Springtime Blues: Captureel Skycast (2383) Film Review June 29 2025, 0 Comments
Film photography aficionado, and darkroom alchemist Ryan Flatters shares his experience working with and developing Captureel Skycast (2383) film. Captureel Skycast (2383) film is available at Camera Trading Company.
All Text and photos courtesy of Ryan Flatters.
Captureel Skycast (2383) With camera metering (iso 3). Credit: Ryan Flatters
Priming creativity with Skycast (2383)
Ethereal, moody, bold….blue. There are a lot of words to describe images composed on Captureel’s Skycast (2383). Captureel curates a collection of respooled cinema stocks including this choice - Kodak Vision3* Color Print Motion Picture film (2383) rolled into 36 exposure still film canisters. The special effects of this film are realized due to intentional misuse. The film is intended for motion picture equipment and chemical processes. When shot with standard still film equipment and processed with the ECN-2 process, the resulting images have a strong blue cast that can be used to creative advantage.
This film is slow. Shot at iso 3, the film is 7 stops slower than Portra 400. On a bright day with a fast lens and steady hand you might be able to shoot handheld, but nailing focus and depth of field will be a challenge. Get over it. Put your camera on a tripod and shoot away. You can even enjoy motion effects (moving water and action) in broad daylight with slow shutter speeds.
Use of a handheld meter is recommended. Many on-camera meter systems do not go as low as iso 3. In fact, many handheld meters do not go this low. You can set your camera meter as low as possible then do mental math in manual mode each time you take a shot for remaining stops not covered by your meter. With my Nikon FE I was able to fool the meter by setting film speed to 12 iso then use the exposure compensation dial to get the final 2 stops needed to reach iso 3. Even with this trick, the on-camera meter consistently underexposed images (to my eye). Thankfully I didn’t entirely rely on the camera metering and mostly measured with a handheld meter.
Most of my exposures were over 1 second. Part of my issue with in-camera metering may have been inaccuracies of center weighted metering along with the need to overexpose slightly to compensate for reciprocity failure that comes into play with many films when exposures exceed 1 second. Enough nerdery….
Using exposure compensation to stretch the iso range of my on-camera meter. Credit: Ryan Flatters
The real story with this film stock is the color cast. Blue, blue, blue! Captureel mentions that yellow and orange highlights can also be a feature, but I was not able to reproduce this effect. I intentionally shot pictures featuring yellow objects (a yellow house and a yellow ‘Harvard’ airplane). It might be that I needed stronger light. Unfortunately the week when I shot the film was overcast and rainy.
Captureel Skycast (2383) With handheld metering (iso 3). Yellow plane did not ‘pop’ the way I thought it might. Credit: Ryan Flatters
When looking at the sample pictures on The Camera Trading Company site, I was curious if the blue could be tamed with an orange filter. In my test roll I experimented with an 85B warming filter, a Spiratone Colorflow II ‘Orange’ and an O56 orange (for black and white). The 85B and Spiratone filters had negligible effects (some magenta starts to come through). However the O56 completely flipped the palette to a result resembling Redscale films. Cool trick.
Left to right: O56 (For black and white), Spiratone Colorflow II Orange, 85B Credit: Ryan Flatters
Captureel Skycast (2383) With handheld metering (iso 3) + 85B filter (0.5 stop filter compensation). Credit: Ryan Flatters
Captureel Skycast (2383) With handheld metering (iso 3) + Spiratone Colorflow II Orange filter (.5 stop filter compensation). Credit: Ryan Flatters
Captureel Skycast (2383) With handheld metering (iso 3) + O56 filter (1.5 stops filter compensation). Credit: Ryan Flatters
The monochrome blue reminds me of Cyanotype. It’s a really nice effect that can inspire creative applications. The blue can be made more intense by underexposing.
Captureel Skycast (2383) with handheld metering (iso 3) +Spiratone Orange filter (0.5 stops filter compensation). The rain on the lens spoiled this one. Credit: Ryan Flatters
Processing the film at home is relatively easy. Note: follow all instructions and safety precautions. Do not take shortcuts. I used the FlicFilm ECN-2 processing kit. Unlike many other Kodak color cinema films, Skycast (2383) does not have a black remjet layer that needs to be removed. This means that the first step (remjet removal) of the FlicFilm ECN-2 process can be skipped. Instead, I did a warm water pre-bath to warm up the film to processing temperature and which also removed the bright magenta anti-halation dye. As with any color film processing, the most important factor is to carefully regulate temperature. I put my chemical bottles in a water bath warmed with a Sous Vide (not to be used in the kitchen again) and have found this is easy and accurate. The estar substrate of the negatives is clear and the colors are dramatic. I was certain I had done something wrong when I pulled the roll from the tank.
Remjet is a black coating on the back of cine film that protects it from static electricity, scratches and light halation.
Captureel Skycast (2383) fresh from the tank. Note the blue frame is from the use of the O56 orange filter. Credit: Ryan Flatters
If sending the film away for processing, ensure the lab supports ECN-2 processing. Labs will reject the film if they do not support ECN-2.
Critics of experimental films like SkyCast (2383) will spurn the bold ‘baked in’ look of the film. I disagree with this view. Instead I see these films as opportunities to push creativity. With this film loaded in your camera your mind comes alive thinking of scenes where the blue look will add mood and atmosphere. Revisiting favorite locations close to home with this film stock lets you unlock a new, blue world of options. Happy shooting!
Captureel Skycast (2383) with handheld metering (iso 3). Note motion blur in foliage. Credit: Ryan Flatters
*Kodak and Vision3 are trademarks of Eastman Kodak Company.
Thanks to Mark Mongeau at The Camera Trading Company for supplying the forum and film for this article. Captureel films, color filters and FlicFilm ECN-2 kits are available for purchase at his online store at the link above and brick and mortar store in Perth, Ontario Canada.