Why today's films (photographic and cinematographic) don't have the vivid coulorus of the old films?

Weren't older films often criticized for the oversaturated, candy coated look? I mean, typically if something is called "Technicolor" that's not meant as a compliment. I think the modern style favors more realistic colors.
 
Weren't older films often criticized for the oversaturated, candy coated look?
This happened with the first feature 3-strip film "Becky Sharp," which was criticized for excessive use of blue now that the process could present a real blue; but I think it tapered off later. Although the process was intrinsically contrasty and saturated, Natalie Kalmus (wife of the inventor and often credited "Color Consultant") was a stickler for (her idea of) the appropriate color palette for each scene. There was critical comparison of the Hollywood spectaculars vs. movies like "The Red Shoes" that did not stress color variety so much.

I mean, typically if something is called "Technicolor" that's not meant as a compliment.
I don't know about that - depends on the context, I think.
 
Some modern films go for a realistic look, but many go for a definite mood using a non-realistic style. The desaturated orange and cyan look has been done to death, IMO. The only reason another hue axis hasn't been used (like green-magenta, for example) is that it would really look ugly and weird on most subjects.
 
Have always loved Technicolor and Kodachrome. I used to use Fujifilm at times for it's color saturation. Just love the look.
 
When when I first tried Fujicolor 35mm film, in the mid-1970s, I preferred its natural colors to Kodak color film I had previously used. I'm not talking Kodachrome, since what little slide film I shot was all High-speed Ektachrome, the colors of which I found acceptable. I still prefer natural colors, though not all of the Fuji films seem to have that now. I find the Kodak Ultramax's colors too garish for my taste.

(off topically -- I am more tolerant of the color saturation I get with my Pentax K10D dslr, but largely because the color pallet still seems natural, not shifted.)
 
The most recent Kodak print film I liked was the Ektar. In fact, I remember buying quite a few rolls when the stores were closing it out, dirt cheap. A few were expired by a few months, but they always had rich colors regardless.
 
As long as we're on the subject...

Does anyone remember a real oddball color film (can't remember if it was slides or prints) called FerraniaColor? Long long time ago...terrible stuff.
 
That company was in the hand of "3M". Thy made "Scotch/Imitation/Solaris" films. The films that I used in the '90's and maybe 2000-2001. It was only last year that I discovered that those films where Made in Italy, not somewhere in Asia as I thought in the past.
 
The most recent Kodak print film I liked was the Ektar. In fact, I remember buying quite a few rolls when the stores were closing it out, dirt cheap. A few were expired by a few months, but they always had rich colors regardless.

Ektar is still available, just in case someone might get the impression it isn't.

It will be one of the films I try as I blow the dust off my old Nikon FM and Mamiya C330.
 
After I couldn't find Ektar anymore, I wound up trying Fuji NPS 160 and liked it well enough. I primarily shoot outdoors, landscape, architechture, etc. so I often gravitated towards the slower speed films like Ektar 100.
 
The recent film Kodachrome about a father and son going cross country to get the fathers last rolls of Kodachrome develped before they shut down was shot in 35mm film. Looked great and an enjoyable movie.
 
if you want "color" then try some of the latest cameras with their scene and art filters
with very colorful results, and if that's not enough there's photoshop.

for me, I use to use all the chromes back in the day and looking at the slides, photos,
and negatives, it's like a statement about things were better in the good old days. Today's
color renditions are more consistent, reliable, and tune-able. and to me preferable
for one reason, blowing up any negative, slide, in black and white or color meant
you lost contrast, and gained spots. Digital prints stay good looking all the way to
16x20 and beyond. much better and cheaper to boot.
 
I just pulled a ziplock bag with canisters of Ektachrome and Kodachrome out of the freezer--it has followed me around for years, through different moves, and it all has expiration dates of 2002-2003. All but two are still in the original box. Not sure if I should just toss it all...I bought it back when I was still shooting film. I think I had a couple of canisters of Fuji NPS160 around but, I can no longer find them. I'm thinking that despite the canisters, there is probably moisture damage.
 
I think the modern style favors more realistic colors.
I tend to think that also.

However, I have noticed a (disturbing) trend in many photos I see for sale these days, whether it's framed, or in a postcard, or even used in advertising. Many of these have hyper-exaggerated colors. Oversaturated. Very unnatural looking. I know it was just a postcard, but I wanted to send a nice one home from my trip last year, and I had to dig through many to find one that looked even remotely natural. All the rest had the saturation cranked to unrealistic levels. Even something as simple as a photo from Arches National Park--anything with Delicate Arch had this sickening orange glow to it. In person it does have some orange, but it doesn't look straight out of the Crayola box either. I'll admit that when I post on Instagram, I tend to boost things a little in Snapseed, partly because the photos are so small and I want them to "pop" a little. But I try not to make them unnatural, unless I am going for some bizarre photographic effect.
 
Postcards and usually calendars also have had unrealistically saturated colors since the 50's or 60's - nothing new there.
 
Postcards and usually calendars also have had unrealistically saturated colors since the 50's or 60's - nothing new there.
They have never been as terrible as they are now, though--it is almost like they are trying to make these look like a garish painting or got a little too crazy with the "artistic" filters in Photoshop. (Should have made that clearer when I first wrote it.) Over-saturation is one thing, but these go so far beyond.
 
Modern televisions produce dreadful colour - maybe the audience has become conditioned to expect that.

I recently got a DVD of the travel films of Friese-Greene , 'colour' films from around 1920. Though helped a bit by modern technology for the telecine, the process was remarkablyeffective .
 
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