LomoChrome Turquoise: Miami in Blue and Orange

LomoChrome Turquoise 35mm ISO 100-400 film is a color negative film from Lomography that recently returned to the market due to high demand, and it’s no wonder why. With its unique color shifts, this film produces dramatic and intense images creating a world full of emerald, blue, and golden colors. And I knew exactly where I wanted to try this fun experimental film stock for the first time: Miami.

Known for its impressive, jaw-dropping Art Deco architecture, Miami has over 800 Art Deco buildings with bright colors, lines, and unique shapes. There’s really nothing quite like it in the world. Add sunny skies and vibrant beaches to the mix, making Miami the perfect location to try LomoChrome Turquoise.

While this film might not be everyone’s cup of tea, I’m content with my results, as shown below. I already liked Lomography’s LomoChrome Purple and was thrilled to see LomoChrome Turquoise. Plus, blue is my favorite color, so no complaints here about the turquoise, cyan, and aqua colors that may appear.

If you want to use LomoChrome Turquoise for yourself in Miami and are looking for things to do for a quick getaway, don’t forget to also check out my article, Your Complete Guide for 2 Days in Miami.

The Barbizon Art Deco building in Miami — Lomography’s LomoChrome Turquoise on Ocean Drive.

Ocean Drive shot on LomoChrome Turquoise 35mm film — Lomography’s LomoChrome Turquoise on Ocean Drive.

LomoChrome Turquoise image of a condo with a palm tree in the front in Miami — With LomoChrome Turquoise, notice how the blues become yellow-orange, the greens become emerald, and the yellows become blue.

Palm tree in front of a white building in Miami Beach — With LomoChrome Turquoise, notice how the blues become yellow-orange, the greens become emerald, and the yellows become blue.

Table of Contents

Brief History and Shooting Recs for LomoChrome Turquoise

Lomography has four LomoChrome color negative films: Purple, Metropolis, Turquoise, and Color ’92. A previous release of LomoChrome Turquoise was so popular that the public yearned for more, enough to where people were buying these films for hundreds of dollars before the most recent 2021 release.

Today, Lomography LomoChrome Turquoise is available in 120, 110, and 35mm formats. Prices range from $8.90 to $12.90, depending on what you purchase. Compared to other film stocks, it’s not too expensive. You can buy LomoChrome Turquoise on their website here.

The box speed for LomoChrome Turquoise is 100-400, leaving you a wide range to experiment shooting the film at different film speeds. I tend to use lower film speed in bright daylight. Since we had mostly sunny skies in Miami, I shot the film at ISO 200, providing an excellent middle-of-the-road balance between ISO 100 and ISO 400.

According to Lomography, shooting at ISO 400 will give you a stronger effect with more saturated colors, whereas shooting at ISO 100 will give you less contrast and less saturated colors.

For example, in the surfboard photos below, I shot the image on the left at ISO 200 and the right at ISO 400. You’ll notice that the photo shot at IS0 400 has more color shifts with deeper blues than the other photo, which leans more pink. I recommended shooting it at different film speeds to see what you prefer.

Just to note…this film does not have a DX code on it, so you’ll have to set your own ISO. For point and shoot cameras, depending on your model, it will default to ISO 100.

Beach kayak resting on sand. Image shot on LomoChrome Turquoise 35mm film. — The left image was shot at ISO 200 compared to the image on the right shot at ISO 400.

Underexposed image of a kayak resting on the sand in Miami Beach — The left image was shot at ISO 200 compared to the image on the right shot at ISO 400.

LomoChrome Turquoise is a color negative film, and I treated it as such: metering for my shadows in contrasty or shaded areas and taking the photo as is for well-lit scenes. Depending on your exposure, your colors will invert. Your blues become yellow-orange, yellows become blue, and greens become emerald.

How to develop this film? It can be developed at your local lab or home with the Standard C-41 process. My film was developed at Dunwoody Photo near downtown Atlanta.

A classic car sitting on the road in front of the Avalon building on Ocean Drive. — I bracketed this shot. The left exposure was shot at plus 1, whereas the right image was exposed for the scene.

A classic car sitting in front of the Avalon on Ocean Drive. Image shots on LomoChrome Turquoise. — I bracketed this shot. The left exposure was shot at plus 1, whereas the right image was exposed for the scene.

My Favorites… And Not So Favorites

Most of my Miami images on LomoChrome Turquoise came out fantastic, except for a few. Since this is a specialty film, I put this in my film camera dedicated to these types of films: a Canon EOS 10s.

I sometimes have a severe case of FOMA. I’ll usually carry two film cameras to ensure I get the photos I want: one for experimental film and the other for “normal” color negative film. If you’re like me, you might want to do the same. Plus, it allows you to compare the “real-world” scenery with the LomoChrome Turquoise results.

The images below are straight off the scanner with no edits.

Favs

A woman holding her hands up to her face standing on the lifeguard tower in Miami.

Palm trees in front of the Barbizon Building in Miami cast shadows on the building.

Two beach chairs with an umbrella between them

Red flowers in a green bush with an overhead architectural design.

A pathway winding between green grass and palm trees

Two women walking up a beach path going to the beach. Image shot on LomoChrome Turquoise.

An old automobile sits in front of a building next to a palm tree.

Spatterdock in the Everglades. Image shot on LomoChrome Turquoise 35mm film. — We took a side trip from Miami to see the Everglades!

A man sitting with his dog on grass next to a brick pathway with palm trees in the background

A classic car in Little Havana in Miami sitting in front of murals on a wall.

Water going between tall grass and Spatterdock in the Everglades. — Another photo from the Florida Everglades.

A palm tree casts its shadow on an Art Deco building in Miami Beach.

People enjoying dinner in Adirondack Chairs at the Rusty Pelican.

A man selling drinks in a drink cart on Calle Ocho in Miami

The Monopoly man painted on the side of a building.

People sitting on the sand at Miami Beach with the lifeguard tower in the background.

A large tree amongst bushes and other trees next to water in the Everglades Holiday Park — More Everglades!

Closeup image of the Cape Florida Lighthouse cupola.

Eh…Not so much

Underexposed image of downtown Miami from the marina.

Trees sitting in the water at the Everglades

Two people sitting on a green lawn with a building in the background and palm trees

Underexposed image of an art deco building in Miami

Miami Beach shot on LomoChrome Turquoise 35mm film

The Ball and Chain Restaurant in Little Havana. Image shot on LomoChrome Turquoise.

Final Thoughts on LomoChrome Turquoise

Will I buy LomoChrome Turquoise again? Yep! I realize some people might not like it, but seeing what you get is exciting! Plus, it’s not too expensive, making it a more affordable option than other film stocks. And the best thing: it brings out my creativity, which I can run a bit short on some days!

Have you tried Lomography’s LomoChrome Turquoise before? If so, what are your thoughts? Please share and comment below!