Efke PL 50 vs. PL 100

[RobertP]

I just tried some PL 50. I have used the PL100 for some time now. I'm finding the development time for the 50 to be significantly shorter than the development times for the 100. Has anyone else compared the two as far as development goes. I rated both films at box speed. The only variable (and this could be significant) is the fact I was using a studio shutter with exposures around 1/2 sec. The Pl 50 is producing some beautiful negs. I develop in a pyro developer and the neg's stain is quite nice. I would be interested in hearing of others experience with this film. Thanks

 

[JPD]

They are two compleatly different emulsions, so they can behave very differently in developers. PL25 is more like PL50.

The speeds... The 25 and 50 films were marked as 20 and 40 ASA a couple of years ago (Before that as 14º and 17º DIN). That was changed to 25 and 50 when they started to use DX-coded cassettes for the 135-version. The emulsions are the same.

 

[rusty71]

They are all 3 very different emulsions. The PL50 is my personal favorite. The mid-tones can hold infinite amounts of detail given the proper exposure. They work well in highly dilute Rodinal. 1:100 seems ideal for the sheet film. Test each one separately and don't extrapolate between emulsions. The 25 and 50 have excellent reciprocity chraracteristics for long exposures. I have it on authority that Efke is now using a different type of emulsion that renders the latest batches about 1/3 stop slower than previous coatings. Test accordingly.