FP4+, Acros and Neopan 400 for the summer

Hi all, I've been really by FP4+ recently, processed in XTOL1:1, they look cracking, for the first time, I think I can say I have produced negatives with nice tones. I dont know how much of this is due to the film. I am thinking of ordering 5 rolls each of Acros and Neopan 400 this time round. Will I get that creamy tonality of FP4+ out of Acros? What do people reckon, will 400 be too fast for the summer. Maybe I just get both and compare!

hoojammyflip said:

Maybe I just get both and compare!

Click to expand...

That is the only way you will ever really know.

They have very different tonality. Acros tends to have flat midtones, when overall contrast is normal. I prefer it for very long exposures because for exposures up to two minutes long, it requires no reciprocity failure compensation. I've done exposures up to 5 minutes and it only needed a half-stop extra exposure to compensate!

For normal work, FP-4 is better, tonally, but is grainier than Acros. For finer grain and good tonality, I like Tmax 100 in Rodinal or in D-76 1+1.

Acros works best in Rodinal 1+50 in my opinion. FP-4 works well in both Rodinal 1+50 and D-76 1+1, with Rodinal being my favorite for it.


Acros, 2 minute exposure.



Acros in normal lighting.



FP-4 in Rodinal



FP-4 in Rodinal

There is a reasonable difference between most films.

FP4+ is in a class of it's own, once you get to understand it with your system of exposure, developing and printing, it's beautiful, as you now know.

Neopan 400 is possibly the closest fast B&W film to FP4+.

I personally use FP4+ in 135 roll and 4x5" sheet film. With Neopan 400 as my fast film.

I develop all of my films in D76 1+1, which is a reasonably close developer to Xtol at the same dilution.

As for Acros, I have limited experience with it, about 15 or so rolls a couple of years ago. I found Ilford's Perceptol to be the best developer for me, for this film.

Mick.

400 speed film is rarely too fast for British summers as the weather is more often dull than sunny. Neopan 400 is a very nice film which I've used throughout the year.

I shoot a lot of 35mm Neopan 400 and develop in rodinal 1:50 for about 8-9 minutes. I might have to buy some of the real thing since I'm running low on LegacyPro. That rhymed.

Bought the Acros and Neopan 400. Then I can get the FP4+ look from the 400, and the Acros can sit in the fridge waiting for the light to make 400 too fast...maybe I should stick it in the freezer . Plus, I get to try two new films. I was interested in the Fuji stuff as I used Neopan 1600 over the winter and was really impressed.

Maybe its thanks to XTOL rather than the LC29 I had been using, making everything look a bit sharper, plus my agitating stuff every 30s nowadays...I think maybe I wasn't get enough contrast into my negatives before, and the XTOL just hits the spot with the water round here in Leamington Spa!

PS, Chris, I really liked the Acros photo at the top

I don't know if i am wrong or no, but i feel that Acros has a silveric look over other films such as FP4+ or Delta or Tmax or HP5, but i could be wrong as i said. Now Acros is my favorite film, then FP4 & HP5, then TMAX 400, and i've got the best result out of Tmax 400 with TMAX developer, i tested D-76 but i really didn't like it much over TMAX, and FP4 and Pan F with D-76 and Ilfosol 3 are great, so i will use TMAX again and will add something like Pyrocat or HC-110, i will save XTOL for future not now yet.

Here are shots with Acros [120], i really fall in love with this film:









If you want to see from FP4, just let me know