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Got a 4x5" need advise on film


kajf

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I'm a totally newbe in LF (if 4x5" qualify as LF?)

 

I got a ToKo wood camera with a Schneider 150mmAPO Symmar, and 5 double film cassets And need

advise on wich film to get - I would prefere a film that I can develop in a tray, and one that is a little

forgiving..

 

Any adwise?

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Kaj

 

Any 150mm LF lens is a good starter . Its like a 80mm for MF .

If you are doing B/W , I would recommend the ILFORD DELTA 100 and the FUJI ACROS 100 .

Both are available as sheetfilm in your size and are easily processed in drums , tanks or trash

, whatever you prefer .

I prefer tank , because the developing times are the same for MF and LF . No new learning .

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When I started LF I learned by shooting Polaroids, get Polaroid 100ISO BW film (Type 73or72, not sure what its called). The most important thing that you need to figure out how calculating your exposure using a hand held meter and zone system. Once you get that down you can experiment with raise/fall and tilt and other movements. For land scape that is all you will need, and very little of it.

 

Polaroids give you an instant feed back and so you can learn as you go. WRT to film once you have mastered metering and movements, I recommend Fuji Velvia 100 (NOT 100F) for landscapes (velvia 50 might be out soon), Astia for portraits, and Trix 320, panf 50, for BW. Point with film is, since you are new, stick with one film, don't try a bunch of them. You have to reduce the number of unknown variables if you want to improve your quality with LF.

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Hi: Your lens is a very good one. Here are some notes about b&w films for 4x5. T Max and Delta--too contrasty for landscapes by far, but sharp and OK when there is a limited range of lighting. Tri X 320--excellent. Lower contrast than T Max but sometimes too contrasty. Best shot at 125. Bergger: lower than normal contrast. Excellent shot at 80-100, usable down to 12 1/2 speed, where it softens. Best for platinum printing. Great results. Rollei R3--best at 80-100, low contrast but sharp. The best film at getting subtle darker tones. I should mention that I am a photo dealer and sell all the above films except Kodak.
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Nice outfit. The 150mm APO Symmar is great. As for film I find the Ilford FP4 and Foma very tolerant. I tray-develop using 1:1 Kodak D-76 (I have yet to try the exotics, being a LF begginer myself).
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I've started with TMAX 100, developing "taco style" in a 32 oz stainless steel tank in HC-110 dilution B. Taco style means you roll them emulsion side in, and secure with a couple of rubber bands. I've used TMAX 100 in 35mm, and been happy with it, so that's what I decided to start with in 4x5.

 

For 3-1/4 x 5-1/2, I cut down Classic Pan 200, and developed it in tubes in a 32 oz tank. But the tubes I have are too small for 4x5. I've also used these tubes for some 9x12 cm B&W film.

 

But, I'd agree that FP4+ or HP5+ are more forgiving than TMAX. They also come in 25 sheet boxes, where the minimum purchase of TMAX is 50 sheets.

 

TMAX is easily N+1 and N-1'd (etc.) for the zone system, but is demanding of consistent technique, since small changes in development time or temperature have a big effect.

 

From what I've read, Efke film would not be the place to start for tray developing, very soft emulsion.

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Yes, good choice I think. TriX is in my opinion the most forgivig film available...and so nice...

 

D76 is also a good choice offcourse...strangely enough I also love Ilfotec DDX with this

film...you could try that as well...

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