Back in June 2018, the Ferrania Folks hoped to be in continuous production by Fall

[Agulliver]

Looking forward to eventually getting some P30 120 in the UK. Not that I need any 120 film right now, having a good stash, but I am certainly looking forawrd to it's availability.

 

[Tel]

abruzzi said:

The story I got from Zeb says:

It has been a weird little route to us acquiring this film but the long story shortened is that we had been bugging Ferrania for some time about 120 availability and getting nowhere, then they announced the closing of their North American offices so we reached out to them in Italy to see what was up with the future of their film and they offered to sell film directly to us from Italy. At the time we just wanted to get the Orto in stock but they offered to let us order some 120 P30 as well which we jumped on.

I bought a couple of cameras and some lenses from Blue Moon and rode the bus out to their shop last time I was in Portland and met the people there, and I have to say this doesn't surprise me at all. Got my rolls on order from them too!

 

[abruzzi]

They're also one of the few places in the US that has Bergger Pancro in stock (35mm and 120, no sheets...)

I'm curious when I get my P30 on Monday to compare their packaging with Ilford and others. I wonder if they are finishing/packaging themselves or contracting out.

 

[cmacd123]

They're also one of the few places in the US that has Bergger Pancro in stock (35mm and 120, no sheets...)

I'm curious when I get my P30 on Monday to compare their packaging with Ilford and others. I wonder if they are finishing/packaging themselves or contracting out.

the 35mm is shipping recently in Unique packages, in "Ferrania" plastic cans (same details as the old Arista Color films) Here is hoping that they are managing to finish their 120 in House, as that would represent another major film packaging machine up and running. Please use the machro lens when you get the film so we can see the Very small details.

 

[abruzzi]

I don't know if Ferrania is packaging the 120 themselves or outsourcing, but their packaging looks a lot like Foma packaging, and it is real, not vaporware:

This looks like Foma here:

And this as well. Many of the Foma rolls I've used use tape here that is adhesive all the way around like the P30 roll, and the very end is folded over a little crooked as you can see in this shot:

Finally, printing on the beginning of the paper:

 

[abruzzi]

Finished the first roll, and will hopefully be developing today. The tape end of the roll has peel-and-stick adhesive like Foma rolls, but it has prettier tape than Foma:

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I was under the impression that they are doing it all in-house now...
After I come back from Japan, hopefully by then ,B&H or The Photography Project will have some in stock...

 

[abruzzi]

they may be doing it themselves, but the results look enough like Foma that either Foma is doing it, or they have the same or similar machines and materials.

 

[abruzzi]

FYI, the edge printing on the film only has the letter P then 4 inches later the number 30, then 4 inches P and so on. You can see the P in this shot, but not the 30:

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

FYI, the edge printing on the film only has the letter P then 4 inches later the number 30, then 4 inches P and so on. You can see the P in this shot, but not the 30:


View attachment 342778

That's because you hung the film up vertically, to dry. The 30 slid down from the P...

 

[abruzzi]

BTW, thats PyrocatHD. I don't see much stain, especially compared to the Bergger Pancro behind it. I haven't seen any other times for Pyro, so this was a wild guess of 18min at 1:1:100, 20C, with the film shot at EI50. I'll have to scan in a few days to see how it looks.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

BTW, thats PyrocatHD. I don't see much stain, especially compared to the Bergger Pancro behind it. I haven't seen any other times for Pyro, so this was a wild guess of 18min at 1:1:100, 20C, with the film shot at EI50. I'll have to scan in a few days to see how it looks.

I got good stain with Pyrocat-HD 1+1+50 with the very first roll of 35 I shot a few years ago... The film was quite underexposed though, as I exposed it at box speed... EI 32 for the next roll was much better. Stain was good.

 

[koraks]

especially compared to the Bergger Pancro behind it.

The bergger mostly seems to have a pretty massive amount of fog, mostly comprised of dye. There's something in that film that really seems to trigger (excessive) dye formation from the pyrocat developer. It suggests that most of the color you have on those negatives is not image-forming dye.

Is that P30 negative shown here slightly underexposed, but a little overcooked? Looks like it to me...?

 

[Agulliver]

They say they're doing 135 in house. They've not said if the 120 is confectioned in hosue, as far as I am aware.

I'd say that's the same backing paper that Foma use.

 

[Rolleiflexible]

I know I should read the previous 1200 messages but for a newcomer: Can someone explain what the P30 film offers that distinguishes it from other films already on the market?

 

[abruzzi]

Is that P30 negative shown here slightly underexposed, but a little overcooked? Looks like it to me...?

Certainly possible. I exposed that visible shot at 1/250, ƒ8 which makes the EI about 50 on a bright sunny day without a cloud in the sky @ 11am. I didn't have a meter with me so I was guessing all my exposures. I chose 18 minutes fro dev time because most of the other P30 times I saw with other developers seemed to be a little on the long side (except HC110B whis is listed at 5 minutes). Since average time for other films in PyrocatHD seemed to hover around 12-14 minutes, I rounded up to 18 for my first try.

(and yes--Bergger Pancro always has more base fog that any other new film, and so even the unexposed parts of the film turn brown in PyrocatHD. But when I dev Tmax 100 in pyro, the image area also has more noticeable brown stain that what I see on the P30.)

I'll probably try to scan a few frames tomorrow, but the shadows all still have image in them (notice the shadow cast by the sofa in the lower frame) but the bright areas may be a bit over done.

 

[koraks]

Ah, thanks for clearing that up. Makes good sense!
I never tried the Bergger film so was a bit surprised to see this. I'm primed to base stain currently because I'm working with carbon transfer a lot right now and a very clean base with no stain and fog is preferable with that process.

 

[abruzzi]

yeah, the Bergger film is very unusual, and the level of base fog is surprising, but it does seem to scan and print fairly well. I've tried Bergger 120 roll film in PyrocatHD twice, and both times (including the one hanging in the background) had visible bubble in the final developed film. I've never had that with any other 120 film and never had it Bergger in sheet film. So thats my last attempt--I'll find a better developer for Bergger 120. Its better in sheets anyway.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I know I should read the previous 1200 messages but for a newcomer: Can someone explain what the P30 film offers that distinguishes it from other films already on the market?

It's claimed to be panchromatic, but not really... Reds are rendered quite dark compared to majority of pan films that are sensitised to around 650nm. It more like an extended yellow orth film. It's also not an ISO 80, as many have discovered, including myself. EI 32 works better for me. Apparently it has more silver than most, it's extremely fine-grained, and very sharp.

 

[Rolleiflexible]

EI 32 works better for me.

Maybe that's why its trade name is P30?

I see Ferrania is also offering another film sold as an Ortho film. Interesting, that their "panchromatic" P30 also skews to the ortho side of the scale.

 

[Agulliver]

I know I should read the previous 1200 messages but for a newcomer: Can someone explain what the P30 film offers that distinguishes it from other films already on the market?

It's virtually grain free in 135, I can imagine that in 120 it could be capable of *very* big enlargements. It's not an orthochromatic film as some claim but it's less sensitive to red than it is green/blue. Count me as one who feels it isn't really 80ASA, I find it works better at 50ASA/ISO. High contrast. Doesn't really look like anything else on the market. Not an everyday film but useful for when one wants "that P30 look".

As for the name, back in the 50s and 60s when this film was originally formulated, the original Ferrania company ad several "P" films in the line....the "P" just means panchromatic. P30 was 80ASA nominally at least. P33 was 160ASA. P36 was 320ASA. The 30 doesn't refer directly to any ASA speed, or DIN speed.

 

[Mackinaw]

The several rolls of 120 P30 that I ordered from Blue Moon arrived in my mailbox today. I'll shoot some this weekend while at a birthday party. I shoot 35mm P30 at an EI 25 and process in D96. At this speed, and in D96, excessive contrast hasn't been an issue.

Jim B.

 

[AnselMortensen]

Four rolls of 120 ordered from Blue Moon 7/3/2023.
Received 7/5/2023.
Looking forward to trying it out.

 

[schyter]

shop in Italy >> http://www.puntofoto.it/shop.asp?id_cat=42

 

[cmacd123]

this weeks check shows the North American site as Opening soon. I wonder if they realized that it was letting folks put rolls of ORTO into a cart at a price of $0.00

FILM Ferrania

FILM Ferrania

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