film preference?

[reagan]

Since being overcome by FSUs a short time ago, I've pretty much been shooting the cheapest film I could find and sticking mainly to color 400. I've gotten used to the cameras/lenses somewhat so I'm about ready to start looking at splurging a little more for some different films and therefore, ready and willing to hear all opinions. So...

When shooting FSU 35mm w/FSU lenses, what's your favorite film, color/b&w, speed, thoughts, etc.?​

I won't be processing any at home in the near future, but there is a couple of pretty good camera shop processing labs near by so I'm pretty sure about any film thrown out here could be handled.

(And I've searched this here at RFF, but came up with nada. Maybe you've got a thread saved that would cover this ~ if so pass it on.)

tanx

 

[wlewisiii]

Plus-X, Tri-X and Fuji Supermarket^h^h^h^h^h^hia 400 for color in 35mm, same except change the color to Reala CS in 120. All are realtivly cheap and available, but Fuji color films handle skin tones and, especially, mixed light (say available and flourescent) better than anything else I've tried. Kodak films, especially, seem to get a bit wierd whenever a flourescent fixture is near. I have much less experiance with Reala and flourescent, but I expect there to be simularities as there is with all the other film families out there.

If you're not processing it yourself, I will admit to a fondness for Kodak's BW400CN. That's their current "Pro" chromagenic film. It's got it's foibles (for ex, presume every filter is one level darker - a yellow acts like an orange) but of that type of film, it comes closest in my experiance to real bw. But 3 jugs, a changing bag (Diafine solution A & B plus fixer), and even a cheap scanner will make you a believer in old fashioned silver film.

Hope this is of some help,

William

 

[bigdog]

I like Fuji Reala 100 for slow speed color film. It is a low contrast film but I like how it renders subjects on bright sunny days. I think it should be rated at 80 when shooting on low contrast lighted days to give it some punch. For 400 speed I love the Kodak 400UC with fine grain and great colors. I also have gotten great results with the much less expensive Fuji Superia 400 you can find at any retailer.

For black and white I love AGFA APX 100. The tonality and grain are beautiful (grain isn't always a bad thing). I haven't shot much but liked the look of Kodak Plus X 125. My stand by film is Tri-X. I always seem to get great results. I rate it at 250 usually and have it processed normally not indicating the lower ISO rating when shot.

I also love TMAX3200 rated at 1600. I have gotten some great results and shots in low light I would not have gotten otherwise. The plane and cockpit in my album were shot with TMAX3200. I never tried pushing Tri-x to 1600 but some people seem to get decent results. I have inconsistent results with TMAX 100 but that can be a nice film...just hasn't been for me.

I like Kodak's BW400CN but only for portraits. It gives a creamy appearance to skin. Kodak keeps changing names and packaging. I used to get lousy results when this film was printed on color paper (sepia tones) and nice neutral results when printed on black and white papers.

I would recommend buying a variety of 100 and 400 speed color and black and white films, shooting them and narrow it down to what you like and stick with it. Probably more important is finding the right lab to print what you shoot.

 

[popitz]

i'm still in the process of comparing films on my FSU rangefinders since i'm still a newbie. but i might have done a bad job at it because the first film i used on my Kiev 4a was a roll of Velvia 100 and the results just blew me away. unfortunately, i don't have a scanner (film or flatbed) so i can't post the results here (anyone care to donate? :angel: ).

 

[GeneW]

Most of the time my Zorki 3M is loaded with Tri-X, usually pushed to 800.

Gene

 

[varjag]

Tri-X is my favourite for BW, but I really shoot on just about anything at hand.

Kodak ProFoto 100 C41 for color. It is inexpensive and has good natural color rendition.

 

[Iskra 2]

Kodachrome Rules

Kodachrome Rules

All my rangefinders and SLR's use Kodachrome. Beginning with the C3 many years ago, then the Canon stuff, the recent Electro GT and soon in the Zorki 4 when it's repair is complete. Can't wait to see how the FSU glass looks on top of Kodachrome. 😀

 

[Richard Black]

Agfa Vista 100, and 100 only, with a Jupiter 12 and you have entered the Twilight Zone. The result is nearly 3-D. I've found other color film good but there is something about the Vista 100, it is hard to find sometimes. Tri-X, HP-5 and for a real blast to the past, try some Ilford's FP-4, 125asa. Agfapan 25 if you can find it. That's my 35mm. 120mm, Tri-X and the new BW400CN or the FP4. Color, one only Fuji Reala CS.

 

[Pherdinand]

Let's see...
In 35mm I've shot (and still do) BW like ilford FP4 (very nice smoothness and cheap film), XP2 super (good tonality, easy to process but it got expensive lately), kodak BW400CN and Konica VX400 (these two i have found very similar; they are good at iso400 but Kodak is expensive, Konica cannot be found here), neopan1600 (good fast film at iso1000 but can get too contrasty) and delta3200 (VERY grainy at least from the lab I used; sometimes it fits the subject, sometimes it's ugly). I think i would prefer xp2 from all these (speed,quality+ease of handling).

Colour 35mm i shoot fuji NPH400 at 320-400 (great colours for people shots, not oversaturated); fuji reala100 (very sharp film and great punchy colours for travel photos and such) and NPC160 (only used it once, quite good neg but it's expensive here). I've also used kodak gold200 for a while - never again! Best i'd say is reala100, if there's plenty of light. Never used slide film in 35mm.

In 120, it's a bit different. BW: Tri-x at 400 is my favourite together with delta3200 at 3200 for the extra 3 stops - never gets too grainy on a 6x6 negative! Sometimes I have the feeling that it's a different emulsion than the 35mm delta3200 (which should not be of course). XP2 is also good but expensive lately, and tri-x is contrastier. I have a few rolls of FP4+ I still have to try in 6x6...pretty slow and i'm not the BW landscape type of shooter so dunno when will I have enough light for that film. And, i'm curious about the technical pan rolls i still have...
120-Colour: NPH forever! At 320 - 400 it's a perfect film for 6x6. I got some slides (E100SW and Velvia 50) as trade for some filters - so i've shot my first slide film, a roll of E100SW, in 6x6. The detail and colour is amazing. Just some street shots but they look great. Can't do much with it though (no scanning, no projecting, no prints...)so it's inconvenient a bit.

So, i'd say XP2 and Reala in 35mm; NPH, Tri-X and Delta3200 in 120 works for me. But if i start up my own BW development, things might change in favor of traditional BW emulsions.

 

[Igor.Burshteyn]

XP2 super @320 in normal situation, @200-800 when required

 

[rbiemer]

I don't have a single color film--usually what's cheap from Fuji or Kodak and 400 speed. I like the look of the Kodak 400 UC but that look is dependant on who's running the processing machine.
For BW film: My favorite(Agfa APX 25) is out of production but if you can find some try it. APX 100 and 400 are good as well.
Lately I've been shooting alot of Kodak's C-41 BW film--seems that every other time I buy some the packaging is different it's 400 speed and I rate it as that.
IIlford XP-2 I have used only a couple of times as it's tough to find locally but it seemed OK.
My major suggestion would be to take a roll of what you're shooting now to each of the labs near you and see how they do with them. The lab choice will be at least as critical as the film choice IMHO.
Somewhere around here there is a thread about mailorder processing.
Some films I want to try are pretty much all of the ones these folks sell. But I need to settle on a lab for that and I'm going to try these other folks.
I have kept to the Kodak C-41 mainly as the local 1hour place does fairly consistent processing with it.
Have fun in this search!
Rob

 

[reagan]

Okay, I'm having info overload.......... but keep it coming. You've given me some great ideas ..... wow, thanks alot. I plan on doing a lot of note taking comparing films and I know that trying this or that is a life-long project. But you guys have given me some good foundational places to start.

I like shooting in the city on the street and you can't always pick your light; you take what you get, so choosing a film for lighting condition, etc. is out. I'll be looking for something that is fairly flexible for many conditions.

Again, thanks guys and if you think of others, hey bring it.... oh yeah~ thanks for the links too!!

 

[bean_counter]

OK, I'm not a FSU user (yet), I shoot a Barnack, but it's all relative...

I shoot Kodachome for all of the IMPORTANT stuff - big family events, vacations, etc. - whenever I figure my daughter or somebody might want to see them 40 years from now. It's my 'special occaision' film, unless I need speed.

Misc. 100/200/400 color print for when the family wants color prints, quickly w/o hassle. I avoid as much as possible. I usually end up using my SRT101 for these.

The lion's share of my shooting is Tri-X, pulled and pushed as needed, with a little TMax 3200 thrown in. I'm just starting to bulk load Tri-X. I home process in XTOL in a Patterson tank, and scan on a Minolta SD IV, and print as needed from the local drugstore machine. Need to get a cheap printer set up.

As a relative beginner, I find Tri-X and home processing cheap, more flexible, and fun.

 

[Marc Jutras]

Note: I just saw, after posting, the note about FSU. I use a Bessa R2 but film is film so...

I'm still rying different films but things are settleling down.

For my regular "availbale darkness" shoots, Ilford Delta 3200 (EI from 1600 to 6400) is my main work horse. I have it processed by my local lab in X-Tol.

I haven't had time to get my Diafine kit going yet. Samething for my 100ft roll of HP5. When those are in place, I'll have a new tool for EI 800. I'll also try my beloved Delta 3200 between 1600 and 2000 (which is recommended on the Diafine box). Too bad there's no 100ft roll of Delta 3200.

I still have a few rolls left of BW400CN which I use in my Olympus Stylus Epic for snapshots but it will be replaced by HP5 when I get my bulk loading thing going and get EI 800 DX labels to fool my P&S.

Tri-X is superb but it's made by Kodak and I intend to support Ilford as much as I can. HP5 is just as beautiful anyway, if not a bit more gritty which is exactly what I love.

For color work (rare), I use Fuji Press 400 or Superia X-Tra 400.

I just tried a roll of Fuji Provia 400 at EI 1600 and cross processed during a metal concert. It came out really well. Check my gallery or site.


That's about it for now.

 

[Kin Lau]

I have 4 bulk loaders loaded with FP4+, HP5+, APX100 & Tri-X. I started with the Ilford films, and like them because they're just so easy to work with. APX100 will likely be my slow film of choice for a while simply because it's _cheap_! Tri-X + Diafine is the 1250iso speed king.

For those days when I do shot colour it's usually Fuji Superia from 100 to 800, but I rarely shot colour film with my RF's.

 

[wyk_penguin]

Kodachrome, Velvia for the big things. Fuji cheap films for daily use. Some people say Fuji NPH 400 is a good choice for colours in low light, but I just have my B&Ws pushed 1 or 2 stops.
I've heard that the Kodak BW400CN results in purplish shadows and green highlights, though I haven't has time to try yet. Any info on it?

 

[darkkavenger]

One of my favourites in 35mm b/w is definitely Ilford PAN 400, though I recently bought various films to experiment more. Tri-X sounds wonderful, but I can't find it in my area.

 

[Pherdinand]

I've heard that the Kodak BW400CN results in purplish shadows and green highlights, though I haven't has time to try yet. Any info on it?

Not if properly printed, in my experience.

 

[Doug]

I've heard that the Kodak BW400CN results in purplish shadows and green highlights...

Agreeing with Pherdi, I'm sure some lab could manage to mess up the processing to produce that effect on color paper. I know T400CN is a somewhat different film, but here's a sample color scan... And that's "The Long and Short of It" 🙂

 

[wlewisiii]

I've heard that the Kodak BW400CN results in purplish shadows and green highlights, though I haven't has time to try yet. Any info on it?

Only with a fool running the minilab. I'm sure it _can_ be done, but that's not ever happened to me. Of all the chromagenics, in my experiance, that one comes closest to the real thing. The filter factor is much larger - a yellow = an orange on real silver film, but other than that, the BW400CN is much better than what they've sold before.

Take this for what it's worth as it is free advice...

😀

William