SW-Film Classic 200

Gast · 2003-03-10T19:32:14+00:00

Hallo liebe Classic "user" Wer von Euch hat Erfahrung mit dem 200er classic Film entwickelt in R09. Ich entwickele die Film jetzt in rodinal. grusse jel...

Gast

Hello Classic users, Which of you has experience developing 200-speed Classic film in R09? I’m currently developing the film in Rodinal. Best regards, Jelke

Gast

I tried out the Classic 200 last week and developed it in R 09 for 1 minute 40 seconds. The negatives seem a bit faint to me... but they’re usable. Has anyone achieved top results with R09? Regards, Michael

Gast

I tried out the Classic 200 last week and developed it in R 09 at 1:40 for 9 minutes. The negatives seem a bit faint to me... but usable. Has anyone achieved top results with R09? Regards, Michael

What’s the situation with the base on the 200? Is it just as dense, grey and heavy? Mirko, I’m assuming this is also Fortem material. The emulsions do have character (so you can find a use for them, even if it’s just to save a few pence :-). Do they ever plan to use a base with less density? Do the Hungarians take feedback from dealers and customers? I don’t see the argument about the possibility of pencil retouching as a reason for the layer – nobody does that anymore, at least not in MF. :-) Thanks! Regards, Roman

Gast

Hi Roman! On my last visit to Berlin, I picked up a 10-pack of ClassicFilm 200 in 120 format – I got excellent results using Rodinal 1+50 – a lovely, old-fashioned look; the film also worked very well with an exposure at ISO 100 and development in Rodinal 1+75 for night shots in the city – the contrasts weren’t nearly as harsh as I’d feared, and the negatives were quite easy to print (for night shots) (though at grade 5 – next time I might develop in 1+50 or 1+25 after all). The base fog on ClassicFilm is certainly no higher than on APX, but naturally darker than on Ilfords – I didn’t find this bothersome. What did bother me a great deal, however, is that the film is truly a ‘roll film’ – it rolls and curls extremely badly. I immediately put the glass plates back into my Opemus film stage; I didn’t dare print without them. In terms of flatness, the film is even worse than Efke’s or the Maco IR820...

Gast

Regarding base film: Unfortunately, there aren’t many options left when it comes to base film. In recent years, all manufacturers have gone under in tandem with the complete collapse of the market (…in the sectors where roll film was still being produced, such as pre-press, technical films, etc.). All that remains is the classic grey base on which Forte and Foma are cast, and the clear poly base on which Efke is cast. The 400 and 200 speeds would have problems with antihalation on the clear base and would also be more expensive to pour. I therefore fear that nothing will change. You can easily get rid of the streaking by not drying the film in a room with low humidity (especially now in winter – dry, heated air is completely wrong). With a humidifier in the room or in the bathroom immediately after showering, the film dries a little more slowly but comes out wonderfully smooth. This is nothing new. Until 20 years ago, you had to do this with almost all films. Good luck! Mirko www.fotoimpex.de

Gast

Note regarding carriers: The brands have their own contracts with manufacturers or produce the goods themselves. This refers to the carriers that we, as a small business, are able to source.

Gast

To Roman Sonnleitner Hi Roman, What development times did you use for the 200 film in Rodinal (1:50)? Best regards, Michael

Gast

Mirko, thanks for the tip – I’ll give that a go with higher humidity; apart from the stubborn backing material, I actually quite like the film! Michael, I developed it for 10 minutes in Rodinal 1+50 according to the instructions at www.digitaltruth.com – using an exposure equivalent to 200 ISO (partly flash, partly daylight). I don’t think I need to change the times much any more; it’s working quite well as it is. For the night shots (urban landscapes with artificial lighting, new moon), I set the exposure to 100 ISO (though it’s not a spot exposure, as I don’t know how it reacts to bright light against a black sky; I’m only just starting to experiment with night shots), and then I did exposure bracketing – using the recommended, half and double exposure times (though actually all the shots printed up well); I developed them in Rodinal 1+50 (not 1+75 – I’ve just had a look at my lab notes again, I’d remembered it wrong). 7.5 mins. As I said, the prints have turned out nicely, though I have to go to gradient 5, which of course makes dust particles more visible. I’ll experiment a bit more with that – perhaps expose at 160 ISO after all and develop for a little longer – so that the negatives become a bit harder, but there’s still detail in the shadows? This is where the night photography dilemma of high contrasts between artificial light and ‘natural’ darkness comes in, as I wanted to get round it by using low speed and a shorter development time – but I suppose that was a bit too much of a good thing... Roman

Gast

Hello Classic users, The exposure for the Classic 200 is 100 ISO, and I develop it for 11 minutes in Rodinal 1+75 (using a condenser enlarger); the negatives are easy to print at grade 3. What is the recommended development time for R09 (1+100)? jelke

Gast

Regarding base materials: Unfortunately, there aren’t many options left when it comes to base materials. In recent years, all manufacturers have gone under in tandem with the complete collapse of the market (…in the sectors where roll film was still being produced, such as pre-press and technical films, etc.). All that remains is the classic grey base on which Forte and Foma are cast, and the clear poly base on which Efke is cast. The 400 and 200 speeds would have problems with antihalation on the clear base and would also be more expensive to coat. I therefore fear that nothing will change. You can easily avoid warping simply by not drying the film in a room with low humidity (especially now in winter – dry, heated air is completely wrong). With a humidifier in the room or in the bathroom straight after a shower, the film dries a little more slowly but beautifully smooth. This isn’t new information. Until 20 years ago, you had to do this with almost all films. Good luck! Mirko www.fotoimpex.de

Mirko, thanks for the information. I’m almost tempted to try the 200/400 film, but on the other hand I’d like to move away from experimenting and stick to one film… well, three films. R50, currently APX400 and XP2 for the full range. I think I’ll order a few more rolls of R50 and freeze them before the new price list comes out. ;-) I don’t think I’ll make it to Berlin in April after all. I can’t find many sample images of the Fortepan films online (via Google); could someone point me in the direction of an online gallery? Thanks, Regards, Roman

Gast

Hi Roman, You might want to have a look at www.photosig.com – you can search the galleries by film type, amongst other things. I’m not sure if there’s much there on Forte, though...