Perceptol lives! [And more news from Ilford representative!]

[Ole]

Mick,
That trick wasted me two sheets of Russian 30x40cm film. Sometimes the anti-halation backing is stickier...

 

[Mick Fagan]

Ole, that's interesting, however I've never used Russian film, it's not that readily available in Australia, as far as I know.

It certainly works with Kodak B&W and colour sheet film.

Mick.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Simon : Feedback on Feedback

Dear All,

Thanks for the feedback, its the first time we have been asked for 8.5" x 6.5"
or wholeplate as I used to call it, you must promise me that you are not the only user in the whole World, or I will find you !!!! I will pass the info on.

Notching looks like it is going to be safer, I will pass that on today, when I was in the darkroom as a young lad, I used to just rest the very corner of the paper or film on my bottom lip, gently close my top lip down, part my lips very slowly whichever lip it stuck to was the emulsion side...never failed...

Kind Regards

Simon.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear Rob,

Take your point that you would take 50 or 100 sheets, we have decided that although
you will all be serious users 25 will be the number of sheets packed, we thought of 10 at first, but I guess that would have you potentially using too many different batches ( consistency is all ) 25 is the best compromise, also better for inventory, also if you damage in transit or heaven forfend accidently expose to light it less of a loss it would move quicker off dealer shelves and lets be honest better 'price point' many of our customers are on a budget, or students, so it helps to keep it manageble for those people and anyone who may wish to experiment, also the boxes will all have to be hand made, not machine made and therefore its easier to make thinner than fatter boxes, eveidently.

Regards

Simon.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear Ole,

Go on thgen Ole....give me the metric sizes please....

Simon.

 

[colrehogan]

Notching looks like it is going to be safer, I will pass that on today, when I was in the darkroom as a young lad, I used to just rest the very corner of the paper or film on my bottom lip, gently close my top lip down, part my lips very slowly whichever lip it stuck to was the emulsion side...never failed...

Kind Regards

Simon.

Thank you for reconsidering the notching. I don't have a darkroom and use a changing tent to load all my holders.

 

[markbb]

Like Diane, I use a tent. I doubt if anyone really requires a particular notch pattern, so anything that helps identify the top right hand corner by touch would be helpful.

 

[Ole]

Dear Ole,

Go on thgen Ole....give me the metric sizes please....

Simon.

The main metric sizes are 9x12 and 13x18cm. Then 18x24cm, which is more and more replaced by 8x10" since modern cameras take both sizes. Above that there's the 24x30cm, almost as rare as 10x12". Then up to 30x40cm. I haven't seen cameras larger than that, although I know there are 40x50 and 50x60 too.

Personally I'd be happy with 18x24 and 30x40 - at least until I come across a 24x30cm camera (I have and use all other sizes, so why not? It's a beautiful size - enough larger than 8x10" to make a difference in contact print size; enough smaller than 11x14" to make the cameras easily portable).

 

[Ole]

Oh by the way: Those same sizes have been standard paper sizes in Europe for a century or so - I used to be really irritated that my local shop carried 18x24cm paper and not 8x10". So I got used to printing on 24x30cm... That was Ilford MG IV.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear All,

Just a quick note that I will not be back on before wednesday of next week
as I have business committments, but the kind folks at APUG have suggested that I start a new thread anyway for all our communications ( to and from ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology Limited ) in the sponsors section, I will let you know when I start it.

Kind Regards

Simon.

 

[Aggie]

Thank you thank you for the rethinking of the notching. I too use a changing tent.

BTW I am restoring a full plate camera, so there are two of us.

 

[Donald Qualls]

FWIW, there are a fair number of folks (including me) using old plate cameras in the United States as well, the bulk of them in 9x12 cm size. OTOH, 9x12 is not only not ULF, but I thought I recalled Ilford products being already available in 9x12 and possibly 13x18 cm in Europe. There's also a 10x15 cm size, very close to half plate, though I don't believe those cameras are very common (at least in America).

Regardless, I'd seriously *love* to be able to get HP5+ in 9x12 cm; I like the Fomapan 100 I now shoot well enough I doubt I'd switch to FP4+ (especially if it costs significantly more), but I'll run out of TXT in a year or so and probably won't be able to get more, and will surely want to buy some more fast film; sometimes ISO 100 is just too slow, even on a tripod. Can't see any reason I'd like HP5+ less than TXT...

 

[foldingcamera]

Feint Numbers on 120:

I was correct, ours are more feint to avoid ' wrapper offset' we use a different backing paper to other manufacturers, our QC and complaints department have confirmed this as the reason. We have received two complaints about this in the last 6 months, so it was below our radar
' before APUG' , so we are going to investigate if we can do a heavier
print.

It may be a good idea to try a different backing paper as well, I regret to say that since trying that first roll of FP4, I have been trying out some film from the east that has a good strong print on the backing paper, but would be more than pleased to go back to Ilford roll film if a strong print becomes available.

Best Wishes,

Stephen.

 

[foldingcamera]

Dear Simon,

I wonder if there could be a new future for quarter plate? there must be large numbers of quarter plate cameras especially in Europe, and if the sheet film was available it might give this format a new life, is anyone else interested?

Best Wishes,

Stephen.

 

[ajuk]

I think an AGFA equivelent of that Kodak paper chart would be a good idea!

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear Ajuk,

It is in preparation, should be on the website later this week or early next

Simon.

 

[Oren Grad]

Thanks for the feedback, its the first time we have been asked for 8.5" x 6.5"
or wholeplate as I used to call it, you must promise me that you are not the only user in the whole World, or I will find you !!!! I will pass the info on.

Simon, is it not intuitively obvious that whole plate is the most perfect format ever invented?

Seriously, I've been intrigued that 7x11 always gets mentioned in these discussions but whole plate does not. I see that JandC stocks 7x11 but not whole plate. I own cameras in both formats myself and I'm definitely hoping for the chance to play more with the 7x11. But after watching the market for several years, not just eBay but also dealers, it seems to me that 6.5x8.5 cameras are considerably more common on the market than are 7x11 cameras, no doubt because many more were made, by a much wider range of vendors, back in the 1900-30 period that was the heyday of these delicious alternative formats.

Let me second the call for quarter-plate as well - I've got a mini-collection of 3.25x4.25 Graphics as well as a really cute little Agfa-Ansco wood-field camera in that format. I would definitely buy Ilford film if offered in that format.

If I had my druthers, the formats that survived commercially wouldn't have been 4x5, 5x7 and 8x10, they would have been 3.25x4.25, 6.5x8.5 and 7x11.

Cheers...

...Oren

 

[Nick Zentena]

Isn't every 8x10 also a full plate with the wrong back on it? -) But you're wrong 5x7 is the perfect format.

 

[Ole]

No, the perfect formats are the metric ones: A little narrower than most of the "imperial" sizes they have much better proportions. This goes for 6.5x9cm, 9x12cm, 13x18cm (an exception, since it's very close to 5x7"), 18x24cm and 24x30cm. These sizes were established very early; so early that an 1890's plate camera is immediately usable with modern film - q.v. my 18x24cm and 13x18cm plate cameras.

 

[Sal Santamaura]

Simon, your presence in this thread has moved me to finally register with APUG. Please count another vote for full plate. While I don't currently have a 6 1/2 x 8 1/2 camera, should Ilford make FP4+ available in that size I'll immediately commission an Ebony "SV6585" ("SV68"?) and matching holders from Alan Brubaker.

Nick -- I do have a 5x7 outfit (along with 35mm, medium format, 4x5, 8x10 and 11x14), but must agree with Oren that full plate is the most perfect format ever invented.

 

[Nick Zentena]

I admit I wouldn't say no to a full plate back for my 8x10 but it's not perfect like 5x7. No matter what you all say

 

[Oren Grad]

Simon, your presence in this thread has moved me to finally register with APUG. Please count another vote for full plate. While I don't currently have a 6 1/2 x 8 1/2 camera, should Ilford make FP4+ available in that size I'll immediately commission an Ebony "SV6585" ("SV68"?) and matching holders from Alan Brubaker.

Sal, if we could be reasonably sure of an ongoing supply of 6.5x8.5 film from Ilford, I might join you in approaching Ebony. Maybe the price can be kept down a bit if they build more than one at a time.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear Wholeplate users....

I have passed on the request for this size : Ole: I will come back later to the metric sizes

Simon.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear David (USA) and Nige ( Aus ),

Many, many thanks your postcards arrived today.....both nice images, thanks and on my pin board they go...I can see I am going to have to run a competition!

Simon:

 

[Sal Santamaura]

Sal, if we could be reasonably sure of an ongoing supply of 6.5x8.5 film from Ilford, I might join you in approaching Ebony. Maybe the price can be kept down a bit if they build more than one at a time.

Sounds like a plan Oren. With luck others would be interested as well; the more the merrier.