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| Photos: Harman Photo / Miles Marie |
Harman Photo is keeping the ball rolling on new film, releasing a creative color film called Switch Azure. As the name suggests, the company’s latest offering “switches” the colors for a more experimental look.
Switch Azure’s color swap results in rendering blues as orange, bright yellows as azure and reds as hues of purple or blue. Harman says that greens are less affected, but even those will shift depending on the original hue. It promises to provide similar results to Lomography’s Turquoise film. Sunsets effectively become inverted, skin tones are a bit alien-like and common objects become a bit strange. Those who like realistic, natural colors from their film won’t be fans, but for creatives who like to play around with unexpected results, it’s an interesting option.
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Don’t expect normal colors from this film. Photo: Vitor Lopes Leite / Harman Photo |
Adding another layer of complexity is that Harman specifies that the type of scanner used will significantly affect the colors. An example image on the Switch Azure product page shows a scanned sunset photo: the Fuji scan renders a very blue image, while a Noritsu scan produces warmer colors.
Harman’s new film is rated at ISO 125, and the company says the film is best used outside while metering for the mid-tones. It’s available in 120 format and in a 35mm DX-coded cassette with 36 frames. The film can be processed with standard C41 processing.
Harman Switch Azure film is starting to trickle into stores, and you can use the Harman Photo website to find a location near you. Pricing varies by location, though most are around $13 for 35mm and $12 for 120.
Our DPREVIEW Tribute:
After nearly 25 years of operation, DPReview closed on 10 April 2023. This difficult decision was part of the annual operating plan review that parent company, Amazon, shared earlier this year.
Over the course of 25 years, DP Review built up a reputation as being one of the most informative places to go for information about that new camera or lens you’re after. DP Review began as an independent reviews site based in the UK in 1998, the brainchild of Philip and Joanna Askey, but it was eventually purchased by Amazon in 2007 and relocated over to Seattle in the USA in 2010.
Cheers DPReview – thanks for the great work and content that guided photographers, videographers and techno junkies the world over!