Where did you found good deals for 100 ones film rolls or bulk (135 and 120 B&W)

As the title says, it'd be interesting if you can share of your previous experiences.

I used to shot Trix as main film but now I'm looking for a cheaper alternative when I want to shoot more and don't need to worry if I think that I waste films "on my crappy shots".

I looked through several sites in Europe and found 100 ones Fortepan 100/400 might be good deal in Fotoimpex for 130 euros. If I was in US, I'd buy Eastman 5222 bulk and Arista film rolls without hesitations. But as European, I think it is very hard to get anywhere except maybe only through Kodak NY. Filmemporium email service is pretty much dead. I also figured out that shipping costs on heavy bulk films may be very high and don't forget that it adds up 50% import taxes here in Sweden also

I got curiuos about deals because I did read somewhere that some UK people got quite good deals on bulk films of Ilford like Hp5. Anyway other films as Adox/Agfa Apx400, Fomapan are interesting for me. I'm just in the process of discovering new films. I guess that Fortepan is most close to Trix, huh?

As you are within the EU I suspect you might be better off ordering from within Europe. Additionally, 35mm or roll film isn't that expensive even from Kodak, Ilford, or Fuji. Although I mostly use Ilford film, if you search the forum, some people seem to have had quality control issues with the Forte film, and Forte film is no longer made, so you might want to take that in to consideration when making a choice about which film to use.

Tom

As Tom mentions, Forte film is no longer being made, so unless you know you like it and want to stock up before it disappears completely, I wouldn't suggest starting to use it -- you'll just have to switch to something else pretty soon.

Freestyle in the US does ship overseas, and recent discussions here suggest that their new Arista Premium film is in fact Plus-X and Tri-X. (Their Arista.EDU Ultra is made by Foma, and in the past they've had other suppliers.) Given the weak dollar, it's conceivable that you'd pay less buying from Freestyle than from a closer source, even with shipping costs. At the very least, it's worth checking the prices and getting a quote on shipping.

In Europe, Dead Link Removed (in the UK) and Fotoimpex (in Germany) spring to mind as popular suppliers, but as I live in the US, I've never dealt with either of them.

Lets say here in Sweden I get Trix 10 ones for 40 euros. For fotoimpex it costs 35 for original and 30 for reloaded with other casette. So it means it costs 400 euros to get 100 ones Trix which is not quite small difference to 130 euros for Fortepan. It is good to know that it is discontinued. So Apx, Fomapan sounds as interesting alternatives. It will be double less for those, 100 ones for 200 euros. It still means a lot for me. I could shoot 200 rolls instead for 100 rolls for same price of Hp5 or Trix

Agfa APX is also discontinued, I'm afraid. There is, however, some hope that it will come back; Fotoimpex is working to bring back some old Agfa products under the Adox name. They've recently completed a coating run of resin-coated paper and are working on fiber-base paper. APX film is in the planning stages, but getting to that point depends on the success of the papers. I haven't heard any recent updates on APX film plans, so I don't have a timeline on when it might be available, or how likely it is to get that far.

FWIW, I like Foma's 400-speed film. Objective tests say it's grainier than Tri-X or HP5+, but subjectively it doesn't seem so bad to me, and I like the way the grain looks better than I like the Tri-X or HP5+ grain. Foma quality control isn't up to Kodak or Agfa standards, though; frames occasionally suffer from problems that look like small coating defects. Foma films also have poor anti-halation characteristics, at least in 35mm, so you'll get halos around bright light sources. In my experience, this is usually undesirable, but sometimes it works for a subject. If you can live with these caveats, then the Foma products are certainly worth trying.

Thanks SRS. That's why my interest for "new" films did rise when I did read in Adox thread about MC paper. I remember I had played with Agfa paper before I switched to Ilford. I would like support a small company like Adox by buying films and papers from them Im gonna try some different films at the same time as Foma, Apx. Both costs similarly and that's interesting. Im still waiting a reply from Freestyle about shipping costs.

What about Silvergrain in the UK?

Or, for cheap knock-about film, how about Eastman 5222 XX? At 18 cents a foot for short ends from filmemporium.com , that leaves a lot of room for VAT - and based on very cheap film. Of course, Film Emporium has to be willing to ship overseas.

As noted Forte is dead. I bought a few rolls of 400 and the base +fog was worse than 11 year old TMX. Fomapan 100 sold as Arista.edu Ultra is a good knock about film, too. Can't speak to the lack of anti-halation layer. I think the quality consistency is vastly improved over a few years ago, ISO 9000 and all that rot. The Arista variant doesn't have frame numbers, beware.

The Adox CHM 400 Pro costs €23,68 for 10 pieces at Fotoimpex. That film is rebadged HP5+. If you order is €99 or more, the shipping to Sweden is only €10 unless it's a very heavy package. They like to get the money in advance through bank transfer. I bought a lot of film from them last year and I am fully satisfied with everything.
Fotoimpex also sells Agfa APX 400 at €20 for 10 films, which is also a good price for a very good modern film. (I havn't used this film myself, but from what I've read here and on other forums it's highly regarded. As with any film you just have to get to know its pros and cons.)
Both of these films mentioned are discontinued. Ilford isn't into rebadging at the moment, and Agfa is dead as such. But again, the price is very good compared to the price of Kodak and Ilford films.
Just drop them an email with an order/questions and they will help you.

A word about Fortepan/Classic Pan 400. Yes, you can get that film much cheaper than e.g. Ilford film, but for 35mm it's a bit "special". Very coarse grain and very "old-fashioned", somewhat like over-cooked Tri-X in the -70ies. I shoot that film in 4x5" and some in 6x6, where the larger negative size "hides" the grain and brings out it's "positive" side, i.e. a very nice smooth grayscale. Also, it's a well known fact that Forte is quite dead too. From what I've read on other threads here on Apug, it's the same story with Fomapan 400, which is cheap but only available in 35mm.

//Björn

edtbjon said:

A word about Fortepan/Classic Pan 400. Yes, you can get that film much cheaper than e.g. Ilford film, but for 35mm it's a bit "special". Very coarse grain and very "old-fashioned", somewhat like over-cooked Tri-X in the -70ies. I shoot that film in 4x5" and some in 6x6, where the larger negative size "hides" the grain and brings out it's "positive" side, i.e. a very nice smooth grayscale. Also, it's a well known fact that Forte is quite dead too. From what I've read on other threads here on Apug, it's the same story with Fomapan 400, which is cheap but only available in 35mm.

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I'm not sure precisely what you mean by "same story," but Foma is still in business (or was the last I heard). Their films aren't the most technologically advanced, though, and they're grainier than most competitors by objective measures. Fomapan 400 is definitely available in other-than-35mm formats. I've shot it (and have some on hand) in 120, for instance. I just processed a roll a couple of days ago, in fact.

If you go here
http://www.macodirect.de/

You will find APX bulk films very reasonably priced, as well as many other bulk roll films.
I recomend the ATP V1 Bulk film, shipping within Europe is no problem.
The best deals I have had on film is colour transparency film 400Ft of EPN for $50 its got 18 months before the use by date, it is now in my freezer

Eastman 5222 is available from several sources in the UK. This is just one:


Axis Films
64 - 68 Brand Street, Glasgow, G51 1DW Tel: 0141 427 9944 Fax: 0141 427 1199
47 Shepperton Studios, Middlesex, TW17 OQD Tel: 01932 592244 Fax:01932 592246
www.axisfilms.co.uk prices subject to change, please ring for latest prices
400’ - 35mm BLACK + WHITE
5231 Eastman Plus-X 64T/80D 78.67
5222 Eastman Double-X 200T/250D 78.67

tomasis said:

I used to shot Trix as main film but now I'm looking for a cheaper alternative

Click to expand...

As near as anyone can tell, this is Tri-X:

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/sc_prod.php?cat_id=402&pid=1000003156 1,35eu/roll

or in bulk
http://www.freestylephoto.biz/sc_prod.php?cat_id=402&pid=1000003148 at 20,12eu/100 feet

120 relaod is not simple

I had a good deal on 100' of 70mm C41 colour film, so I bought a roll, and have cut it down and re-rolled it onto old backing paper and spools.

It is not a job for the faint of heart, and getting the film to line up is tricky.

If you enjoy a night of working in absolute darkness it is passable. but not really a pleasure. I can do about 15 rolls in a nights work.

thanks for replies, I have ordered some films from Freestyle. I did regret a bit that I didnt order only Arista Premium 400 when I could order "made films in Europe" from Fotoimpex instead. It is Arista EDU ultra 400, Arista II 400 and Arista Premium 400 which I ordered. 2 bulk and 20 rolls for hefty 40$ for shipping

Two new surprises noticed in this thread for me:
Adox CHM 400 (you can save 10 euros for every 10 rolls compared to HP5)
a link to UK store for Eastman 5222-XX

I will try Forte anyway and I don't mind graininess and I shoot a lot at iso 800, 1600.

Continue post your good deals here so it might be valuable for other people here who want stock large quantity of films into the fridge No matter if some brands are discontinued. You still get rare film look in the digital world

According to Fotoimpex Adox CHM 400 is not available anymore. CHM 125 (FP4) is, or was a couple of months ago at least.

tomasis said:

As the title says, it'd be interesting if you can share of your previous experiences.

I used to shot Trix as main film but now I'm looking for a cheaper alternative when I want to shoot more and don't need to worry if I think that I waste films "on my crappy shots".

I looked through several sites in Europe and found 100 ones Fortepan 100/400 might be good deal in Fotoimpex for 130 euros. If I was in US, I'd buy Eastman 5222 bulk and Arista film rolls without hesitations. But as European, I think it is very hard to get anywhere except maybe only through Kodak NY. Filmemporium email service is pretty much dead. I also figured out that shipping costs on heavy bulk films may be very high and don't forget that it adds up 50% import taxes here in Sweden also

I got curiuos about deals because I did read somewhere that some UK people got quite good deals on bulk films of Ilford like Hp5. Anyway other films as Adox/Agfa Apx400, Fomapan are interesting for me. I'm just in the process of discovering new films. I guess that Fortepan is most close to Trix, huh?

Click to expand...

Fuji Neopan 400 has always been known for years as :what Tri-X could look like without the grain. Process in Rodinal 1:50 and it's beautiful.

Fortepan is no more, the company is dead like Agfa. The closest to Agfa look is Fomapan, which, if you lived in the U.S., could order from Freestyle for less than $2/roll.

Since you're in Sweden, try checking in with Robert over at www.Fotohuis.nl
he'll most likely have everything you need. Don't lower your standards, just to go "cheap". It's not worth it.

Rolleijoe

Dear All,

Just to keep things accurate, we have not supplied private label film since the founding of HARMAN technology in February 2005 :

Simon : ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology Limited :