Fuji trims its film range: Neopan 400 to go

It's never good being the bearer of bad news but Fuji has announced that it's stopping the production of Neopan 400 black and white and Provia 400X slide film. That seems to leave Provia 100F, Velvia 100 and Velvia 50 slide films, Neopan Acros 100 in black and white and the present range of colour print films.

On a purely personal level, if I had to see a film going then it would probably be Neopan 400 on the basis that I've never used and am unlikely to ever use it. It's pretty much the same with Acros 100 which is great but too often can look like a black and white digital conversion to me. It's a little too perfect and clinical-looking. But that's just my opinion and there will be a lot of photographers now having to consider what they're going to use instead of Neopan 400.

There have been one or two rumours to this effect in recent days but Mike O'Pray took the trouble to get the news straight from the horses mouth. Here's what he said on the Film and Darkroom Users' group:

As there was nothing on the Fuji U.K. website I e-mailed the analogue photography dept over the week-end. No reply by lunchtime today so rang them and as I think I knew deep down as did all here on FADU, it sadly is all true that Provia 400 and Neopan 400 are discontinued. I mentioned the 100 ft long rolls of Velvia 100F as well and the response I got was that that too has gone. I have no idea whether the replacement of Velvia 100 represents a sensible replacement which essentially Acros for Neopan 400 doesn't given the U.K. light conditions most of the year So in a nutshell the Fuji N America announcement is accurate and applies world-wide. I suggested that Fuji U.K. put something to this effect on its website and he said he would.

Well done Mike for taking the trouble to confirm the news, even though it's not something we wanted to hear.