I have a stash of 4x5 infrared film, but no 8x10. I rarely shoot other film so I may be confined to 4x5. Any chance I'll ever see 8x10 IR again? A buddy suggested some 8x10 x-ray film.
I have a stash of 4x5 infrared film, but no 8x10. I rarely shoot other film so I may be confined to 4x5. Any chance I'll ever see 8x10 IR again? A buddy suggested some 8x10 x-ray film.
http://www.mahn.net/TAIRe.htm
They have an infrared film available in 8x10.
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
I don't see how X-Ray film would be sensitive to Infrared. I still have about 300 sheets in 8x10 and have used IR for a very long time. I still have to say that it's a finicky film and if I was going to invest in an IR solution it would probably be a higher end digital camera as it would save me gray hair and probably my liver from the drinking I do to set aside the anxiety of trying to get a really good image from IR film.
When I first bought IR film from Maco it was over $8 a sheet and for the most part was entirely light struck. Probably have never made back the investment, especially when you think of what I spent on 12x20 IR film. This latest batch I was able to acquire at a much cheaper price. I purchased it from a seller on E-bay that had bought an entire run and had more than he could use.
This latest batch has been significantly better but still gets a touch of fogging if I am not careful with the light trap. I was convinced with Maco that it was the plastic around the film holder that wasn't IR safe and invested in a bunch of wood holders which seemed to help but after this new batch of film I have tested in plastic holders, it seems that the early Maco was simply light struck from their poor handling.
I took a batch to the Caribbean this last year and shot about 25 sheets, of which I had one of my best images to date and it has sold quite well, but the rest are mediocre at best, mostly due to the way the film handles and not so much from me screwing up the exposure, although after 40+ years I can still pull that off -- old dogs and new tricks and so forth -- but the results remain the same.
I have a friend, Jim Collum who shoots IR with his expensive digital setup and I have to say the results are simply awesome. It's unfortunate I don't have a spare 20k laying around to capture images like he does. The small fact that it would take me years to make them look as good as he does after the fact might play in to that as well.
That, more or less, is my current perception of (fine art?) IR imaging.
Robert brings up a good point about digital IR. For probably less than $2k you could get a decent used 12-24mp DSLR, modify it for IR, and a few nice primes, and easily get the same level of quality as 4x5 IR, or better - as at least in my limited experience, IR film is always much grainier than traditional film. I know no one wants to hear that on this forum but it's probably true.
X-ray film has some similarities in look to IR film if you have the green-sensitive stuff (foliage is much brighter) but definitely not the same.
If/when I stop using my Nikon D700 for commercial work I'll probably get it IR modified.
Did not Maco IR become EFKE which is now out of production? I still have a half box of EFKE 4X5. I thought Rollei was the only IR film now in production.Originally Posted by Peter J. De Smidt
I didn't mean to say that I wanted to do IR photography with x-ray film. It was suggested to me that I explore x-ray film as an inexpensive alternative to IR in 8x10 as the 8x10 gear is currently collecting dust. X-ray may fill the creative 8x10 void The cost of modern 8x10 films like tmax is prohibitive for me even though I would sell an organ for 8x10 IR film. Digital is not an option for me because of the digital lack of dynamic range ,loss of view camera movements, and most importantly, the loss of my favorite imagons that I feel are delightful with IR film. It's not the same and I already spend too much time in front of a computer.
I have a freezer full of efke 4x5 IR and never see any of the fogging issues mentioned. Not all bellows are IR tight, but mine are. I use Rodinal diluted 1;50 and get great shadow detail while maintaining highlight detail and basically have everything dialed in to consistantly get full tonal range with good contrast. It does get grainy when overexposed.
Rollei (agfa) still makes 4x5 IR and I was curious if they would produce 8x10.
I was hoping to hear that there's a great chance someone like Ilford will start rolling out 8x10 IR real soon. (just kidding!) I have seen some polaroid resurrection, but There is much more fun involved in that type of film which makes it appeal to more than niche artsy types.
I really don't expect to ever use 8x10 IR again and will have to consider digital IR when all the 4x5 is gone
Another options is to use something like an RM72 filter with regular panchromatic film. The speed loss is somewhere between 7 and 15 stops. On the plus side, long exposures can have interesting characteristics, the film can have fine grain, and you can get black skies, white foliage...
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
Digital IR is fantastic because you can actually see the IR result and adjust your composition. I used film IR for a few years but eventually discovered digital IR and it opens a whole new world of visual discovery.
A small part of my work with digital IR can be seen at my experimental light gallery. http://www.sandykingphotography.com/...rimental-light
In terms of final image quality I agree with Bryan in that FF DSLR converted to IR is at least as good as 4X5 IR film. But if that is not good enough, pick up an inexpensive older P45 and have it converted to IR!!
Sandy
For discussion and information about carbon transfer please visit the carbon group at groups.io
[url]https://groups.io/g/carbon
Guys have been saying dslr's are as good as 4x5 since the 10D came out, nothing new there.
I'm not sure what most of these answers have to do with 8x10 infrared film but I'd guess that your only chance is with Rollei doing a $pecial run once a year or so.
That's fine work, Sandy! Which camera and conversion did you use?
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
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