icebear
Veteran
Hello folks,
I thought I'd give the Ilford XP2 a try. I can't develop BW myself and I trust the C-41 Standard process more than some apprentice souping my BW's. So the first two rolls are back and I'm lovin' it.
Some examples and what I tried in PS (levels , set grey/black/white point). Depending on what you choose the typical XP2 sepia tint gets lost but the picture gets a diffenrent character which is not better or worse but different. So which version do you like best ? All are scanned from 5x7" prints with a EpsonV500
Iguana Bar 1
Iguana Bar 2
Iguana Bar 3
I thought I'd give the Ilford XP2 a try. I can't develop BW myself and I trust the C-41 Standard process more than some apprentice souping my BW's. So the first two rolls are back and I'm lovin' it.
Some examples and what I tried in PS (levels , set grey/black/white point). Depending on what you choose the typical XP2 sepia tint gets lost but the picture gets a diffenrent character which is not better or worse but different. So which version do you like best ? All are scanned from 5x7" prints with a EpsonV500
DNG
Film Friendly
I like #1, but #3 is a nice too, just a hint of green with the sepia...
The BW is OK. but not as much character as #1, & #3 has.
The BW is OK. but not as much character as #1, & #3 has.
leica M2 fan
Veteran
I just asked this question in the Gallery under comments to one of your photos. I like the effect of this conversion even more than the regular black and white. I would probably like this in one of mine once in a while but not a steady diet of it.
Fawley
Well-known
I like the sepia version of XP2 as long as the lab does a good job. But I have had a wide range of results from an unpleasant pink tone to something not far off a straight black & white. I don't use XP2 a lot because I do my own processing, but when I do, I now stick with the straight black & white prints which the labs seem to be able to produce more reliably.
icebear
Veteran
Thanks all for the comments,
yes indeed, if you can't process the film yourself and depend on a non-pro lab, it's more or less a matter of luck. After spending hours of scanning prints from my recent trip to Lisbon, I'm seriously considering taking the plunge and go for the M9 but hell I just still didn't hit the jackpot
.
I agree that the color tint is quite special and not for an every day meal. In these cases I like it a lot though.
Cheers.
yes indeed, if you can't process the film yourself and depend on a non-pro lab, it's more or less a matter of luck. After spending hours of scanning prints from my recent trip to Lisbon, I'm seriously considering taking the plunge and go for the M9 but hell I just still didn't hit the jackpot
.I agree that the color tint is quite special and not for an every day meal. In these cases I like it a lot though.
Cheers.
jvan01
Established
I like XP2 as well.
raytoei@gmail.com
Veteran
I soup the normally c-41 processed film in Rodinal The result, if unadjusted, is a nice sepia tone.
Of all the film I have souped in Rodinal, XP-2 Super is the only which I get (a) very small grains and (b) consistent results.
The following is souped in Rodinal for 01 hour in 1+100, or 3ml + 300ml water.
The result, if unadjusted, is a nice sepia tone. Of all the film I have souped in Rodinal, XP-2 Super is the only which I get (a) very small grains and (b) consistent results.
The following is souped in Rodinal for 01 hour in 1+100, or 3ml + 300ml water.
bgb
Well-known
I think number 1 is the best
I was a bit disappointed when i got my first film back and it was sepia, I expected black and white ... it does look good for some images but overall i prefer black and white film to be just that.
Did some b&w with the digital too and that was so easy ... not with an M9 as that's in the 'once i win Lotto' file
I was a bit disappointed when i got my first film back and it was sepia, I expected black and white ... it does look good for some images but overall i prefer black and white film to be just that.
Did some b&w with the digital too and that was so easy ... not with an M9 as that's in the 'once i win Lotto' file
Renzsu
Well-known
I really like XP2 as well, I got a NY trip coming up and I'm considering just shooting it all with XP2.. (iso 200 during the day, 400 when it gets darker). It's a nice and forgiving film if you mess up the exposure a bit.
batterytypehah!
Lord of the Dings
#2. Sorry, I just can't stand sepia. IMO it's always a distraction.
Does anybody else find that the guy on the far right, just stepping into the street, looks like a cardboard cutout? Clearly less 3D than all the other people. A bit of motion blur causing this, maybe?
Does anybody else find that the guy on the far right, just stepping into the street, looks like a cardboard cutout? Clearly less 3D than all the other people. A bit of motion blur causing this, maybe?
amateriat
We're all light!
I think it's the semi-"halo" highlighting of his hair that creates this effect a bit more than motion-blur.
I've used XP2 quite a lot and love it. Availability has been a bit spotty from time to time, so I've shifted more toward Kodak BW400CN, which I also like a lot. (The fact that it's about a buck a roll cheaper than XP2 isn't hurting much, either.)
- Barrett
icebear
Veteran
Yes the guy stepping on the street looks a bit weird because I guess he has bleached his to hair, so with most of the light striking from behind it looks like a halo. But I can't see the cardborad effect.
Here's another example of this series from Lisbon on XP2 :
Lisbon-Conductor
How do you like it ? For me it has some historic touch to it and besides the neon lights inside the car there's hardly anything you can pin point that this is a modern photo. Lot's of places / scenes in Lisbon look like they've been preserved in time. Lot's of TLC needed but therefore nothing has been destroyed by repairs w/o thinking about preserving the historic value.
Here's another example of this series from Lisbon on XP2 :
How do you like it ? For me it has some historic touch to it and besides the neon lights inside the car there's hardly anything you can pin point that this is a modern photo. Lot's of places / scenes in Lisbon look like they've been preserved in time. Lot's of TLC needed but therefore nothing has been destroyed by repairs w/o thinking about preserving the historic value.
amateriat
We're all light!
Generally, I'm not all that big on the sepia "look", preferring to work in as dead-neutral b/w as possible, but I like this image a lot, definitely an out-of-time photograph that would be hard to pin down date-wise.
- Barrett
- Barrett