From: Robert W. Schramm (schrammrus@hotmail.com)
Date: 09/20/00-10:20:29 PM Z
This seems like an interesting topic so I'll throw in my two cents.
I would say that the all time best depends on what you are trying to do. For
example, when I make negatives for alternative process I do
something quite different than when I work with silver/gel.
In my case for alternative process, in-camera negatives I prefer
Ilford FP4 sheet film developed in an old amidol formula or D23 two bath. I
get the density and really great tonal range I need for
platinum, cyanotype and VDB.
For silver/gel, I have more than one favorite. Lets start with Tri-X and D76
which still gives great tonal range even though there is
more grain than you get with modern films. I fooled around with the
T-max films for several years. Never really liked T-Max 100 but
T-Max 400 was and is a good film with tonal range similar to Tri-X
but without the grain. However, T-Max developer always gave me some
backgroud fog no matter what I did.
When Xtol developer came out I ran some tests between T-Max and HP5
and liked the Ilford film better. Lately I have been using Ilford
Pan F (great stuff but slow), FP4 (very nice medium speed) and
HP5 (very much like Tri-X with less grain) all developed in Xtol
and am very pleased with them all but like the Pan F best since I
have made some really nice enlarged negs with it.
I don't do a lot of fine art silver gel printing. Most of my printing
is straight commercial type stuff and I use Ilford Polymax with
Dektol. Both Kodak and Ilford have some nice fiber base fine art
papers. For me its a toss up but I guess I would go with Galerie
for cold tone. I use Dektol with it and sometimes dump some Potassium
Bromide or Sodium Carbonate solution in it.
Sometimes when long tonal range is not important I will make positives
on Ilford Polymax RC and then contact print them on ortho to get large
negs.
Bob Schramm
>From: Richard Maddox <slow_emulsions@yahoo.co.uk>
>Reply-To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
>To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
>Subject: Re: Alltime Best B/W Film & Paper Combination
>Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000 19:26:10 +0100 (BST)
>
>--- As an experimental emulsion maker, a recent post
>by Richard Knoppow got me to wondering... Just Exactly
>what is our collective "All time Best" B/W Film &
>Paper Combination(s)? What I really want to know is
>which of all the various brands and types, do we as a
>group of "seasoned" users, fell represents the
>greatest material to have been put on the market, and
>why.
>
>We all know Photographic emulsions are different today
>than they were in the 70's ... but I have heard
>discussed a decline in Fine Print Quality as a result
>of these so called "Advances" in emulsion
>technology.... Any comments, either on or off, would
>be welcomed.
>
>R.M.
>
>
>
>____________________________________________________________
>Do You Yahoo!?
>Get your free @yahoo.co.uk address at http://mail.yahoo.co.uk
>or your free @yahoo.ie address at http://mail.yahoo.ie
_________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com.
Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at
http://profiles.msn.com.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 10/01/00-12:09:00 PM Z CDT