Copex Rapid?

[titrisol]

After a very interesting conversation with Donald Qualls I'm wondering about using COPEX rapid for 35mm photogrpahy.

Anyone used it? pros-cons?

I've found a cuple of suppliers of bulk-film (30,5 m) but they require me to buy 10-50-100 rolls in a case. Anyone knows of a supplier?

Thanks

 

[Gerald Koch]

Copex Rapid as is the case for microfilm is usually not perforated and would not be suitable for 35mm use. Certain companies like the Frugal Photographer have microfilm perforated and then sell it for 35mm use.

Microfilm has zilch for latitude and you need to bracket all your exposures.

 

[jandc]

After a very interesting conversation with Donald Qualls I'm wondering about using COPEX rapid for 35mm photogrpahy.

Anyone used it? pros-cons?

I've found a cuple of suppliers of bulk-film (30,5 m) but they require me to buy 10-50-100 rolls in a case. Anyone knows of a supplier?

Thanks

If you want to try out a few rolls to see if it works for you you can get it here:

http://www.jandcphoto.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=207

 

[Donald Qualls]

Gerald, Copex Rapid comes in both perforate and unperfed versions in 35 mm.

John, I was, and I think Pablo was as well, aware of your product, but I understood it to be Copex, not Copex Rapid (one stop difference in film speed -- I, at least, find shooting below EI 50 pretty restrictive). Bluefire Police is Copex Rapid, AFAIK, but in both cases $5+ per roll is a bit steep when single bulk rolls should run around $20 if we can find someone who sells them in singles.

 

[jandc]

John, I was, and I think Pablo was as well, aware of your product, but I understood it to be Copex, not Copex Rapid (one stop difference in film speed -- I, at least, find shooting below EI 50 pretty restrictive). Bluefire Police is Copex Rapid, AFAIK, but in both cases $5+ per roll is a bit steep when single bulk rolls should run around $20 if we can find someone who sells them in singles.

The film we sell is Copex Rapid. This is the same film that is also being sold as Gigabitfilm. You can push the film to higher speed as some do but as we both know there is no free lunch.

We thought about carring bulk rolls but the reality is that most people only use it on rare occasions once they get over the "I have to try it" stage. For the few rolls a year most people shoot a bulk roll turns out not to be such a deal.

 

[titrisol]

In my college years I used to receive for free the "remnants" of a Kodak 35mm film used for heart catheter filming [the markings said KODAK CSF, ESTAR BASE]. A friend of my mother was in charge of that and when the film was less than 10m long he had to throw it away... whch meant it ended in my darkroom and camera.
It developed very well in D76 and clones, tight grain, nice tonality and clear base.

I still wonder if that was some sort of microfilm?

 

[Donald Qualls]

The film we sell is Copex Rapid. This is the same film that is also being sold as Gigabitfilm. You can push the film to higher speed as some do but as we both know there is no free lunch.

We thought about carring bulk rolls but the reality is that most people only use it on rare occasions once they get over the "I have to try it" stage. For the few rolls a year most people shoot a bulk roll turns out not to be such a deal.

Okay, I looked at the description again -- the SPUR Copex does say it's Copex Rapid in the detail description. I might have to tack a couple rolls onto my next order. I've been using Copex Rapid for a year or so in 16 mm, and with what it can do in that format, I know it'll be sensational in 35 mm (and I get pretty darn decent results at EI 50-80 with no developer more exotic than coffee and vitamin C).

I'd probably use enough of the stuff in my Spot (with f/1.4 lens) or Petri 7S (f/1.8 lens) to be worth buying in bulk, if I could buy it in single rolls, even at a reasonable markup from the case price. Of course, from your retail standpoint, that's not much justification, since that bulk roll would probably be a year's supply for me, or a little more -- I'm just finishing up a bulk roll of Tri-X I loaded last summer.