fomapan 100 dev time

[timeUnit]

Massive dev chart and J&C show very different times. Anyone with _real_ info?

I was out taking some night shots on urban/coastal scenes with exposures from from about 15 seconds to 2 minutes.

Recommendations?

 

[Mongo]

No direct recommendation, except to say that I used the times at J&C for Fomapan 200 when I started with that film, and they were spot-on for me. But I've not used the 100 so your mileage may vary. Best of luck to you.

Be well.
Dave

 

[srs5694]

Here are my notes from the two rolls of Fomapan 100 I've shot:

D-76 1:1 dilution, 10:00: A bit dense; try 9:00.
DS-12 2:1 dilution, 9:00: Negativess look good to the eye, but contrasty scans & prints

These were both done at 20C in a stainless steel manual tank with agitation for the first 30 seconds and five seconds every 30 seconds thereafter. I've got a Minolta DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 scanner and a diffusion enlarger, BTW. I rather liked the look of this film in DS-12; it was a bit grainy, but like Fomapan 400, it's a pleasing grain pattern (to me, anyhow), and it produced nice smooth tones. I didn't shoot night scenes with either of these rolls, so I don't know how the film or the development I tried would work with that.

 

[Donald Qualls]

I give Fomapan 100 the same time as 400TX and get negatives I like. For me, that's 21 minutes in HC-110 Dilution G, with agitation every 3rd minute. My experience is with 9x12 cm sheet film, but it was developed with inversion agitation in daylight fill tubes, so is comparable to small tank times.

 

[slm]

Hi, I just recently developed my one and only roll of fomapan classic 100 in rodinal 1:50 for 8 mins at 20 oC, and got very good results. The shots are mostly at dusk, urban (street lights were on but not yet fully dark out). I also added 1/4 tsp. Vitamin C mixed with 1/8 tsp. baking soda. I've read that it results in sodium ascorbate (I think, I still new at mixing/adding to developer), and it make rodinal a bit finer grained. I'm very pleased with an 8x10 enlargement (just a very small hint of grain if looked at closely, enlarged from a 35mm neg). Just wish Fomapan was available locally (Montreal).

Steven

 

[abeku]

I've spent tremendous amount of rolls of FPAN 100 and I've settled down with an EI of 50 iso, D-76 1+1 for 7 minutes at 20C. Delicate grain and superb tonal range.

 

[Gabe Racz]

I've tried FomaPan rated at 100 in D-76 1+1 for 9.75 minutes at 20C and results have been OK (printable), but overly contrasty with loss of detail in the shadows, so I think I'll try abeku's approach.

I've been having problems with scratches on the emulsion in 35mm. I suspect the camera may be the culprit, although I don't have this problem with other films, so handle with care!

 

[timeUnit]

I did 9 minutes @ 20°C in XTOL 1+1. Agitation first 1,5 minutes, then 10 sec/minute. The negs look great! Of course, street lights etc are "blown" but there is a good detail in highlights and shadows on the exposures of above 30 sec.

 

[timeUnit]

And here are some examples. Bigger versions and/or prints will be posted here:

Dead Link Removed

 

[Jordan]

Just wish Fomapan was available locally (Montreal).

I don't know of a Canadian source for Fomapan either, but a friend and I recently had some Arista.EDU Ultra 200 (a.k.a. Fomapan 200) shipped to Toronto from L.A. The cost still works out pretty cheap, even taking shipping, exchange and taxes into account.

 

[slm]

I don't know of a Canadian source for Fomapan either, but a friend and I recently had some Arista.EDU Ultra 200 (a.k.a. Fomapan 200) shipped to Toronto from L.A. The cost still works out pretty cheap, even taking shipping, exchange and taxes into account.

Hey Jordan, was there any duty charged also ? Can I ask what your landed cost was, CAD ?

thanks

 

[Jordan]

Nextreme, I ordered it together with Jon (www.groundglass.ca) who posts here occasionally (but is pretty busy these days, so he may not notice this thread). We had it shipped to his workplace. Our order was about $75 Canadian in total (after shipping) -- we were assessed $24 Canadian at the border, but I don't know how much of this is taxes and how much is duty. It definitely adds up but it's still cheaper than buying locally.

Alternatively, do you have any friends in Burlington VT who you could have it shipped to?

 

[m_liddell]

From what I've read foma 100 appears to be pretty average in sharpness and grain size plus has quality control problems. What is the fuss about this film, it's it just because it is cheap?

 

[eumenius]

Oh no, that's wrong - the only right thing is an issue with bad 09256 emulsion in 120 format, all other thihngs are quite good. I reverse-process Fomapan 100 with excellent contrast, sharpness and grain, and that says much. I didn't use it in 135 format because I can't see for myself much reason for shooting "narrow" B&W film In 120 and 9x12 it's a good classic-style film. I can highly recommend it to anyone because of its pictorial qualities, not the price only.

Zhenya

From what I've read foma 100 appears to be pretty average in sharpness and grain size plus has quality control problems. What is the fuss about this film, it's it just because it is cheap?

 

[slm]

From what I've read foma 100 appears to be pretty average in sharpness and grain size plus has quality control problems. What is the fuss about this film, it's it just because it is cheap?

My main "goto" film has been APX100, easy to get and inexpensive, but the results I got from this Foma roll are far better, and I didn't change anything in my development. So, I' quite pleased with it.

 

[sterioma]

My results with Rodinal are similar to what nextreme reported above: 1:50 9min 20.5°. I have to say I am not particularly fond of this film; I have had better results with Efke 100.

See an example here: (there was a url link here which no longer exists)

 

[srs5694]

From what I've read foma 100 appears to be pretty average in sharpness and grain size plus has quality control problems. What is the fuss about this film, it's it just because it is cheap?

I very much like the grain pattern in Foma films (particularly the 100 and 400). I can't really describe it in precise terms, but there's something moody about it that helps with certain types of subjects. That said, I don't shoot much Fomapan 100, but Fomapan 400 is my standard 400 B&W film.

 

[pauldc]

I like all the Foma films (100, 200 and 400) but I do think there are quality control issues. I have just used some rolls of the 400 in 35mm and had exactly the same problems as people here have described with the 100 - straight line scratches in parallel obviously caused by the machine making the film. The reference number of the films were 03115 8. I did contact the UK supplier about this issue a couple of weeks ago but have had no response. It is a shame because all the films are very good to my eye but I have lost some confidence in them because of the scratches.

 

[Donald Qualls]

Straight, parallel scratches along the length of the film can also come from dirt in the cassette velvet during rewind or if you pull the film out through the velvet (as opposed to popping the top off the cassette), or from a burr or foreign object inside the camera. If you've interspersed other films with the Fomapan and seen the scratches only on the Foma, then it's either a factory problem (likely at the cassette loading stage) or something related to the cassette. If not, try a roll of something else and check that film carefully.

I've never seen scratches like you describe, but I've used Fomapan only in 9x12 cm sheet form.