Fuji Press 1600

olleorama · May 9, 2011

What's your take? Have only seen lousy scans on flickr, seems to be more noise than grain. But a few people does it really good as it seems. How large have you wet printed it with good result? Any improvement if overexposing?

B&Wpositive · May 9, 2011

olleorama said:
What's your take? Have only seen lousy scans on flickr, seems to be more noise than grain. But a few people does it really good as it seems. How large have you wet printed it with good result? Any improvement if overexposing?

I only did color darkroom printing during a class a few years ago, but I was pleased that this film gave better results this way than scanning, where grain builds up. I did an 11x14 shot under spotlights that came out well. Rate your ISO at 1000 or even 800.

CGW · May 9, 2011

Shot at box speed, Fuji 1600 wasn't pretty; even 1/3-2/3 stops over didn't help grain much. For me, it was kind of a last ditch film when I knew fast glass and a monopod or tripod might allow for some workable shots. That said, I always liked Superia 800 way more, even at ISO800. An 8x10 from Superia 1600 rated at ISO1000 was just barely passable. Rated at ISO1250 and 1600, 4x6 was about it with 5x7s showing too much grain for my taste.

Jeff Kubach · May 9, 2011

I shot at 1600, while it it was grainy it was doable.

Jeff

Dirb9 · May 10, 2011

I found I got better color and grain shooting Superia 800 at EI1600, even without changing the development, when compared side by side with 1600. If you need EI 3200 color film, though, I'd rather give it a go with the 1600 than try to push Superia 800 2 stops.

olleorama · May 10, 2011

Thanks for your valuable advice. I did buy a 20 roll box, and will see what I like.

2F/2F · May 10, 2011

I like it if I want lots of grain. But for most things, I would prefer to overdevelop the 800 and lose some shadow detail and gain some contrast.

Where are you finding it in Press packages?

olleorama · May 11, 2011

Private seller on another photo forum. It's well expired. I think I will have to shoot it at 800 or so due to the age.

B&Wpositive · May 11, 2011

olleorama said:
Private seller on another photo forum. It's well expired. I think I will have to shoot it at 800 or so due to the age.

Maybe even EI 500. Remember, even when fresh, it's not really a 1600 speed film. More like 1150. A lot of the grainy, underexposed results you're seeing online are due to underexposure.

I treat it like ISO 1000 when it's fresh. If it's more than a year out of date, don't expect to be able to get even EI 800 out of it. Fast film ages fast. Some rough guidelines:

Fresh....................................................EI 1000 or maybe 1250
At expiration date....................................EI 800 or maybe 1000
A few months past expiration (frozen)........EI 800
A year past expiration (frozen)..................EI 640
Two years past expiration.........................EI 500
3-4 years..............................................EI 500 or maybe even 400

You could theoretically push process, but the more expired the film is, the less well it tolerates that. I wouldn't bother unless you're after a special effect.

2F/2F · May 11, 2011

...and a lot of underexposure is due to using in-camera meters, which most people do. So, you should do your own personal speed test to find out how to rate it, and then expose it well for best results.

olleorama · May 20, 2011

Ok, so this weekend I'm gonna try this film, it's expiry date was in late 2003. I'll shoot it at ASA 1000 or 800. I'm shooting a low light sport venue, with an implicit 'no flash' policy. Hopefully my 50/1.8 will do on the old F100 body. I will use this camera film combination together with my trusty bessa loaded with neopan 400 (EI 1600), so even if I won't get color I'll still get some photographs.

Fuji Press 1600

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