What high film speed B&W film and developing recipe do you like the most, for 35mm or 120?

[loccdor]

Was just curious what you like best for those situations where you really need the extra sensitivity and can't bring the tripod. Examples welcome.

The films sold as 3200 and 400 have a large price difference, but some of the 400 have a reputation for pushing well. Is the price difference getting you stronger results?

 

[jim appleyard]

Usually Tri-X in Diafine. It's a fixed EI, (around 1000; I never got the speed that Diafine claims Tri-X will get) but it's very easy and near foolproof. Being a two-bath developer, the images don't look "pushed", contrast is controlled.

If you need more speed, Acufine can do it, but the faster you go, the more contrast you'll get.

For T-Max 3200, I used D-76, but you have to develop for the next higher EI. For example, shoot the film at 3200, but develop as if it were a 6400 speed film.

 

[Bill Burk]

I’d shoot a highest speed fresh film at 1/3 stop above its effective ISO speed.

P3200 is really 800 isn’t it, so at 1000
TMY2 is 400, so at 500
Double-X 5222 is 200 or 250, So 250 or 320.

Then I would process it as normal. In this case I am only using up the safety factor

There was a thread where Tom Bertilsson compared pushed 400 film with a 3200 film at its rated speed and said the graininess is about the same but the faster film made a more natural picture. He included a picture of a swingset in a playground on a grass field and the pushed film made it look like there was snow on the ground while the faster film looked more normal.

 

[Keith Tapscott.]

I would probably choose Ilford Delta 3200 for 120 roll film and rate it around E.I 1250/1600 maximum.
Development in either Microphen, Tmax or DDX developers.

 

[loccdor]

Thank you. I've seen that Delta 3200 gets the best shadow detail in DD-X. However, it's expensive with a short shelf life. I did see Flic Film Black/White & Green recommended as an alternative for it. May give that a try. Or may try putting DD-X in StopLossBags.

 

[Paul Howell]

For 35mm I go with Tmax 3200 at 3200, DDX or Tmax 1:4, if I need that speed I dont worry about the shadow details. For 120 Tmax 400 shot at 1600 which is a one stop push in terms of development time, Tmax or DDX 1:4, like Tmax 3200 I don't worry about shadow details when pushing. If just a roll or two and did want to buy Tmax developer or DDX I have DK 50 and Acufine on hand. F

 

[Sirius Glass]

I use XTOL, replenished XTOL for the following reasons for all black & white film and Rollei IR 400.

 

[Maris]

Bridge, Queenstown Gardens

Gelatin-silver photograph on Ilford Classic VC FB photographic paper, image size 21.5cm X 16.3cm,
from a 68 format Ilford Delta 3200 negative exposed in a Fuji GSW680 camera.

The Ilford Delta 3200 was exposed at EI 1000 and developed in a mixed batch of films in Replenished Xtol
at 20C for 11minutes 15 seconds. Nothing special, plenty of detail, no obtrusive grain, easy and routine.

 

[hiroh]

I really like Tri-X, but for pushing to 1600, I find HP5 more pleasing. Tri-X pushed by 2 stops has too much contrast for my taste.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I've shot Tmax 400 at box speed and find it's fast enough for outdoor hand holding 35mm.

Removing ground brush with fire - 35mm Tmax 400

New Jersey Forest Fire Department clears bush by burning. Near Craig House, Monmouth Battlefield.

www.flickr.com

 

[JerseyDoug]

HP5+ metered at ISO 1600 and developed with Rodinal 1:50 for 24 minutes at 68ºF (time adjusted for actual ambient temperature).

 

[Paul Howell]

I've shot Tmax 400 at box speed and find it's fast enough for outdoor hand holding 35mm.

Removing ground brush with fire - 35mm Tmax 400

New Jersey Forest Fire Department clears bush by burning. Near Craig House, Monmouth Battlefield.

www.flickr.com

In most situations I agree, unless very late in the afternoon or early daybreak, heavy overcast I don't need a high speed film. The last time I needed to push Tmax was late fall, a college football game late after noon with overcast, to keep shutter speed to 1/500 to 1/1000 I pushed Tmax 400 to 1600.

 

[Bill Burk]

Bridge, Queenstown Gardens

Gelatin-silver photograph on Ilford Classic VC FB photographic paper, image size 21.5cm X 16.3cm,
from a 68 format Ilford Delta 3200 negative exposed in a Fuji GSW680 camera.

The Ilford Delta 3200 was exposed at EI 1000 and developed in a mixed batch of films in Replenished Xtol
at 20C for 11minutes 15 seconds. Nothing special, plenty of detail, no obtrusive grain, easy and routine.

Great example and scenery !

 

[loccdor]

I've shot Tmax 400 at box speed and find it's fast enough for outdoor hand holding 35mm.

I agree that 400 is enough for most daytime work, although when I am in the shady forest and using long lenses I need a little more. Lately I've been using a 300mm with 2x teleconverter a lot, and stopping down to f/5.6 (f/11 equivalent) aperture. 400 only works with that lens if I am in an open, non-wooded area, even with tripod and gimbal.

At night, I've been able to take handheld portraits lit only by streetlamps at 45mm f/1.8 on 800 speed, but only on image stabilized lenses. That's about an f/0.7 equivalent for that... if I was going to use a non-stablized f/1.2 in night street conditions I'd want at least 1600.

 

[john_s]

Bridge, Queenstown Gardens

Gelatin-silver photograph on Ilford Classic VC FB photographic paper, image size 21.5cm X 16.3cm,
from a 68 format Ilford Delta 3200 negative exposed in a Fuji GSW680 camera.

The Ilford Delta 3200 was exposed at EI 1000 and developed in a mixed batch of films in Replenished Xtol
at 20C for 11minutes 15 seconds. Nothing special, plenty of detail, no obtrusive grain, easy and routine.

This is a very good result, given that it's Delta3200, albeit at its real speed around 1000. I was wondering why you used such a high speed film for this scene where I would have thought 400 would be adequate.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

HP5 at EI 800, developed in XTol 1+1. Very nice. Same with Delta 400.

 

[Milpool]

Hands down TMY-2 in D-76 or XTOL (equally as good).

 

[Sirius Glass]

I agree that 400 is enough for most daytime work, although when I am in the shady forest and using long lenses I need a little more. Lately I've been using a 300mm with 2x teleconverter a lot, and stopping down to f/5.6 (f/11 equivalent) aperture. 400 only works with that lens if I am in an open, non-wooded area, even with tripod and gimbal.

At night, I've been able to take handheld portraits lit only by streetlamps at 45mm f/1.8 on 800 speed, but only on image stabilized lenses. That's about an f/0.7 equivalent for that... if I was going to use a non-stablized f/1.2 in night street conditions I'd want at least 1600.

I agree I agree that 400 is enough for most daytime work.

 

[Maris]

This is a very good result, given that it's Delta3200, albeit at its real speed around 1000. I was wondering why you used such a high speed film for this scene where I would have thought 400 would be adequate.

The Queenstown picture was exposed during a recent tour of New Zealand where travel constraints meant I could not bring a tripod. This is one of my first hand-held exposures since 1977! I'm a bit paranoid about camera shake and with a red filter on the lens and looking for landscapes on the shady side of a mountain I feared I'd run out of shutter speeds and f-stops. Hence I used the fastest film I could find. The big 68 negative eased concerns about excessive grain in moderate print sizes.

 

[JensH]

Hi,

my vote for TMZ and Delta 3200 for indoor available light photos.
Once they were developed in Tetenal Emofin, today Moersch MZB works very well... both are two bath dev's. EI is 1600. So fine for f/2 and 85mm lens at celebrations/weddings.

I'm not a fan of pushed 400 films, TX400 in Pyrocat is great at EI 250 outdoors, TMY-2 in D76 at EI 400, too.

Best
Jens

 

[abruzzi]

I use Delta 3200 in 120. In the past I always used xtol 1+2 at 75F for 20 minutes. I lot of the frames I shot were probably way less exposed than 3200. None the less I love how they came out. I founf the dev dilution at times from this page:

Ilford Delta 3200 developing times

These two shots were on the same roll. The first was probably pretty close to 3200, but the second was really dark. Shot at both images at 1/30 and at f2.4 for the first (105mm f2.4) and the second was at f2.8 (150mm f2.8) in a Pentax 67.