fugi across

[John Berry ( Roadkill )]

Has anyone done a workup on fugi across. I just shot a test roll of 120 and did it in D/76 as that is the developer my friend who is a brooks graduate and knows how it plays out. ( I'm into pyro but he hasn't done enough of it to read the negs as good as D/76.) He was totally impressed with this film when he looked at the negs as he was when he looked at the spec sheet. He can look at the lines on the graphs and tell what the fim will do. I'm still learning that. I trust his judgement. When he was talking to Ansel about his modifications fo developers Ansel was taking notes. Thats good enough for me. I've seen a few post on this film. I was interested if anyone uses this film regularly. I used to shoot Super-XX so you know what I'm looking for. I just got a Bessler 45V-XL condenser enlarger. I'm used to a diffused one. most of my negs are keyed to that, but it's a new ballgame now. The film only comes in readyloads for 4x5. so it will be spendy to go that route if I decide to make it my standard. I have also been doing a workup for forte 200 and fp-4in pyro. not too bad so far. any info would be appreciated. Thanks, John Berry

[Gem Singer]

John,

I found that Fuji Acros 100, Kodak T-Max 100, and Ilford Delta 100 are very similar films when comparing prints made from each. They are "fabricated" grain, medium speed films. As you already know, T-Max 100 and Acros 100 are available in the Quickload/Readyload form, and those two films are relatively expensive. However, they are easy to carry and handy to use because of their type of packaging. No need to load film holders. Reduces the possibility of dust, etc.

I think that, in the long run, you are going to conclude that Ilford FP-4+, especially when developed in Pyro, is the best all around conventional grained film, in the medium speed group. It is also marketed under various names, by a few dealers other than Ilford.

If you want to bring yourself up to speed on the choice of films and developers, I suggest : "The Film Developing Cookbook", by S. Anchell and B.Troop.

[Ralph Barker]

Yes, no, perhaps, yes, yes, and no. But, not necessarily in that order. ;-)

Fuji Acros actually is available in conventional sheets. Both from Megaperls Webshop (located in Japan) and a couple of U.S. dealers, I understand. You'll just have to do a little digging to find it. (Spelling it correctly will help in that regard, of course. ;-) )

Ultimately, whether it is suitable to you for your work is really up to you and your own testing, however.

[Jeff Moore]

Ralph, can you tell me what U.S. dealers carry Acros in 4x5 loose sheets? I've done plenty of digging and for the life of me, I can't find any.

[Ralph Barker]

Jeffrey - I think I unintentionally lied. The U.S. dealers I was thinking about (View Camera Store and Badger) were mentioned elsewhere as carrying (or carried in the past) Acros in 8x10 loose sheets, not 4x5. Megaperls does list the 4x5 sheets, though.

[John Berry ( Roadkill )]

Thanks for the feedback. I am inclined to agree that the fp-4 is a more likly candidate. I don't like t-max. Some seem to like it but I find the highlights are a bit flighty when you try to place it with zone system. Maybe it was the combo I was using. Why bother with it when I can get other films that give me more consistant control.It also tends to wash the highlights when you hit it with a flash. Thanks much, John

[Dan Jolicoeur]

You may want to try Delta 100. I also gave up on Tmax, but i think you will find delta 100 has more latitude and your highlights will not be blown. The only problem I am having is scratches. I have heard that Delta 100 has a softer emulsion, I wish someone could verify this and if this is true with all of Ilfords film. I would also like to try Acros because of this problem. Does anyone out there know about the emulsion of Fp4, or Fp5? Are they as soft as Delta 100?
Thanks,
Dan

[Scott Rosenberg]

i have found the tabular grain films all to be pretty close in that they all offer very fine grain and, to some degree, diffucult to control highlights. i find tmax to be my least favorite, followed by delta, then across. i settled on across because it is my my favorite of those offeres in packets (the only other being tmax, which i can't ever seem to get right).

however, recently eugene singer and i have been doing some testing, and we've both come to the conclusion that the fp4+ yields the most appealing image. i think it offers such an advantage over the others that i have given up on using packet films for my black and white work and went out and bought some cut film holders expressly for black and white.

i would urge you to buy some of each and do some of your own tests, with your own development, as that too will change the reslts.

[Gem Singer]

Daniel,

If you are getting scratches on any type of film, do not blame the manufacturer. Carefully re-examine your method of handling the film from the original box, to the developed and finished negative. I can only speak for sheet films, but after using Delta 100, FP-4+ and HP-5+, I don't notice any differences in the hardness of the emulsions. In fact, Ilford films seem to have the hardest, scratch resistant emulsions of any of the films that I have used.

[Dick Baznik]

Fuji Acros is a great film indeed. I use it in 4x5, MF, and 35mm. My preferred developer has been HC110-B, though recently I've been trying ID-11 1:1 with excellent results. Loose 4x5 sheets are available from Midwest Photo Exchange (www.mpex.com) -- you might ask for Abdi Roble, who handles film supplies for them.