Iso 50-125 speed film with a future?

[Hamster]

I am looking for suggestion for a 35mm film between ISO 50-125 that I can standardise my process on.

I do mostly portraits with this speed and and looking for something that is reasonably cheap, with good shadows and has good USA availability for the foreseeable future.

Previously I standardized on Arista Premium 100, developed in Tanol. However now that kodak no longer manufactures Plus-X it seem this combination is gone.

Before that my winning combination was Lucky SHD 100 NEW with D-76. I had a boatload of the stuff and had a really good run with it. However I don't want to buy it from China.

Ilford FP4 is a film I really like but it is expensive at the time being. I am not a pro and only photograph for my own private enjoyment. I use it in 120 format for special projects.

I tried FOMAPAN and did not like it. I am now looking into Fuji Acros, or one of the ADOX products. Neither is as cheap as I would like but I tend pull process so I need something with good shadow texture.

The two developer I use now is Rodinal (R09) and Moresch Tanol, mostly because of good shelf life. If you guys know a film that will work good with those two it would be ideal.

 

[MDR]

Kodak T-max 100 pulled to 64 ISO gives beautiful results, EFKE 50 is not bad either really gives an old time look in Tanol.

Dominik

 

[Slixtiesix]

How about Kentmere 100? It´s said to be really close to FP4+. I have no own experience with it myself though...

 

[polyglot]

Acros not cheap? It is the cheapest 120 premium-brand (Fuji/Kodak/Ilford) film and it is excellent; probably my favourite B&W film. I would expect it to have more future than a Kodak offering considering the Chapter 11 happenings. I would expect Ilford to have the best chance at long-term availability (since Fujifilm are infamously opaque and fickle), I just never really got into the Ilford offerings much except for Pan-F.

Acros is great at 50 in Rodinal, or at 100-160 in Xtol.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

If you like FP4+, but find it too expensive to shoot in 35mm, buy it in 100 foot bulk rolls, and that should cut the price in half, plus you can roll short rolls, if that is useful to you. You can find second hand bulk film loaders on eBay for cheap. Get yourself about 20 new snap-cap cartridges, some masking tape, and you're good to go.

 

[markbarendt]

FP4+ is beautiful.

How about hand loading?

FP4+ is $48 for 100 feet at Adorama today. That is the equivalent of 20 36exp rolls at $2.40 each.

There are some up front costs: dark bag, loader, cassettes, masking tape, scissors, and a marker; but they are not expensive and mostly one-time expenses.

The other cool thing is that hand rolling allows is any size roll you please. 20-shot rolls work nicely for me.

 

[markbarendt]

If you like FP4+, but find it too expensive to shoot in 35mm, buy it in 100 foot bulk rolls, and that should cut the price in half, plus you can roll short rolls, if that is useful to you. You can find second hand bulk film loaders on eBay for cheap. Get yourself about 20 new snap-cap cartridges, some masking tape, and you're good to go.

Great minds think alike!

 

[andrew.roos]

Vn..00 0 ..,

 

[Newt_on_Swings]

I roll my own fp4+ as well. Expired is even cheaper. I also shoot lots of tmax 100, its very good as well.

You can also go for polypan f, that's really cheap as well and comes in 150ft rolls. I haven't used it though as I've always had stock in lots of slow and medium speed films.

Also someone mentioned Acros is cheapest now for 100 speed 120, but its out of stock/back ordered everywhere.

 

[Richard S. (rich815)]

Acros. It's cheap.

 

[Mustafa Umut Sarac]

Cheapest and highest quality film is Kodak 5222 , short end bw movie film. But I dont know its ASA setting.
Jnanian and many others uses 400 ASA film at 50 ASA setting without problem. Short end movie film costs half an dollar , may be 1 dollar per 36 35mm roll , comes from Hollywood as much as you want and damn quality. Processing and everything is the same with 10 times more expensive films.
If you are interested in , search ''short cut movie film or short end movie film'' They will find you if you whisper to your computer

 

[Gerald C Koch]

Eastman 5222 when used as a motion picture film and developed in D-96 has a low Contrast Index and a speed of ISO 250. Most people using it as a still film rate it at 400 and use a conventional developer like D-76, HC-110 or Rodinal and a higher CI. If you do portraits you may prefer the lower CI.

You may still be able to get short ends of Eastman Plus-X 5231 but Kodak sadly discontinued manufacture a couple of years ago. They also made a Pan-X MP film at one time. Both 5222 and 5231 are very nice films.

Kodak designates its motion picturre film as Eastman rather than Kodak to avoid confusion with still films of the same name.

 

[cliveh]

FP4

 

[newcan1]

I know you said available in the US --- Polypan F has to be acquired from the EU, but is so cheap you could buy a lot of it and freeze it. I shot some at 50 ASA a couple of weeks ago, and frankly I think I could easily have gotten away with 100 ASA. I am very impressed with this insanely cheap film based on my initial experience. I don't think I paid more than $50 for a 400ft roll, delivered.

 

[Newt_on_Swings]

Indeed you can still order Eastman double x from Kodak. 400-1000ft minimum. I'm working through 1000ft of it. Its very nice at 200 in rodinal stand.

 

[Aristotle80]

Ilford has demonstrated commitment to the medium, high quality, and good prices. I think they're the only company left with a complete range of film types, speeds, and sizes. Both FP4+ at ISO 125 and Pan F+ at ISO 50 are fantastic. I've been using them on and off for ten years now, and since Kodak killed Plus-X they are my only slow films.

BTW, once you get bulk loading down to a science, Ilford film in bulk becomes more economical. If you reload once used, empty color film cassettes from the one hour labs, you don't have to buy the snap cassettes anymore. Just tape the new film onto the stub of old film and rewind. I have spooled hundreds of feet of film this way and saved. If you do it right you won't get scratches or fogging, and the factory cassettes are more robust than the kind that snap or screw apart. I open them with an old style can opener and toss 'em after one loading to always have a fresh felt light trap.

 

[Tony-S]

I prefer Pan F+ at ISO 25 and processed in Perceptol.

 

[markbarendt]

I prefer Pan F+ at ISO 25 and processed in Perceptol.

Why?

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I prefer Pan F+ at ISO 25 and processed in Perceptol.

I do something similar as I find PanF+ too contrasty at box speed. I use D-23 !+1.

 

[TareqPhoto]

I am starting to favor Ilford films as it sounds they will be in business or industry longer than Kodak and Fuji, Acros is my favorite 100ASA film and TMAX400 is my favorite in 400, so if those two are gone too then i will be left to use Ilford films, many of you will have different favs of films and to each his own, HP5+ became second fav after TMAX400, so i will try to make Pan F+ and FP4+ as my favorite films in ISO 50-200 range.

 

[Slixtiesix]

I´m very interested in PanF+ and Perceptol, since I have a roll of PanF+ (120) in my fridge and still some boxes of Perceptol around. Never tried this film before. Any recommendations on dilution? I assume the grain will be nearly invisible then?

 

[Nicholas Lindan]

TMax-100.

Film is the cheapest thing there is about photography. Use the best you can get, and use lots of it.

Buying cheap film is the worst sort of economy.

 

[Tony-S]

I´m very interested in PanF+ and Perceptol, since I have a roll of PanF+ (120) in my fridge and still some boxes of Perceptol around. Never tried this film before. Any recommendations on dilution? I assume the grain will be nearly invisible then?

Shoot at ISO 20-25, and develop with Perceptol 1+2 at 72F for 11 minutes. Seems to hold the shadow detail while maintaining highlights.

I also use Perceptol 1+2 at 72F but for 16 min with Fuji Acros. It has less contrast than Pan F+.

 

[Slixtiesix]

Thank you very much Tony! 1+2 is also my favored dilution for FP4+. Will try it...

 

[Gerald C Koch]

Buying cheap film is the worst sort of economy.

I have been saying the same thing for years but most people don't listen! Then they complain on APUG and ask for help about a certain film defect.