is this how Tmax p3200 is supposed to look ?

[raytoei@gmail.com]

I got rolls and rolls of expired 2005 Tmax p3200. I also bought tmax developer to pair with the film.

Last week I shot 2 rolls of p3200, one at box speed of 3200 on the minilux zoom and the other at 1600 with the CL and canon 1.9f collapsible lens.

I developed them in tmax developer.

the pictures have lots of Grain and what's more, they aren't Sharp. Now is this normal ? What if I were to shoot P3200 at 400 or 800, will there be more likely to look like tmax 400 ?

The only variable I see that could jinx the development is the development temp which is 29-31C. But I since I do that with all my films (tmax 100, 400), I am hesitant to point at the temperature.


Attached images, show 1600 and 3200.

You can download the 100% crop here:
http://retro.ms11.net/p3200-at1600.jpg
http://retro.ms11.net/p3200-at3200.jpg


thanks!

 

[Brian Legge]

How is TMAX for pushing? As I understand it, 3200 depends on developers that work well for pushing. These could be unexposed if the developer isn't pushing them all the way to 3200.

Have you shot a test roll to see how fast the film is now? I don't know how quickly it lost speed, but I could definitely see 4 year past expiration 3200 having issues.



Here are a few example shots with it using DD-X as developer. The film was about 6 months beyond expiration date but had been refrigerated until that point:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cannelbrae/4590765373/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cannelbrae/4593369381/

 

[Tim Gray]

It's a grainy film, and no, it's not as sharp as the slower T-Max films. I also wouldn't shoot 5 year old at 3200. I usually don't even shoot it fresh at 3200 - I think it looks better at 1600.

I'd personally shoot stuff that old at 800. That's what I did with the last of the stuff I had that went in 2007.

I've got a comparison here between TMY, TMZ, and Tri-X, with scans (4000 dpi) and wet prints (8x10 and a crop equivalent to something like 19"x26"). You can click on any of the images to see them at '100%' so you can get a sense of the grain and sharpness at that level. I've also got a bunch of TMZ shot at various speeds in various lighting with various amounts of proper and poor exposure in my flickr 🙂

 

[Pablito]

P3200 does not age well. I would not use it beyond expiration date, even if refrigerated. When fresh and developed carefully in tmax developer the grain can be very well controlled. Print with diffusion enlarger.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Your photos look grainier than they should but in the best of times Tmax 3200 is grainy and not very sharp in rendering fine details. Use Tmax 400 for fine grain and sharpness, 3200 for when you need to get the shot in low light. The shots you posted were in light much better suited to 400 or 100 film.

Tmax films REQUIRE precise temp control. if the instructions say 24c, then you MUST use 24c. if not, your photos will not come out right.

These were all shot at EI 1600, this is how the film should look.

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

Thanks for the posts and suggestions. I think i an trouble...i have 50 rolls of expired p3200.... I think I will do a iso test, 200, 400, 800 and 1600 and then soup it in Rodinal stand development and see what comes out.

 

[Tim Gray]

Sounds like a recipe for base fog city to me.

Buy some XTOL or something similar and try it at 800 along with some other EIs to check things out. But I think 800 won't be too bad.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Sounds like a recipe for base fog city to me.

Buy some XTOL or something similar and try it at 800 along with some other EIs to check things out. But I think 800 won't be too bad.

Agreed, and Rodinal will accentuate the excessive grain. Tmax developer is the best for this film in my experience but you MUST be precise with temps, times, agitation!

 

[JayGannon]

I think there is a recent obsession with ROdinal stand developing, its not at all suitable for pushing a lot of films! Try XTol or any other developer suited for high speed and pushing.

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

Test on 800 iso

Test on 800 iso

Page 21 shows temp - development chart:

http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/f4016/f4016.jhtml

Since my tap water temperature is around 30.5C (today), I chose 29C as the nearest temp according to the p3200 temp chart.

I developed it for 5.5mins, for iso 800 in Tmax Developer.

you can view the 100% crop here:
http://retro.ms11.net/p3200-iso800-messy.jpg

Observation: i think 800 is a better iso for this expired p3200, 1600 and 3200 I start to see fog, surprisingly 100 - 400 iso is still acceptable. The negs came out a tad overdeveloped for iso 800, perhaps there is a difference between temperature changes (in this case 29 and 30.5C), as suggested by Chris.

(Disclosure: i adjusted the contrasts of the images)

Action item: shoot real world at 400 and 800 in a roll of p3200 and develop for iso 800 and if the tap water temp is 30.5 develop under 5.5mins.

 

[venchka]

Long expired Tmax 3200 @ 1600. Xtol 1:3 per Kodak time & continuous agitation.

 

[Tim Gray]

Since my tap water temperature is around 30.5C (today), I chose 29C as the nearest temp according to the p3200 temp chart.

Yes, that would overdevelop things a bit since the developer is more active.

I used to think expired TMZ was fine just like slower films. Then one day I hung up two rolls shot at 1600, one reasonably fresh, and one about a year expired (but cold stored). The difference in base fog was quite noticeable.

That scans/prints of both came out fine, but there was a difference.

 

[Rhodes]

Here one of my lastest delta 3200@ 1600! Possibly one of of not so bad. I was at a dinner party and my light meter just went dead 5m before, so I took the all film at 1/60 f/3.5 (maximum aperture of the lens)!
I think this one was 1/30. It's a luminous fountain in the center of the city, I also manage to get the moon...😀


Not as the second photo of Chriscrawfordphoto, I would love to manage tpo get one like that! Tomorrow I will develop the next two rols, that are tmax!

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Rhodes, thanks for the compliment. I love shooting at night with this film. These are all at EI-1600 dev. in Tmax Developer.

 

[venchka]

I wonder what Tmax 3200 or Delta 3200 would look like shot in these night conditions and developed in 2 bath Pyrocat-MC?

 

[Rhodes]

Well, it's a case of trying out! I know Chris, I saw them in the nightphotography here in the Gen. Photo discussion. I develop with DDX, But since it's ending, I thinking of going TMAX.

 

[Zonan]

Chris,

your carnival shots look fantastic! Amazing detail and tonality (as well as scanning) in the last three, especially the "faces" of the middle one.

Rick

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Chris,

your carnival shots look fantastic! Amazing detail and tonality (as well as scanning) in the last three, especially the "faces" of the middle one.

Rick

Thanks Rick. That one of the ride with the faces showing through is a strange one, The moving part of the ride was covered in lights, which you can see blurred across the picture but for some reason the area of that middle face, which should have been covered in light streaks too was not! Don't know why!

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

hi,

thanks for the replies.

attached image came from a p3200 roll rated and developed as ISO 800. the link http://retro.ms11.net/goinghome-friday.jpg shows a 100% crop of the image.

although it is grainier than i expected, i like the urban gritty effect.

the roll was developed in tmax developer.

can someone advise whether XTOL or HC-110 will produce finer grain ?

thanks!

 

[Freakscene]

I wonder what Tmax 3200 or Delta 3200 would look like shot in these night conditions and developed in 2 bath Pyrocat-MC?

Can you post the formula for that Venchka?

Marty