Fuji 160s Reciprocity Failure/Night Exposures?

After searching the forums and the internet I've found very little about peoples

experience with night shots using Fuji Pro 160s. The reciprocity chart on the

Fuji site states that for 32sec an increase of 1 stop is needed. It does not go

beyond that. Does that mean that for every 32 seconds and additional stop will

need to be added? I'm guessing my exposures will range anywhere from 5 minutes

to 1 hour. This may be a problem. I will most likely do a lot of testing to

figure this film out but I wanted to see if anyone else has done any tests or

has shot at night with this film or a similar film. I will not shoot anything

higher speed because I need the fine grain of the 160 speed. I appreciate any

help. thanks

 

Nick

I wouldn't assume that reciprocity holds past 32 seconds- expect to need more correction as the time increases. I'm planning to test UC100 and 160C soon. 160S is a nice portrait film, but I think it's going to be too flat and muted for night shots, where you want some contrast and deep shadows to keep it from looking like day.

 

I've yet to find a negative film I'm truly happy with for night shots. The color of Reala goes in some strange, hard to correct directions. 800Z is nice but a bit grainy.

 

Best answer so far: Sensia slide film is good if the contrast of the scene isn't too high, and doesn't go green like Provia.

You really need to do your own testing. Since it is marketed as a portrait film, Fuji probably isn't really concerned with reciprocity characteristics beyond 30 sec. Most users of this film don't really utilize such long exposures in a studio/portrait setting. Many people who shoot long night exposures seem fond of Fuji's newer E-6 films and their excellent reciprocity characteristics, but that doesn't mean you can't experiment with what you have.

Fuji NPL is designed for long exposures and is very tolerant of mixed lighting, although it's designed for tungsten.

Hey dooooode,

 

I've got extensive experience with NPS NPC and 160s. (http://anti-aesthetic.net)

 

My stuff runs between 4 min and 1 hour.

 

This is what I do: I rate it for either 100 or 125 then I generally double the exposure.

 

 

Or . . . if you're under sodium vapor street lights its f11 for 30 seconds.

 

 

The best thing about shooting at night is that you can't really overexpose things. You just add light. The darkness can't get darker so you've got a bunch of freedom.

 

 

 

Ok, all this said... I scan my film in on a Imacon. and . . . I bracket ususally 1-1.5 stops down.

 

For me it's kind've intuitive. Since I shoot a lot of city light stuff I'll meter like 4 or 5 different areas and somehow come up with a good time. And I ugess I kind've modified the zone system too. WTF knows. Just practice?