Film guide
The best slide film
Slide film is the most honest, least forgiving thing you can put in a camera. Nail the exposure within a third of a stop and you get a positive on the light table that no negative scan ever matches for snap and color. Blow it and there is nothing to claw back. That is the deal, and it is why the survivors here are mostly slow, sharp E6 stocks that reward a meter you trust.
I weighted this toward film you can actually buy today and get processed at any E6 lab, not freezer relics. The big Fuji and Kodak emulsions carry the list because they earn it. I added a couple of newer small-batch chromes and one cheap black-and-white reversal so there is a budget door in. Expose for the highlights, rate it at box speed until you have a reason not to, and bracket when it matters.
- 1Fujifilm Velvia 50
ISO 50 Slide, Fujifilm
The landscape slide everyone copies and nobody beats. Velvia 50 stacks greens, reds and skies into saturation that looks unreal until you see it on a light table, and the grain is almost invisible. The tradeoff is real: skin tones go ruddy and the latitude is razor thin, so meter carefully and keep it pointed at scenery.
Read the full Fujifilm Velvia 50 guide - 2Kodak Ektachrome E100
ISO 100 Slide, Kodak
The most sensible current slide film and the easiest to live with. E100 is clean, neutral and fine grained, with honest color that handles people, products and travel without the Velvia drama. If you are shooting your first rolls of chrome, start here.
Read the full Kodak Ektachrome E100 guide - 3Fujifilm Provia 100F
ISO 100 Slide, Fujifilm
The pro neutral standard for a reason. Provia 100F holds shadow detail better than Velvia, keeps skin tones believable, and pushes a stop cleanly when you need it. It is the slide I reach for when I do not know what the light will do.
Read the full Fujifilm Provia 100F guide - 4Fujifilm Velvia 100
ISO 100 Slide, Fujifilm
Velvia color with a usable extra stop and wider availability than the 50 in a lot of markets. Slightly less ferocious saturation, a touch more forgiving, still very much a Velvia. A good pick if you want the look but shoot handheld more than on a tripod.
Read the full Fujifilm Velvia 100 guide - 5FlicFilm Chrome 100
ISO 100 Slide, FlicFilm
A welcome newer entry into a shrinking category, and worth supporting if you want more than two companies making chrome. Pleasant balanced color at box speed, standard E6 processing. Availability comes and goes, so grab it when you see it.
Read the full FlicFilm Chrome 100 guide - 6ReflxLab Slide 100D
ISO 100 Slide, ReflxLab
A small-batch daylight color reversal that gives you another option beyond the majors. Fine grained 100-speed E6 with clean neutral rendering. Stock is limited and pricing varies, but it is real shootable chrome and it scans nicely.
Read the full ReflxLab Slide 100D guide - 7Fomapan R 100
ISO 100 Slide, Fomapan
The budget door into reversal, in black and white. Process it as a positive and you get genuine monochrome slides for projection, often at a fraction of color chrome cost. Grain and tonality are humble next to the Fuji and Kodak names, but for the price it is a fun, distinctive option.
Read the full Fomapan R 100 guide