Ilford Surveillance Film -- Long Rolls

David William White · Feb 14, 2008

Hi, all:

Despite shooting mostly 4x5 & 120 nowadays, I kinda did something silly and bought a lifetime supply of Ilford Surveillance 35mm film and am willing to part with a roll or two if anyone wants/needs some general purpose 400 speed film.

I've received four 610 meter rolls. Yup. I'm probably good till I die with two rolls. I'm not really interested in respooling down onto rolls that will fit a bulk loader, so if anyone is interested in 610 meters on one roll, and is comfortable with respooling, then PM me and make me an offer.

I just ran my first roll through my Nikon, and it seems fine, but on the grainy side, even for 400. I've posted two scans in the Standard Gallery as samples. I'm going to down-rate and muck with developers a bit to see what really works for this film, but if anyone knows of tried and true developing regimes for this stuff, please let me know.

Jerevan · Feb 14, 2008

Looking at the info (or rather lack of it) on Ilfords site, the "companion product" for it seems to be ID-11 which is the equivalent to D-76. Rodinal is grainy, but try it 1:50 and a bit longer development. My guess is that the HP5 dev times could be a decent starting point.

GeoffHill · Feb 14, 2008

Is it not more like SFX 200, IIRC, traffic film has extended IR capability so it can be used with an IR flash to not blind drivers at night

David A. Goldfarb · Feb 14, 2008

Does it have extended red sensitivity? I thought SFX was supposed to have been developed from the surveillance film.

With rolls that long, it's probably easier just to measure and cut the film in the dark. 36 exp. is about 6 feet. I used to do this with microfilm while I was doing research in Poland in the late 1980s and didn't have my bulk loader. I put two pieces of tape on the wall in the bathroom to measure in the dark, and loaded the film in cartridges from a film lab. Despite the general shortages at the time, there wasn't much demand for microfilm, so it was cheap and available.

AgX · Feb 14, 2008

Concerning loading, one could make a gate in a standard b-type bulkloader and add a big chamber to hold that long-roll. The roll should then be placed on a spindle with a ball-bearing.

AgX · Feb 14, 2008

David A. Goldfarb said:
Does it have extended red sensitivity? I thought SFX was supposed to have been developed from the surveillance film.

David,

Ilford Photo has two `Surveillance´films: One plain one so to say and one with the term `Traffic´ added. The former is a panchromatic one intended for normally lightened rooms, the latter has an extented red sensitivity obviously intented for speed control.

The latter has the same sensitivity curve as the the SFX 200, but has got a PET base and one more stop speed.

David William White · Feb 14, 2008

Thanks. No 'Traffic' on the box. Presuming then panchromatic 400.

PhotoJim · Feb 14, 2008

Where on Earth did you get 2 1/2 km of this film?

David William White · Feb 14, 2008

Almost didn't. Seller cancelled the transaction when shipping came to $20 over estimate: "I guess you probably don't want it, if it's going to cost you an extra twenty". Geez, I'm thinking, this stuff is worth over $1500 per roll -- I'm getting the whole batch for pennies on the dollar and he thinks I'll blink over $20!!!

Mick Fagan · Feb 15, 2008

This is a great film, I purchased a few 30m rolls at $5 a roll.

By loading 18 frame rolls for students, it is a perfect film for teaching photography and super cheap.

I develop it in D76 1+1, but I think best results for limiting grain is D76 neat.

Different students developed it in all sorts of developers, including Rodinal, nice and grainy but nice and sharp.

Mick.

AgX · Feb 15, 2008

To be more precise:

Ilford `Surveillance Films´ :
Surveillance 200-A5
Surveillance 400-P4
Surveillance 400-P5

Ilford `Traffic Surveillance Film´ :
SP816T

Uhner · Feb 15, 2008

It certainly looks like a nice film. I do like the grain on the scans you posted.

Mick Fagan · Feb 15, 2008

AgX, you continually surprise me with your information, which seems to be at your fingertips, I don't know how you do it.

The Surveillance 400-P4 is the film that I bought.

10 rolls of 30m @ $5.00 a roll = 360 18 frame rolls @ $0.14 each, meant the film use for students, was virtually free.

It is a very good film.

Mick.

David William White · Feb 15, 2008

Thanks, all. Thanks especially for your research and tips on development. Both rolls now spoken for.

Simon R Galley · Feb 18, 2008

Dear All,

Well done 2.5 kms of should be enough for the most ardent user !...anything that helps end users is fine by us.... as noted it is on a PET base : as always PET bases are incredibly tough and will not tear, unlike tri acetate base so always be very careful in camera, wind on slowly, if you get a jam, take the film out...

Regards

Simon ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology Limited

canuhead · Feb 19, 2008

Shot a roll of this film today and souped it in Rodinal 1:25 for 6 minutes. Agitated first thirty seconds then two or three inversions every couple of minutes.

These were scanned on a 2450 so they're not the best representation but the film, IMO, is much better than the J and C Classic Pan. Levels and resized. Got a sharper rescan with the negs on the glass but it also introduced a bit of moire in spots.

400 was a bit under so 200 would probably work great, that or give it a slight push.I'd buy 610 metres of this stuff and the negs are nice and flat (outside of roll I guess).

David William White · Feb 20, 2008

Hey Fred: They look just great -- good contrast -- and the grain is a little more in control than my first roll. Looks like we've got some pretty decent film here. I'll try my next roll in HC-110.

D.

canuhead · Feb 20, 2008

Thanks David,

I really need to make some prints to see how they look but when the negs are louped, they look fine to my eyes. I'm in if you ever get more of this stuff

Fred

Gritycityflicks · Jan 22, 2010

Dose anyone have some ideas for dev times using HC110 (b) and this Ilford P4 as I have a bulk roll and want to run a few films?

Peter de Groot · Jan 22, 2010

hmmm damn I'm (a year) too late. With one roll I would last a life time. Maybe I have to start looking for something similar. Didn't even know stuff like this existed.

David William White · Jan 22, 2010

Gritycityflicks said:
Dose anyone have some ideas for dev times using HC110 (b) and this Ilford P4 as I have a bulk roll and want to run a few films?

I've been rating the film at 250 and developing it for between 6 and 8 minutes in HC-110b, depending upon the general contrast levels of the situation. It's a sharp film, but a little grainy...

I keep meaning to try it with a red filter, to see how close it is to SFX, but I just never get around to it...

Nicholas Lindan · Jan 22, 2010

In the old days of real-film bank cameras, 'surveillance film' often meant 'cheap' (er, cost-effective) as it was thrown out if the bank wasn't robbed. Tended to be so grainy that it was impossible to identify anyone except the robber - he was the one who wore a baseball cap that completely hid his face.

610 meters (2000 ft) x 4 => 64,000 exposures. At a roll/work day you could polish it off in 7 years.

David William White · Jan 22, 2010

I think I'm only about a third of the way through my remaining roll.

Here are some examples that I had posted over on RFF a while back, just to give you an idea of the quality of the film -- at least for web postings...these are from three different outdoor shoots. There may have been a little cropping, but these would be straight scans.

Gritycityflicks · Jan 29, 2010

here are the developing times off the box that my roll came in
400
ID-11 20° stock 8:30
MICROPHEN 20° stock 7:00
D76 20° stock 8:30
ILFOTEC HC 24° 1+11 1:00

Sadly no times for HC110

Gritycityflicks · Jan 29, 2010

cheers for the times David. What sort of time would you guess if im rating mine at 400? Im a bit new to developing

Ilford Surveillance Film -- Long Rolls

David William White

Jerevan

GeoffHill

David A. Goldfarb

Moderator

AgX

AgX

David William White

PhotoJim

David William White

Mick Fagan

AgX

Uhner

Mick Fagan

David William White

Simon R Galley

canuhead

Attachments

David William White

canuhead

Gritycityflicks

Peter de Groot

David William White

Nicholas Lindan

Advertiser

David William White

Attachments

Gritycityflicks

Gritycityflicks

Ilford Surveillance Film -- Long Rolls

Moderator

Attachments

Advertiser

Attachments

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency