Lucky 200 Film Review

Here is our Lucky 200 Film Review. We shot a roll in our Olympus mju II. So, take a look at our film review and see what you think.

Lucky is a Chinese film manufacturer that has been around since the 1980s. They stopped colour film production in 2012, but the good news for film photographers is that they’ve recently relaunched. Lucky 200 is one of the first fruits of that comeback. It’s a C-41 colour negative film at ISO 200. Unsurprisingly, a new film emulsion is always going to generate a fair bit of excitement in the film community. We wanted to see how it performed.

For this review, we loaded a roll into our Olympus mju II and headed out along the Thames by Blackfriars Bridge.

Colour And Contrast

The first thing that struck us was the saturation. Even under a flat London sky, the colours pop. The green of the leaves along the Thames was almost startlingly bright, which we weren’t expecting on such a dull day. That’s a real testament to how punchy this film is.

The warm red cast that Lucky 200 is known for does come through, though the overcast conditions seemed to bring out some green tones alongside it. It’s probably a bit of both — a film with strong, saturated rendering that responds to the light it’s given.

The contrast is high, as shown by the dynamic range. The highlights were the weak point. The bright areas blocked up and lost detail fairly quickly. The shadows fared much better though, holding onto information where a lot of budget films would just go flat. Grain is reasonable for a 200-speed film and sharpness is solid.

Character

Lucky 200 has real character. The saturation is its standout quality; it makes colours feel alive even when the weather isn’t playing ball. It’s not the most forgiving film if you’re shooting in harsh light, so keeping an eye on your highlights is worthwhile. But for overcast days, street shooting, or anywhere there’s foliage you want to really sing, it’s a genuinely exciting option. Well worth picking up a roll.

Film: Lucky 200
Format: 35mm
Rated at: 200 ISO
Shot on: Olympus mju II
Location: Blackfriars Bridge