Best 400-speed B&W 35mm Film?

[RalphLambrecht]

Yellow filter. Do not overexpose or over develope.

Use a spotmeter on the sky and set exposure so it is no more than 2 stops above middle grey. You will probably under expose foreground under many conditions.

Then you think about two bath developers or overexpose and underdevelope to cut contrast.

Paper flashing in the darkroom will help to grey a white sky.

Grad filters or burning are a very last resort for me.

When in doubt, overexpose and underdevelop!

 

[Eric Rose]

Tmax-400 and #8 yellow, or XP2 is my combination.

What soup do you use for your TMax 400? Rated asa, development times?? The curious must know lol.

Another question, why do you prefer TMax over the Delta product?

Thanks,

Eric

 

[viridari]

What soup do you use for your TMax 400? Rated asa, development times?? The curious must know lol.

I know the question wasn't directed at me, but for Kodak TMY-2 (TMax 400), I use Rodinal 1+25 for 5m at 20C, vigorous inversions for the first 30 seconds, then five full inversions every minute (I'm not gentle or vigorous with these inversions. Just pick it up & turn it over a few times). So far I'm rating it at box speed & have been pleased with the results.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

What soup do you use for your TMax 400? Rated asa, development times?? The curious must know lol.

Another question, why do you prefer TMax over the Delta product?

Thanks,

Eric

Eric

I never tried any kind of soup. I have tried very strong coffee once, and actually got a faint negative. The recipe was published in Darkroom User Magazine. But, I have much better success with film developer.

D76 (or ID-11) 1+1 in a Jobo.

I prefer the T-grain films. The Delta films don't do it for me. They got a nice emulsion, but T-grain is hard to beat. Funny enough, I think that Kodak Tmax-400 and Ilford Multigrade IV-FB is a perfect combination. But, this has more to do with personal taste and preference than technical data.

 

[Sirius Glass]

What soup do you use for your TMax 400? Rated asa, development times?? The curious must know lol.

Another question, why do you prefer TMax over the Delta product?

Thanks,

Eric

There are a number of soups that I like, but for film I use XTOL full strength and that produces small grain. As far a grains go, I prefer rye, gin or bourbon.

Steve

 

[mopar_guy]

There are a number of soups that I like, but for film I use XTOL full strength and that produces small grain. As far a grains go, I prefer rye, gin or bourbon.

Steve

I don't think that gin gets it's flavor from grain.:rolleyes:

 

[Ronald Moravec]

If the skies are blowing out, you are overexposing/developing.

Todays films will reproduce blue skies as mid grey. True blue skies are somewhat rare and it is hard to recover from the normal washed out blue sky you THINK of as blue.

New T Max 400 is very superb as is Delta 400 in Xtol or DDX only, XP2 chromegenic is nice also.

 

[Uncle Bill]

Kodak Tri-x 400 or llford HP-5.

 

[Asmara]

Tmax 400 with red filter +1 exposure and Develop with D-76 or equivalent.

 

[Keith Tapscott.]

D76 1+1 in a Jobo.

I prefer the T-grain films.T-grain is hard to beat. I think that Kodak Tmax-400 and Ilford Multigrade IV-FB is a perfect combination.

I can`t argue with that. I also like FP4 Plus and HP5 Plus for aesthetic reasons as well as T-Max 400 and I develop all three of those films in D-76 1+1.
I also use MG-IV FB which along with Ilford Galerie are my favourite papers.
I think if I had to choose just one B&W film, it would be TMY2.

 

[Bruce A Cahn]

There was a change in Tri-X 400 a few years ago. It went from being an excellent B&W film to one of the best I have used. If you have not tried it you should. Agfapan 400 was also a very nice film of that speed, but is discontinued. It was not in the class of the new Tri-X. It would be really nice to get it in sheets.