potsdam will perform on chilly weather – so on a winter day in New York, Daniel took some shots of his photogenic friends in a local park. He was impressed as to how the Potsdam Kino film lent itself well with the cold-and-clean winter light:

"To take advantage of the cleanliness that slower black and white films like the Potsdam offers, I chose the relatively clean and neutral palette that the Contax G2 offers, with the crisp and specific optical flavor that the classic Zeiss 45mm f/2 has to offer, the combination proved to be an absolutely lovely way to showcase the character of the Potsdam 100... The soft contrast of the Potsdam lends itself well to clean light, the open shadows allowing the subtlety it catches to really retain texture while keeping the subjects exceptionally detailed, but not aggressively sharp. Overall a phenomenal low-speed lens for the daylight shooter looking to get the most out of highly dynamic, tangibly textured frames."
Photos: Daniel Schaefer (USA)

Ready yourself for a more artistic and experimental analogue routine in 2019 by stocking up on the B&W 100 35 mm Potsdam Kino Film, available at the Online Shop and Gallery Stores worldwide.

written by cielsan on 2019-01-30

Lomography Potsdam Kino B&W 35 mm

Freeze life's most meaningful moments in gorgeous greyscale with this powerful and poetic cine film.

More Interesting Articles