new T Max 400

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Ronald M

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I am in the process of finding a 400 ISO black & white film. Tri x has to much grain, Delta 400 only looks good in Xtol or DDx and I want to use my home mix D76 as I have very good results from it.

I tried a short roll of T Max 400 and just followed Kodak instructions for 7.5 min at 68, D76 stock.

The results were outstanding, nice tonal range and very sharp.

I will attach a 100 ppi 600x 400 file of a test subject. Summitar on 111c
 

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I love this film too. My best results have been in D76 1:1 but I've found it keeps its character in most developers. This is my subjective opinion.
 
PS There is probably an increase in grain, but it does really well rated at 800 and developed in Rodinal w/ stand developing .
 
It is also very nice in diluted diafine.
3152094214_bcff4d91a2.jpg
 
I tried a roll of the new T-Max 400 after having shot a lot of the old. It doesn't impress me too much. I like Delta 400 much better (and I like it a lot).
 
I'm happy with TMY-2 as well and have been shooting a lot of it.

elwoods-sign.jpg


mexico-halfmile.jpg


cathie-rowand1.jpg


All at EI 320 and D-76 1+1. The GE sign and the woman were done with my Bessa R2, the Mexico 1/2 mile sign was done with my OM-4T.
 
I like it, but like everything in photography there are compromises. I've tried it in Rodinal 1+50 and then a second bath of Borax stand for five minutes. I have been doing this to try to get more shadow detail. I find that Tmax and other films like them have a tendency to have the shadows drop off quickly. This one I took with an auto camera (Konica C35) and as it was high contrast this method did pretty well (EI 200). If you find the D-76 leaves you with too little in Zones I, II, and III you might try a compensating method with TMY-2 (there are D-76 compensating methods).

3288581504_bf0245e476.jpg
 
charjohncarter said:
I find that Tmax and other films like them have a tendency to have the shadows drop off quickly.
Click to expand...

Yes, I agree. They're nice and sharp but not so hot on the mid-tone quality.

When I do use them I usually pull them to about half rated ISO
and use diluted developers which seems to help.
 
retro, my best work with Tmax100 and Tmax400 (new) has been (as you say) about half ISO, and for me using Ansel Adam's HC-110 compensating development, or (this is with Tmax100 at 50) in scenes that are not bright sun, but even light overcast on down to heavy overcast/open shade, I use HC-110h for 17 minutes, 30 seconds agitation to begin, 10 seconds each minute, 68 degrees. In bright sun, I go with the Rodinal Two Bath that I mentioned above (TMY-2):

3288581194_a6a96a4cf7.jpg


Still, I would like just a little more in the shadows.
 
I'm using it in Barry Thornton's 2-bath and like it very much. Grain is top of the class for a 400 asa film and the tonality is very nice. The highlights are a little more delicate than Tri-X, but the 2-bath developer and metering on the conservative side solves that.
I think I will give it a try in Divided D76.

I've also pushed a few rolls in Diafine to 1250-1600 and it looked good, although I still need to do some more testing with this combo.

Overall I think it's a real winner, unless you are after the Tri-X look.
I still think Tri-X has more range, but Tmax-2 400 beats it in the grain department.
 
All a matter of taste. I prefer HP5+ or TriX. The sample images above are very nice images but look too much like black and white conversions from digital for my taste.
 
Harry Lime (the third man), I still want to know if Barry Thornton's two teaspoon bath has been tried by you. I use it with my own alterations, but find it very good with Tmax100, not as great with Tmax400 (New), but still pretty good. I guess for some of us it is full tonality and with others that is not important.

Highlights?, Harry, that is the one that is really difficult with Tmax films. If you look at an HD Curve there is zero shoulder. So you have to be very careful, no wonder everybody likes TriX.
 
Seems to me that successful pictures taken with TMX/TMY are always high in contrast, with full blacks and full whites, and not too much important happening in the middle tones. My T-Max pictures always lacked tonality in the middle range. Most of the shots in this thread seem like that to me, one exception being the church interior, which does seem to have good gradation. And even that scene was describes as having high contrast.

I just feel that Delta 400 can handle these situations better, with better midrange gradation.

Anyone care to agree or disagree?
 
Rob-F said:
Seems to me that successful pictures taken with TMX/TMY are always high in contrast, with full blacks and full whites, and not too much important happening in the middle tones. My T-Max pictures always lacked tonality in the middle range. Most of the shots in this thread seem like that to me, one exception being the church interior, which does seem to have good gradation. And even that scene was describes as having high contrast.

I just feel that Delta 400 can handle these situations better, with better midrange gradation.

Anyone care to agree or disagree?
Click to expand...

I think the three I posted have nice midtones. Actually, virtually ALL of my photos on my website have been shot with Kodak Tmax films.

Here's some more:

insert-politicians.jpg

TMY-2

dress.jpg

Original TMY

curtain-door2.jpg

TMX

vine-window.jpg

TMX
 
mh2000 said:
Chris, that attic (?) shot is fantastic!!!!

:)
Click to expand...

Thanks, it is one of my best known pieces. It is currently in the APUG Show on Fraction Magazine and has been a good seller over the years since I made it. The house was torn down the day after I shot it, which was New Years Day, 2001.

It was shot on the old Tmax 400, developed in Tmax 1+9 with a Mamiya 645 Super and 45mm lens. I actually shot that image on two separate rolls of film in case I screwed one up in developing. Not because I often screw up processing, that is very, very rare, but because I am not a lucky person and I knew this shot was THE ONE that I HAD to have perfect. Both rolls came out fine (I processed them separately just to be sure).

Look here to read the whole story and see more shots from that same house.
 
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