Extinct emulsions; am I confused?

I"ve been sort of darkroom dormant for a half dozen years. Coming back into the dark, he he, I find that Agfa, Kodak, and others have dropped B&W papers and many films. I do remember reading Kodak's announcement and reaching for the glycerin tablets.........:rolleyes:

OK, so I've done lots and lots of reading on this forum and elsewhere and still have the following observations and questions:

1. Kodak: Kodak paper seems to have been sucked up out of the pipeline almost immediately. Here it is a year later and it has effectively vanished. Freestyle has only a 25 Starter Pack w/film left. None at other big mailorder houses that I've seen. I'm OK with the films still in production.

2. Forte: I never used Forte, don't even recall if it was around on my last cycle. Looking at the paper selection in Freestyle, I want to cry. Very good prices, warm black on white base, semi-matte (I'm not a fan of glossy) and very intriguing overall. How much of this stuff is in the pipeline? Maybe this is why Forte shut its doors, so much post-factory inventory. Obviously, products will disappear one by one and there will probably be some inter-retailer shuffling of inventories. Anyone have an insider handle on Forte? Hello, Freestyle management?

Paul

There's very little Forte stock left, the asset strippers bought the company for it's land and only limited production took place before final closure, and that was all to order.

Kodak's B&W papers were never that highly regarded (here in the UK) they were good but not the best, products changed too frequently but popular in the US so all stocks were snapped up.

Agfa papers are back, well the same emulsions etc but now sold under the Adox name.

Ian

Forte is gone. Kodak (paper) is gone. Agfa (as "Agfa") is gone. Adox is bring back some of the Agfa paper emulsions.

Kentmere is owned by Ilford. I think the Berger papers are also run at one of the Ilford plants (confirmation?).

Oriental Seagull, unknown origin.

Freestyle Arista.EDU = Forte, Arista.EDU Ultra = Foma, Arista II = Agfa, I think.

You can't really go wrong with the Ilford papers. Also I've taken a liking to the Slavich graded stuff, especially the warmer tone (and funky surface) Bromoportrait. Lots of kudos on apug for Slavich and Emaks.

Foma makes some nice FB stuff but their "cheap" RC paper is just that, cheap. OK for learning and proofing (and so far pinhole camera negatives as Arista.EDU Ultra Grade 2) but not happy with it otherwise.

All things being equal, get yourself a pack of Ilford MG IV VC fiber or RC and maybe some Kentmere or the new Adox MCC. 25 sheet packs aren't the most efficient way to buy paper but they are a good way to evaluate what you might like. Then go back and get a bigger box at a better per-sheet price.

I believe it has been posted in other threads here, but Bergger papers are being made custom-to-specification for them at the Ilford plant. They are Bergger papers- just being run on machines at the Ilford facilities. If anything, this should mean an improvement in QC, not that their FB papers were ever dodgy to begin with. I also quite like the Foma fiber-base papers. They have some unique surfaces/textures/colors that are worth playing with.

Actually if you read Bergger's own website they state "Following the closure in January of this year of subcontractor Forte, Bergger has made arrangements with Harman Technologies to adapt their line of black and white coating processes, as well as maintain compliance with EEC rules for chemicals in the photo industry." That's from their press statement last autumn.

Ian

Forte and Freestyle stock

Freestyle lists 20 different paper types, sizes, and surfaces. The only noticable MIA is Polywarmtone in Semi-matte. That's down from 32 in the Fall 2007 catalog, probably reflecting inventory in Aug or Sept. They also had 14 Arista.edu items then, down to four now. So, yes, it's moving.

In film, down to 4 items from 5, that's 35mm. But they added an out of date item. In 120, down from 3 to zero.

They had four Arista II - Agfa films in the catalog and have actually added one.

After I posted my original, er, post, I found that Satter still has 63 items for film and Fortezo, Polywarmtone ARt, RC, some in as little as 5 sheets. Expensive compared to Freestyle.

Also a sample book for $30, now there's a good investment! Jeez, you think they would give them away with an order or something.