APS Film Format | An Attempt To Innovate Photographic Film Technology Before The Digital Revolution
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- I bought a little Canon IXUS (ELPH) II P&S camera in 1996, which used the recently introduced APS film format. I wanted a small camera for when I didn't want to lug around a bulky SLR system, and the APS technology sounded interesting. However, there was one very big problem with APS film and the format didn't last very long before dying out completely.
If you want to get hold of some APS film, it still pops up on Amazon occasionally.
amzn.to/3ThMiJl - Kodak Advantix 400 Speed 25 Exposure APS Film
amzn.to/43ksD03 - (5-Pack) TRUPRINT APS Film ISO 200-25 Exposures
It's still even possible to buy new APS cameras!
amzn.to/3TdRga5 - Canon Elph 370Z APS Camera Kit
An APS negative holder is not included with the standard negative holders that you get with negative scanners (such as my Epson V600 Photo). However, APS negative holders are available from Amazon.
amzn.to/3TeDrbE - Negative Solutions Film Holders for APS Film Compatible with Epson 550/600 scanners
"As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases." Amazon requires me to make this statement, but I only recommend products that I own, use and/or endorse. I receive a small commission if you use my affiliate link, but your purchase price remains the same.
Didn't know about this. Always good to see you posting
Thank you! I doubt that many people know about it. The format wasn't that good, and digital was widely adopted a few years later, which killed it off completely. I went back to the UK last year and recovered my little IXUS, still loaded with film, which had been left there for a couple of decades. It was still working perfectly, so I thought I'd do a quick video!
I worked at a film lab at the time of APS. Customers would accidentally shoot in panoramic mode because they didn't know better and couldn't tell in the viewfinder. Then they would be surprised and upset when they got elongated prints. And they would throw out their negatives (APS negatives were returned in the same canister as the previously undeveloped film) thinking it was an empty canister and then bring in just the 4x6 contact sheet asking for extra prints.
Even drop-in loading which aimed to eliminate loading errors common to 35mm, would prevent easy film retrieval if the camera ever jammed. APS solutions created new problems with the target customer. Most customers couldn't and wouldn't learn something new and probably shouldn't be expected to (no matter how simple it seems to engineers or photo enthusiasts). It was a first-hand look into user experience. Maybe that's why camera phones are so popular with so many people: take a picture and immediately see something. No loading or developing. Even the name "APS" was ignored by customers who called it Advantix, which was Kodak's name for the system.
How fascinating to get some information from someone who actually processed this type of film. Thanks for a great comment! I guess the moral of the story is never to overestimate the knowledge/intelligence of the general public. I forget to mention in the video that when you change the aspect ratio, it also changes the viewfinder to allow you to frame the shot correctly. There shouldn't have been any confusion but, as you say, it was probably confusing to people who understood nothing about the technology. I hadn't even considered these things, but the points you make about a new learning curve probably also contributed to the demise of APS.
I doubt now that many of the original APS processing machines are still in operation. My local lab simply removes the film from the canister and processes it the same way as 35mm film. No prints in a variety of aspect ratios and no contact sheet - just developing and a scan. Yes, camera phones have really won the day now. When they first appeared some years ago, the quality was awful, but nowadays the best phone cameras compete with real cameras. And, as you point out, they are easy to use and images can be uploaded directly and immediately to social media. Very easy and very convenient. I still prefer having a 'real' camera, but the majority of people now just use their phones.
Despite this, the history still interests me and it's fun to look back at how things were. I'm 63 now, so still remember previous incarnations of camera technology very clearly. Really appreciate your comment!
I worked at Paxtons cameras in Bondi when they were new. Sold so many of those but aps as a format was horrible.
Thanks for the comment! There were some good ideas and features, but the small frame size wasn't conducive to decent image quality. I guess they went for a small film format because APS was mainly intended for P&S cameras rather than SLRs. It was interesting to hear that you sold a lot. I didn't take any notice of sales and didn't do any pre-purchase research. I was at Heathrow Airport, just about to leave for the States, and browsing the duty-free shops. I saw the camera, liked the small size, and bought it on impulse. I hardly used it. I left it in the UK when I moved to Thailand in 2003, but managed to retrieve it last year. It was still working perfectly and still had film inside. It's an interesting piece of camera history!
They certainly were. Here in Australia they called them elph. When the digital version came out we got the ixus moniker. Our shop also developed the film and made prints too. There was a special tool to open the catch and also once they were developed you’d use that same tool to break the little notch near the cut out panels. This would tell the camera the film was already developed and not wind or through your camera should you have accidentally put in a used and developed roll into your camera
@@cszmax Great info. Thank you!