A Symphony of Neon Light

The Anticipation: Loading the CineStill 800T

A film made for neon, waiting to be unleashed.

I loaded a roll of CineStill 800T into my camera knowing exactly what I was after: neon and halations. The kind of light that doesn’t just illuminate, but bleeds, glows, and lingers in the air.

Normally, this film has a Remjet layer, which prevents light from bouncing back into the emulsion and causing unwanted glow. But CineStill removes this layer, making the film compatible with standard C-41 processing. What is understood as an accident by purists, is to me, an opportunity to print a signature. I am talking about that glowing, dreamy red halation effect around bright highlights.

See the red glow around the highlights leaking to the mid and shadows? That’s the halation I’m talking about, wait to see what it does with neon lights.

And that’s exactly what I had in mind: halation. A world where light behaves in ways digital cameras struggle to replicate. And if there’s anywhere that could push this film to its limits, it’s Times Square, so that's my destination for today.