In Praise of Slow Films

[Deleted member 65559]

I was both social distancing and time travelling in the darkroom today. By chance I printed two photographs, one from a 6x8cm negative on Agfapan 25, and one from a Leica negative on Fuji Acros. Now I commonly use Tri-X or TMY2 for medium format or 4x5.....but i was struck by the amount of information held in those negatives on slower films. I find both of them to be remarkable, and definitely lament the passing of Agfapan 25.

I have found both Ilford Pan F, and Adox CH20 to be difficult to work with and I have not been able to produce consistently good results with them. I include Acros as slower film, because i'm amazed at the tonal range and character, that seems unlike typical ISO 100 films.

What are your favourite slow films and do you have any particular comments or results to share?

Leica MP, 21mm, Fuji Acros, Pyrocat HD, print on Ilford Classic FB

Fuji GW680lll, Agfapan25, Pyrocat HD, print on Ilford Classic FB

 

[xayraa33]

I miss that long gone Kodak Panatomic X film with an ASA of 32

Still have many negatives from that film ..all developed in Rodinal.

 

[Vince Lupo]

Ilford Pan F exposed at ISO 25, D76 1:3 for 12.5 minutes. I seem to get fairly consistent results.

 

[Dayrell bishop]

Kodak 5302 in rodinal

Kodak 5302 in rodinal

canon eos 600 with 150 macro lens. I think its a duplicating film 6 asa,

 

[Dayrell bishop]

fram the same batch.

fram the same batch.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Panatomic-X was the best slow film ever, in my opinion. I'm still upset that it is gone. Tmax 100 really is a great replacement for it, though. I think Tmax 100 is the best 'slow' film made today. It has fine grain, high sharpness, and beautiful tonality and works well in just about any developer.


I've gotten great shots with Ilford Pan-F, but it is not an easy film to work with, its tonality is not that great and it has a short tonal range compared to most other modern films.


Fuji Acros has ugly tonality with flat midtones and poor microcontrast. Increasing development to raise midtone contrast increases overall contrast too much. It does have finer grain than Tmax 100, but the tonality is so poor that I'm willing to live with the slightly larger grain of Tmax 100.


Other slow films sold now are mostly 'document films.' These are very fine grained ultra-high contrast films used for photographing books and newspapers for microfilm storage in libraries, a technology rendered obsolete by digital scanning. They can be made to have lower contrast with special developers, but the tonality is still harsh with them. They're not great for general purpose photography.

 

[Deleted member 65559]

Chris, Thanks for your comments. Some of your results correspond to mine especially about Pan F. Coming from long tonal scale on 5x7" negs, I found it brutal. I appreciate your comments on Acros, because, come to think of it, my best tonal results have been w photos in the shade w no sky in them.
I found Agfapan 25 to be a marvellous film in every condition, I used it in. For medium speed film FP4 has been a dream in all formats, but obviously doesn't compete with the strengths of Agfa 25. For some reason I avoided TMax100.... maybe due to the early reviews which said it was finicky....Strange because TMY2 has been a standard reliable 400 speed film for me, so on the strength of your comments, I'll have to give TMax 100 a try.
With the exception of occasional use of Xtol for TMax or Delta 3200, Pyrocat in glycol is my standard developer. Thanks again.

 

[gavinlg]

I'm a fan of slow speed films too - I find Pan F in particular to be incredible if you get exposure and development right. Acros has always been hit or miss for me - I agree with Chris that the midtone tonality is strange and flat and difficult to get much out of.
I don't know if FP4 is considered a true slow speed film as such, but it's probably my favourite of the sub 200's.

Ilford 80 is quite nice as well - very 'sooty' mids, makes a nice moody film in the right conditions:

Ortho 80+/xtol


I haven't T-max 100 in years - I might pick some up soon and do a refresher.

 

[gavinlg]

Examples of Ilford FP4 with what I would consider to be its lovely tonality-

35mm/1.4 Nokton in ID11

35/2 ultron in ID11

 

[Larry H-L]

Ilford FP-4 has beautiful tonality, it is my preferred slower film. But if the light level is low, and reciprocity failure becomes an issue, it is hard to beat T-Max 100 or Acros.

My most missed discontinued film is Polaroid Type 55 P/N, which was I think, Panatomic-X.

 

[raid]

Thanks for posting such beautiful images here.

How good do you view EFKE 25?

 

[Deleted member 65559]

Those are nice images GavinG. FP4+ is my go-to-standard. I have a fridge full of it 35,120, 4x5,5x7. I love the tonality absolutely. Agfapan 25 had that level of tonality but was finer. I've got sharpness out of Pan F.....but never the long tonal scale....which it what i'm after. Raid, I never used much Efke 25...but i still have about half a dozen rolls of Efke 100 in 120. In 5x7 E25 was beautiful...nice expansion properties.
Larry, I agree entirely.... to bad you couldn't get Polaroid 55 in 5x7!

 

[Deleted member 65559]

Examples of Ilford FP4 with what I would consider to be its lovely tonality-

35mm/1.4 Nokton in ID11

Yes, Gavin..... Classic FP4....If i could only use one film that would have to be it.

 

[raid]

Thanks. I have used EFKE100 and 50 too.

 

[Mackinaw]

Thanks for posting such beautiful images here.

How good do you view EFKE 25?

I always liked Efke 25. Still have about 300 feet in my freezer.

Jim B.

 

[Deleted member 65559]

I always liked Efke 25. Still have about 300 feet in my freezer.

Jim B.

Great long tonal scale. Too bad these films like Efke & Agfapan 25 are gone
🙁

 

[mbisc]

I started B&W too late (in 2004) to have had access to the classics like Panatomic-X or XX, but for tonality (at least in larger formats), TMax 100 can be quite wonderful - seemingly endless variety of grey scales:



West Fork -- The Overhang (October 2004) by Mike, on Flickr

 

[retinax]

Great long tonal scale. Too bad these films like Efke & Agfapan 25 are gone
🙁

Long scale? I'm often confused by these words. I'd describe it as a short scale, as it's high contrast. That is the recorded scale of course. The presented scale is as long or short as any, from pure black to pure white, that would mostly be a non-statement.

I started B&W too late (in 2004) to have had access to the classics like Panatomic-X or XX, but for tonality (at least in larger formats), TMax 100 can be quite wonderful - seemingly endless variety of grey scales:

I'm with you, too late for most slow films, but like TMX a lot, I can be many different things, very flexible. Too expensive for me now though.

 

[Deleted member 65559]

I started B&W too late (in 2004) to have had access to the classics like Panatomic-X or XX, but for tonality (at least in larger formats), TMax 100 can be quite wonderful - seemingly endless variety of grey scales:

Mike i checked your Flickr page & it really shows on your Delhi & Jaipur images. I'll have to order some TMax100 up with the next B&H order. BTW What film developer are you using with TMax100 ?

 

[Emile de Leon]

The problem with very slow films is they can be very contrasty..
I finally learned how to tame Tech pan..and could blow it up to my hearts content..
Another thing about slow films is..they tend to not look good with lenses with other than stellar resolving power..esp if you print large..
Back in the day..I used my DR Summicron w/ tech pan..and could shoot on a bright sunny day w/o any issues..while more contrasty less resolving lenses..didnt work well for me..
But that could be said for night time shooting as well..I like a lower contrast lens for that too..