Foma Retropan 320 Soft

Starting playing around with this unique film...

I gave up on Foma 120 films after the Foma 200 QC debacle. I occasionally see this with F200 in 35mm and never with 4x5. So, what you saw here isn't shocking.

Thank you for the video Andy.

I love Foma 320. I am one of those former Foma users who found and reported problems with their 200 product in 120 (in fact I don't use it anymore) but Foma 320 has always been nothing but perfect. Never once an issue, a blemish, over hundreds of rolls exposed and developed.

Where did you source your test roll? This is not being produced since a long time, and any roll will now be expired. Not fair IMHO to assess QC of an entire line of products from an expired roll. Was it frozen by any chance?

I know you're a fan of HP5+ but comparing HP5+ with Retropan 320 is like comparing a bottle of Heineken with one of Trappiste Chimay. Most people will agree that HP5+ is just about 'right' and a great all rounder - whereas Retropan is not an all rounder, it's a specialist product used to achieve certain creative results. Some people will hate the Chimay, some people will love whatever novelty it brings to drinking a beer.

Retropan 320 works absolutely fine at box speed (incident Sekonic metering) in my own workflow using its dedicated high energy developer (Foma Retro Special). Overexposing it results in inferior image quality, because the poor halation properties really start to show up strongly.

When I tested it in ID11 I thought the results were subpar, like those you show.

The Retropan expired 09/2024. I bought it before the expiry date. Hardly old. Kept in the freezer. The roll of HP5 was 4 years old. I included HP5 as a standard... So that Retropan's characteristics are more obvious.

chuckroast said:

I gave up on Foma 120 films after the Foma 200 QC debacle. I occasionally see this with F200 in 35mm and never with 4x5. So, what you saw here isn't shocking.

Click to expand...

Yes Not for me either I have the impression and always have had based on what I have seen on Photrio, that Foma's QC is maybe 40 years or more behind Harman's

pentaxuser

I've often had problems with frozen Foma film in 120 (and with Rollei Retro, which is Aviphot repackaged by Foma).

For some reason, frozen Foma has given me backing paper issues, and I ended up blaming the poor quality paper wrapping Foma rolls come packaged in. They are not aluminium foil or plastic (whatever it is that Ilford uses) but made of a material that is perhaps permeable to humidity?

Anyhow, using Retropan 320 rolls stored on a shelf in the basement at a constant 10-20°C, within expiry date, and not refrigerated or frozen, I have not run into artifacts or backing paper issues with this particular product.

Thanks for the video!
I apparently have been trying to make Retropan 320 behave like a normal film, and trying to obtain a normal D-max where none exists.

Excellent video. This is definitely different! I have yet to try it. Looks interesting.