HP5, TXP or TMY for portraits

[Ron Marshall]

I am in the process of deciding on a film to use for studio portraits on 5x7. I have only tried TMY, which I am very happy with in Pyrocat, but just wondering if anyone has a preference for one of the other films, and why.

My major concerns are speed and how highlights and midtones are rendered.

Which of these films would give me a higher true EI in Pyrocat-HD, and good tonality?

[Jay DeFehr]

Hi Ron.

Those are all top notch films (no pun intended), and each is capable of the highest quality results, but since you're already familiar with TMY, I don't think either of the other films has anything significant to offer in the way of improvement. In my experience, TMY gives the highest film speed, but I don't use Pyrocats, I use 510-Pyro which gives full ISO speed, or a little better with most films. Good luck.

Jay

[David A. Goldfarb]

It's all a matter of taste. I like TXP.

[Donald Qualls]

I'll be a maverick here and suggest Fortepan 400 (aka Classic 400 or .EDU "Made in Hungary" 400) as an excellent alternative. It looks very good in Parodinal/Rodinal, HC-110, and D-76, and costs enough less than the Big Brands that you can shoot more of it and get comfortable more quickly. Honestly, I like it better than the 9x12 cm TXT I have on hand...

[Hans Berkhout]

Whichever is the easiest to come by in your area. They are all good enough.

[jnantz]

hi ron

i have used a lot of tri x in 5x7 size to make portraits, and when i worked in a portrait studio all she used was tri x, it is able to give really nice results. i haven't used hp5 or tmy or used pyro developer though lots of other things to develop film, but not pyro ... in smaller formats i have used the other films quite a bit. when i shot for a newspaper tmy was my film of choice.

good luck!
john

[Capocheny]

Hi Ron,

I'd have to agree with Hans in that all of the films you've mentioned would be good for portraiture work. So, it really boils down to what's available in your marketplace and the price-point that you're willing to spend on it.

Personally, I've made the move to switch from Kodak to Ilford because I believe in supporting those organizations that support us.

So, for me... it's definitely FP4+ or HP5+.

Cheers

[Mr. Doyle]

Ron,
I spent five years processing film (not the best memories) for a printer in London who printed for such as Averdon and David Bailey both of whom shot 10/8" portrait in the studio and location (I then moved on and opened a commercial lab in London printing the old way, but thats another story..).We used Tri X developed in Kodak dectol and then changed to Xtol which contains no Hydoquinone, bad for the skin... This was a tried and tested formula and we actually recommended it for alot of photographers, Bailey included (he used tmy but the switch was mainly for shorter dev times as he shot so much film)
So I am offering:
Tri X shot at 400 asa.
Kodak Xtol (diluted 1-1)
21 degrees
7 mins
perfect.
Hope this is of some help.

[Robert Skeoch]

Of the three films I think HP5 would be the easiest to find in 5x7.
-Rob

[Scott Davis]

HP5, if you must pick one from your list. Personally I'm quite partial to FP4+ instead, for studio work. I've also put quite a bit of Fomapan 200 through my 5x7 in the field, and had wonderful results from it. It is also wonderful for alt-process stuff, if that is something you have an interest in. I bought the Freestyle Arista.EDU Ultra version of it (it is the same film) for $16 a box for 25 sheets. REAL hard to beat that price.