looking for new film

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julianfloyd

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since i have had my Mamiya c330 the only film i've used is fp4 and i'd like to try some new film but I don't have the money to experiment - so if you could help me narrow down the list that would be great... *** like to try something sharper and not so grainy... please help!
 
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Firstly, welcome to the best bit of the forum and secondly, Ilford Pan F should do the job.
 
if you're getting fp4 grainy ,then you're doing something wrong with it ,
 
Please lose the text speak, this is a civilised section! :thumbs:

Try Kodak Tmax 100, seems to be a favourite of many, or Acros 100. Both vey fine grain pro films which should give good results.

You could also try XP2 which is incredibly sharp and if you expose it at the same speed as FP4 will be incredibly low on grain. You can do it yourself in B&W chems or get it done in a local supermarket too.
 
I know what you mean though, I have just been looking over some pics and its not as grainy as I think, but then its not as sharp as the xp2 say, which I don't like using, so I'm looking for something like xp2 but not..
 
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FP4 is pretty sharp, I dunno what to suggest without talking about specialistic films that are sharper at the expense of other qualities.

Gotta ask the question, who/how/what is processing your film and what with, and how are you deciding what is or is not sharp..?

:)
 
I want to echo the comments - if FP4, a low ISO film, on a 6x6 negative, is not producing sharp and grain-free images then either the development, scanning or exposure needs to be examined. You don't need a replacement film, because FP4 fits your criteria.

With that in mind, I always recommend T-Max 400 as a superb film to try.
 
I'm surprised myself if you're having grainy images on FP4 film, assuming it was correctly developed, however you could try some Delta 100 which does offer slightly finer grain. This film requires more accurate exposure & development as the Delta range is less 'forgiving' (for want of a better word) than their conventional films.

I would also recommend Pan F (50 ISO). Slightly more contrasty, but virtually invisible grain - and that's with 35mm film, so 6x6 should look fantastic.
 
If you're sending it away to a shop (boots, jessops, etc) then the scans will be grainy & low quality, not the film. Maybe it's time to think about investing in a scanner if you haven't already done so :thumbs:
 
Alan Clogwyn said:
Please lose the text speak, this is a civilised section! :thumbs:
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Good Point, Well Made Alan - I've changed the original "txt spk" gibberish to something resembling English, but any further posts may just "disappear" unless they are in something I can understand without a phrase book!
 
Joenail said:
If you're sending it away to a shop (boots, jessops, etc) then the scans will be grainy & low quality, not the film.
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this might be the problem ,,in fact when i scan hp5 it looks pretty grainy , but when i print from the negs its a lot better ,,,,

in fact i've never printed a scanned neg over 6 by 4 ,so can anyone enlighten me ,does a grainy scanned image print out looking like it does on the screen ??
 
thnx 4 n..e replies ( Mark )
 
Do you mean wet print or inkjet? Everything looks better printed properly on some warmtone paper ;)
 
donutagain said:
does a grainy scanned image print out looking like it does on the screen ??
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It's a question that is affected by a massive number of variables, including perception (some people will perceive grain in a picture that other people would consider grain-free and so on). But most scanners tend to produce their own noise, some scanners are worse than others for it and their processing engines and options such as whether the scanning software applies grain reduction filters can all affect it.

Any grain on a print is purely the grain of the film; grain on a scanned image will be a mix of film grain and scanner noise.
 
thanks freecom ,,Joe yes printed from a scan digitaly not wet
 
donutagain said:
this might be the problem ,,in fact when i scan hp5 it looks pretty grainy , but when i print from the negs its a lot better ,,,,

in fact i've never printed a scanned neg over 6 by 4 ,so can anyone enlighten me ,does a grainy scanned image print out looking like it does on the screen ??
Click to expand...

at 18x12 yes on matte paper, but it still looks gooood :thumbs:
 
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