Which B&W flim to take to Europe

thawkins

thawkins

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As stated in a previous thread, I am taking a D90 and a film RF (Leica M3 or a Retina IIa) on a European trip this fall. I plan to shoot only b&w in the RF camera. I am leaning toward Delta 100, Acros 100, Efke 100 or Fomopan 100. What are the opinions on these films and who in the USA should I send them to for processing. Eagerly awaiting your opinions.

Tom
 
thawkins said:
As stated in a previous thread, I am taking a D90 and a film RF (Leica M3 or a Retina IIa) on a European trip this fall. I plan to shoot only b&w in the RF camera. I am leaning toward Delta 100, Acros 100, Efke 100 or Fomopan 100. What are the opinions on these films and who in the USA should I send them to for processing. Eagerly awaiting your opinions...
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Tom, I wouldn't take any film on a trip that I hadn't tried out before. But — I can't resist saying — your post reminds me of the all-time classic question that I saw on the photo.net Leica forum a few years back, "I'm going to Cracow, what film should I take"? I couldn't resist being facetious, but at least your question is about which ISO 100 film people recommend. Me, I would use an ISO 400 film.

—Mitch/Bangkok
Bangkok Hysteria Book Project
 
I was there in summer (June/July) last year. Although I used both 100 and 400 I found that 100 ISO was preferable. However, with the change in lighting in Autumn I'd be thinking 400 was probably a better choice.
Delta is a little less tolerant of exposure errors than the others. Gradation of tones tends to be more even and can look a little flat - very much a personal preference thing.
Fomapan I've had quality problems with and won't use again. Lots of pinholes and specks in the emulsion.
Acros is good and Efke is also good but has a soft emulsion that can more easily be marked in processing. Fujifilm have a professional service in the UK, if that's any help. http://www.fujifilm.co.uk/professional/home.html
Given you're in the USA I'd be thinking Tri-X and Plus-X, but I agree with Mitch - take something you're familiar with and happy with.
 
B&W C41 process should be considered, XP2 or the Kodak BW400. You can also get them developed locally there without worries.
 
Armoured said:
B&W C41 process should be considered, XP2 or the Kodak BW400. You can also get them developed locally there without worries.
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I have never cared for the C41 b&w films. In my eyes they just never match up to the product produced by "real" b&w films. I am still interested in knowing about a good lab in the USA. There a few here in the north Texas area but their cost is outrageous.

Tom
 
Tom:

When I shoot in the summer in Europe, I mainly use Ilford Pan F+, Neopan 100 and Neopan 400 (or Tri-X)... In the winter months I bring Neopan 400, 1600 and TMAX 3200... I highly recommend my lab in L.A. (www.richardphotolab.com) and you can even ship your film straight from Europe with no worries as long as you ship via FedEx or UPS. Call them up, ask for Bill and tell him I sent you, they will take great care of you.

Out of the films you mentioned, I love Neopan 100 and Efke (any of their emulsions is fantastic)... I rarely shoot Delta and never used Fomapan.

Cheers,
 
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I'd use Tri-X and TMax3200, but if you don't like grain, TMax400 has an amazing tone and the smallest ISO400 grain...(Looks like ISO100 grain)

My % of used ISOs this last year has been 3200 60%, 400 30%, 100-50-25 10%.

Cheers,

Juan
 
Haven't shot with any that you've mentioned... on a trip a few years back, I had taken TriX & Hp5+.

Either:
-can be pulled or pushed (I've used them from iso 200 to 1600) to allow for different lighting.
-are fairly tolerant if you're guessing exposures.
 
Don't know about the rest of Europe, but if you come to the UK, London in particular, you'll find it very easy to walk into a shop and get C41 processing/scanning, so I'd go with a C41 B&W like XP2. It's 400 ISO but has the grain of most 100 ISO films, cheap to buy, cheap to process, very forgiving.
 
The solution is simple, but you might not like it. Tri X (or Arista Premium 400), and for development, you should send it to yourself. This is the most versatile film, you can expose it between EI 100 and 1600 and you will get printable results. If you really have to stick to a slower film, then get Plus X (Arista Pemium 100) and try any local lab. Since it is a Kodak film, it is les likely that they will develop it incorrectly.
 
As previously stated, you should bring whatever film you are comfortable with. But in my opinion, if I were to bring only one type of black and white film, it would be an iso 400 for versatility, HP5 or tri-x (I have more experience with these films). If the sun is too bright, you can easily stop down the aperture or increase the shutter speed. If there's not enough light, the extra two stops would be very useful or you could easily push the film to 1600 without problems. But if you would be using an iso 100 film, you'll have a hard time if there's not enough light unless you have a tripod with you.
 
I agree with Alaric - as the weather here in Europe can be dull and overcast most of the time I'd also bring some 400 film and perhaps a yellow filter as well (for the rare days when the sun does pop out if you just happen to have the 400 loaded up that day). Trust you enjoy your trip and get loads of shots.
 
Mongo Park said:
I agree with Alaric - as the weather here in Europe can be dull and overcast most of the time I'd also bring some 400 film and perhaps a yellow filter as well (for the rare days when the sun does pop out if you just happen to have the 400 loaded up that day). Trust you enjoy your trip and get loads of shots.
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Depends on where you are - Europe is a big place.

To the OP: What films do you use in the USA? Why change?

Cheers,

R.
 
Depends on where in Europe you'll be.

Tri-X at 400 worked beautifully in London, but when I got to Greece, I had a polariser on a lot of the time.
 
In a situation like this, where it is not practical to go back and take the shot again, I would use Tri-X because it is so forgiving.

--Doug
 
The films that you are "leaning towards" are the last that I would consider. I went to Europe for 4 months earlier this year and shot 99% Tri-X. I would also consider Fuji Neopan 400 or Ilford HP5+ 400. You can shoot any of these films at ISO 200 through 1600.
 
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