Today I got my first roll of cross-processed negative film produced by my new Lomo. I’m pretty impressed. It took me a while to find a place in town that would cross process negative film but a little mom and pop shop pulled through for me.
What is cross processing you ask? Well basically you use the opposite chemicals to develop the film. Normally negative film is processed with C-41 chemicals and slide film is processed with E6. If you use the opposite chemicals you get a very vintage effect. With the negative film, things become very blue and hazy. My next roll will be slide and from what I’ve read slide film, when cross processed, creates more bold rich colors.
One of the secrets to cross processing is over-exposing the film by one stop. This can be easily done by changing the ASA. Example: If your using 200 ASA tell your camera you’re using 100 ASA and this will allow for a touch of over exposure. You might even try experimenting with two stops.