High speed (~1000EI) film+dev combo for portrait work in poor available light

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MattKing

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When I'm doing portraits, I'm often not even looking through the viewfinder -- I'm trying to make eye contact with the subject.
1697584429701.png
 

GregY

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When I'm doing portraits, I'm often not even looking through the viewfinder -- I'm trying to make eye contact with the subject.
View attachment 351304

Absolutely.....it's a lesson i learned from doing LF......and it does work to put a subject at ease when you're not squinting through a finder.
 

chuckroast

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I'd like to take some portraits in a setting I'm not overly familiar with. The subject is indoor, no flash or artificial lighting available. The light source is a window placed beside the subject. I do have a round silver panel I could use to reflect the window light on the shaded side of the face.

I will meter exposure on the subject's face with a Sekonic incident. I will use 35mm and 120 film. Camera will be handheld.

A couple of crucial considerations
  • My first concern is avoiding motion blur. So the film/combo chosen will need to allow me to shoot at least 1/30th with my TLR or 1/60th with my SLR
  • Grain is not a concern - in fact, good looking grain (eg I find Kentmere 400 in D76 1+1 good looking) is a plus
  • The film stock must not be extra red sensitive. I intensely dislike portraits rendered on film with increased red sensitivity (> 650nm usually)
The following options are out:
I am considering the following possibilities
  • Ilford HP5+ in Microphen 1+1 exposed at 800EI
  • Kentmere 400 in Microphen 1+1 exposed at 800EI
  • Kodak TMAX 3200 in D76 or XT-3 1+1 exposed at 1000EI - this is only availabe in 35mm though.
  • Kodak TMAX 400 in D76 or XT-3 1+1 exposed at 800EI
Any other combos and thoughts/experiences on the above appreciated.

My first choice for this would be Plus-X developed in D-23 because I have lots of Plus-X frozen. Tragically, it's no longer available, so ... I would shoot this on Double-X, processed in Pyrocat-HD or D-23.
 

snusmumriken

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Personally, I’d go with HP5+ because it has great latitude and tonality.

I guess the argument against a tripod is that it completely fixes your viewpoint, which may be what you don’t want? We do know that Bown managed without in an era when Delta 3200 and TMAX 3200 were not yet available.

Good luck! I look forward to seeing the results.😁
 

GregY

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Personally, I’d go with HP5+ because it has great latitude and tonality.

I guess the argument against a tripod is that it completely fixes your viewpoint, which may be what you don’t want? We do know that Bown managed without in an era when Delta 3200 and TMAX 3200 were not yet available.

Good luck! I look forward to seeing the results.😁

It seems like a planned session.....no reason you can't move your tripod or monopod to change viewpoints....it's commonly done.
 
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albireo

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Personally, I’d go with HP5+ because it has great latitude and tonality.

I guess the argument against a tripod is that it completely fixes your viewpoint, which may be what you don’t want?

Yep. That's correct.

We do know that Bown managed without in an era when Delta 3200 and TMAX 3200 were not yet available.

Good luck! I look forward to seeing the results.😁

Thanks. Will do.
 
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I can understand not wanting to use a tripod, and if you're really close to a large window, you might be fine. If you have a tripod you're familiar with, I'd just keep it near in case the light is too low. If you're not familiar with a tripod, I don't think a portrait session is a good time to get familiar.
I would avoid pushing film, it decreases your chances of shadow detail if you don't have the shadows under control. Good portraits with crushed shadows, which means you'll get silhouettes, ar e possible but require very careful posing IMHO. If you end up wanting high contrast, you can still print full range negatives at a hard grade.
 

bluechromis

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For 35 mm, I'd suggest Kodak Tmax P3200. I find it punchier than Delta 3200. It is a bit slower than D3200 at ISO 800, but EI 1000 is in its wheelhouse. But it is not available in medium format, so you may not want the complication of different films. FX 37 and FX 39 will give strong grain, a speed increase and excellent sharpness. FX 37 is a home-mix and FX 39 is sold by Adox.
 

bluechromis

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I would also encourage you to try using a tripod. It seems a bit different at first, but we soon adjust to it. There are a number of advantages besides reducing camera shake. It allows you to maintain eye contact with the subject. One way to cope with low-light is to use a wide-open aperture. The shallow depth of field of that can be appealing. But you will need to be precise in focusing. That will be easier to maintain using a tripod.
 

GregY

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One can’t help but wonder who and why would set such strict limitations on a shoot that sounds like it’s conducted in relative private?

Red dominance depends hugely on the light.
If it’s gray and overcast you will get the slightly grittier look you get with blue/green sensitivity.
If it’s golden hour or direct sun then even HP5 will show some of the brightening and porcelain-ish effects of red sensitive film.
Use filters correct to this.
The same thoughts crossed my mind..... if it is a private session, why not try some different approaches ?
 

dynachrome

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If you need the speed in the 1000 or higher range, TMAX 3200 will give better shadow detail than pushing a 400 speed film. It has grain, of course, but the pattern is tight. It works well with phenidone based developers. My best results have been with Microphen and Clayton F76+ or its Arista equivalent from Freestyle.
 

Amine Sultan

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A very economical combo that may be of some interest. I have not tested it yet though.

 

MultiFormat Shooter

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If you need the speed in the 1000 or higher range, TMAX 3200 will give better shadow detail than pushing a 400 speed film. It has grain, of course, but the pattern is tight. It works well with phenidone based developers. My best results have been with Microphen and Clayton F76+ or its Arista equivalent from Freestyle.

How's TMAX P3200 work in XTOL? Unfortunately, I am limited to having my film lab-processed, at the current time, and they use XTOL.
 

GregY

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Albireo, have you taken any light meter readings to see what the illumination level is?
 
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albireo

albireo

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If you need the speed in the 1000 or higher range, TMAX 3200 will give better shadow detail than pushing a 400 speed film. It has grain, of course, but the pattern is tight. It works well with phenidone based developers. My best results have been with Microphen and Clayton F76+ or its Arista equivalent from Freestyle.

Great info. Thanks! I'm tempted to order a few rolls of HP5+ in 120+35mm, a few of TMAX 3200 and some Microphen, and optimise the two combos in my workflow. I also have some Adox D76 (which if I understand correctly would be similar to F76?) so that is also an option.

Something I want to learn from this exercise is whether these super-high iso films can become a serious option for general available light winter photography or if they're really a specialty product for 'emergency' use.
 
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snusmumriken

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Something I want to learn from this exercise is whether these super-high iso films can become a serious alternative for general available light winter photography or if they're really a specialty product for 'emergency' use.
It will be interesting to hear what you conclude, in due course. Something to beware of with those very fast films is shelf-life: check the 'best-before' date on the box.
 
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albireo

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It will be interesting to hear what you conclude, in due course. Something to beware of with those very fast films is shelf-life: check the 'best-before' date on the box.

Johnatan, I'm not sure why you're unable to pm me. I might delete a few messages in my inbox in case it's full.
 
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Here's a couple of examples pulled from Flickr to show what I have in mind in terms of scene settings (though I am looking for more grain and definitely not going for the clean LF look in some of these)













As you are wanting a grainier look, try Delta 3200 rated at E.I. 1250 and develop in Rodinal 1+25 for 11 minutes at 20 degrees centigrade.

That is what is recommended for that film and developer combination in the Agfa fact sheet that I have. I hope that is of some use to you.
 
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albireo

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As you are wanting a grainier look, try Delta 3200 rated at E.I. 1250 and develop in Rodinal 1+25 for 11 minutes at 20 degrees centigrade.

That is what is recommended for that film and developer combination in the Agfa fact sheet that I have. I hope that is of some use to you.

Thank you Keith. I have some experience with Delta 3200 in 120 exposed at 800EI and developed in Rodinal 1+25 using Kodak agitation. I really like the results but I've only used it for landscapes and travel photography.

Here though I'd use it for portraits of pale skinned people and going by the Ilford tech sheet Delta 3200 digs a little too much into the reds, which for people tends to give a look I generally don't favour (pale lips, waxy skin tones). For this reason I had I initially excluded this film but I might reconsider if I see interesting examples.
 

Xylo

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I once shot some HP5 at EI1600 and processed in HC-110 Dil.A
The results come down to about the same as developing in paper developer for twice the development time for FB paper.

Here's what it looks like
L'écrivain small.jpg
 
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