I will give you the old and biased but ILFORD mantra
If it sits still PAN F +
If its moving FP4+
If its moving faster HP5+
If its moving very, very fast DELTA 3200
Technically questionable......but true
Simon. ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology Limited :
What did we learn here?
I think what we learned here is that it's much more than film choice. Ask yourself all the "What, where, when, how and why?" questions and then pick a film that gives you the look you want.
I will give you the old and biased but ILFORD mantra
If it sits still PAN F +
If its moving FP4+
If its moving faster HP5+
If its moving very, very fast DELTA 3200
Technically questionable......but true
Simon. ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology Limited :
plus x works very well for portraits
and if you are shooting largeformat tri x is nice too ...
then again tmy works well and ...
sorry to ask this dramaking, what do you usually shoot bw portraits with ?
maybe you should use what you are accustom to shooting, instead of using random suggestions for film and developers ..
sorry for the whole voice of reason thing, once in a while it whispers in my ear ...
Thomas Bertilsson said:So, up until this post you have gotten recommended:
Kodak Plus-X
Ilford FP4+
Ilford Pan-F+
Kodak Tmax 400
Ilford Delta 100
Kodak Tmax 100
Agfa APX 100
Ilford Delta 400
Efke 25
Ilford XP2 Super
Kodak Tri-X 400
Kodak Tri-X 320
Foma 100
Ilford Delta 3200
Fuji Acros 100
Ilford HP5+
Forte 400
Kodak Verichrome Pan
What did we learn here?
So, up until this post you have gotten recommended:
Kodak Plus-X
Ilford FP4+
Ilford Pan-F+
Kodak Tmax 400
Ilford Delta 100
Kodak Tmax 100
Agfa APX 100
Ilford Delta 400
Efke 25
Ilford XP2 Super
Kodak Tri-X 400
Kodak Tri-X 320
Foma 100
Ilford Delta 3200
Fuji Acros 100
Ilford HP5+
Forte 400
Kodak Verichrome Pan
What did we learn here?
We learned to know what look we desire before choosing a film
I can't see it makes a jot of difference. Use what you have in any format you have with any lens you have. There are brilliant portraitists around who use a myriad of combinations. How about LF and x-ray film? Andrew Sanderson does a great job with that. Jane Bown - 35mm. and loads of others
In my little experience, its more to do with how you place the subject, where the light is and how you interact.
My best portrait for a while was down with 35mm, Legacy 400 @1600 in an old temperamental Kiev rangefinder and Jupiter12 lens. Souped in rodinal 1:100 for 2 hours standing. Prints lovely too.
Well I'm still of the school where I buy film for the project and my processing methods remain constant. It's easier for me to purchase film and keep the developer and agitation methods the same. I started out by going with the suggestions for development offered by the Digital Truth Massive Development chart, and also by those suggestions that came with the Pyrocat HD instructions. I've only had to make minor adjustments to suit my taste.
Why use more than one film? For that matter, why choose more than one lens, or camera, or subject? Yes, you can go commando and learn all the ins and outs of a very limited camera bag. Like I said before to Tom, "Kudos" for being able to do that.
For my money and style, I like more choice in film with a fixed processing regimen. Especially when my enlargement sizes range from 4"x5" to 16"x20" while attempting to maintain the "look" that my images have.
And yes, films like TMax 400 and Delta 400 are VERY flexible films, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend either of them to someone who is interested in a do-it-all film choice.
But again, there are results that are "good enough" and then there's "ideal".
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