Need a suggestion for a black and white film for natural light portraits...

I realize there are lots of possibilities and opinions, but I am just looking for thoughts, feelings, suggestions, etc.

I shoot 35mm black and white in a couple of Pentax bodies, all with a 50mm lens. I shoot portraits, all with natural light, many outdoors, some indoors with window light. I develop my own film and make prints, usually 8x10 image size, centered on 11x14 paper.

I have been fairly happy with Ilford Delta 400, occasionally have used HP5 (which seems kinda grainy) and once in a while use TMY. I like using 400 speed film- it seems to be usuable in almost every situation (for me, at least).

Gee, it took me a long time to get to the question... Anyway, I am wondering if there are any films out there that are a bit cheaper. Delta 400/36 exp is around 5 to 7 dollars. I know that film is cheap in the long run, but I like to shoot a good number of pics in a session. Also, I am often shooting with newbie models and it takes a while til they are comfortable and produce good results.

Any other films worth trying that won't be overly grainy? I mean, I like the grain, I just don't want it to be excessive. My biggest concerns are smooth skin tones.

Also, as a 'bonus' question, how much of a difference will the brand of developer make? I have been using ZonalPro since college (just got used to it, I guess). and wonder if a different brand may produce different results. Thanks!

jimsphotoart said:

I am usually shooting with newbie models and it takes a while til they are comfortable and produce good results.

Click to expand...

Just a thought, why don't you shoot empty to start then put film in once they get warmed up?

I haven't used ZonalPro but Delta 400 in DD-X 1+4 gives me nice grain in 35mm, HP5+ does too. Good tonality, prints well to 8x10, even 11x14 with the right negative.

That said, I much prefer medium format for tonality and grain. The film is cheaper per roll though you get less shots obviously. Portraiture at 6x6 or 6x7 is simply stunning. You can even use Delta 3200 without too much grain if you shoot it at 1600 or so in DD-X 1+4. 35mm shows grain 2-4x as large so you really get smoother looking images, tonality is similarly 2-4x smoother in 6x6 or 6x7.

Thanks for the thoughts so far. Mark, I used to do that- start off with an empty camera and then pretend to change roll. Worked pretty well, until I did a session with a woman who just started to do an amazing little dance while I was shooting with her and, you guessed it- I had no pics of it. When we tried to recreate it, it just wasn't the same. So now I am paranoid and just try not to shoot a lot of frames til I feel the time is right.

harry, as far as the whole MF thing. I shot medium format for years, but I work a little differently now. I carry around the Pentax since it is so small and light (a lot of my portraits are from just walking up to people on the street, etc) and it is a lot easier to transport (and it seems a little less intimidating to people I walk up to).

And honestly, I don't mind grain, and in fact, like it to a certain extent. The more that digital takes over the world, with its plastiky look and lack of realistic skin tones, the more I like the slight grain of b/w film, especially in 35mm (have been a huge fan of Ralph Gibson for years).

I am just looking for a slightly less expensive film to use.

Well, it doesn't get much cheaper than Arista Premium....and it seems to be the same as Tri-x. I use it all the time with either Rodinal or Xtol. If you like grain, try it with Rodinal. It is a bit gritty with really nice tones.

I'd use T-Max 400 or Delta 400. They are sharp and low in graininess. The 400 speed will let you shoot in lower light, and will give you less blurry pix across the board. If you want it cheaper, you can roll your own.

You could save 50 percent on paper by simply printing on 8x10 paper and dry mounting. Why do you use twice as much paper as you need to? I would focus your "cheapness" on that area, rather than worrying about paying $7 for 36 shots.

I second rolling your own. For your kind of work film is not to be saved and by rolling your own you save a lot and you maintain the choice between different films. You have to be careful about keeping the felt traps clean (taking away dust with a small knife, a post-it etc.) and you have to be wary that, with some film loaders, if you load in daylight the last picture of the roll might be fogged. With practice I suppose one can roll in the dark, in a dark bag, some even don't use any bulk loader at all and operate bare hands in a dark room. So the last image problem can be solved. Some bulk loaders (branded as Kaiser or AP) don't have this last picture problem and are available new for around €50 (and second-hand certainly for much less).

Plenty of information on this forum on bulk loading

Fabrizio

Neopan is cheaper and from what I have read very good. There should be enough threads to read about it. Really tho long roll would be the way to go.
I just developed my first roll of FP4+ in Ilfosol 3 1:9 and it looks better then in Xtol. I was worried about the short developing time at 4.25 min but it came out just fine without a presoak. It is suppose to be a low ISO developer tho, and Delta 100 is cheaper.

Go to Freestyle's website and click on "Hot Deals" and black and white film. Check out the deals on Legacy pro 100 and 400 bricks of 35mm for super cheap. They even have short date film for way cheap.

Buy your favorite film in 100 foot rolls and roll your own. Or shoot some LF and then a 36exp roll will seem like a bargain.

I'm not shy about my love for Tmy2, but you really need to find a real short list of films you like and stick with them. For me, that's TMY2 and Fomapan100.

I think that T-Max 400 is a excellent choice.

Jeff

Again, thanks to all for your thoughts. I had never thought of rolling my own film and that is a choice worth considering.

As far as changing the way I print my pics, that really has nothing to do with the question I proposed, so
I think I'll keep that part of my trip the same, thanks very much.

I do realize that I could shoot a slower film, since they are a bit cheaper, although I would have to go back to a 400 iso once I shoot indoors. Not really trying to be too much of a cheapskate, just trying to trim costs a bit, just like everyone.

Keep those ideas comin'...

Also, does anyone have experience with using the 'Legacy Pro 100 or 400' films from Freestyle? I have bought from them many times and yeah, they have some good deals on the stuff, but is it any good?