First ADOX CHS 100 II Shots+ comparison

[Tobias Key]

Portrait of Becky by Tobias Key, on Flickr

Here's another image I was shooting a bit more seriously here, and I have done a bit of photoshopping to get the contrast how I like it, and remove some blemishes, but the tonality is pretty nice on the whole.

[photobymike]

129.95 for 50 sheets is kind of steep (Freestyle). And then you need the special developer to make it work well. But the results are impressive... However Ilford hp+ film is my film of choice right now.... it is very versatile with developer choices and the push capability is super .... My customers like the "grain" effect because it looks like film. The pictures Adox CHS II produces looks like a very good digital camera....Tobias; your picture is super good, I like it a lot... my monitor does not do it justice however.... i cannot see detail in the hair...but i bet it is there.

[renes]

Well my box of CHS 100 II finally came last week and I persuaded my daughter to pose for a few test shots. At the same time I shot my 5d as a reference and I've posted them here for your evaluation. I've posted the whole images in turn and the crops of the face so you can look at the differences in tonality between panchromatic digital image and the orthopanchromatic Adox. The differences are pretty subtle but my daughter certainly seems to have more freckles when shot with the Adox.

Generally the film was very straightforward to use and the box speed appears accurate. I developed these in Rodinal 1+50 and I got nice negatives with a fine grain, so other developers may reduce the grain even further. Didn't spot any QC issues, emulsion seems to handle like any modern film.

Take landscape shots where are more light nuances and you will see much more differences.

[karl french]

Freestyle's prices are generally high. I plan to order it from the Fotoimpex online store, where the 25 sheet box of 8x10 is approximately the same price as a box of Ilford 8x10 in the US. Both of which are a whole lot cheaper than any Kodak 8x10 film.

[Peter Yeti]

Tobias,

Thanks a lot for posting your first tests and results of the new film. Though my monitor doesn't show enough detail to judge it, I just believe you that it's worthwhile trying.

And here is the thing I don't quite understand: Many people pee in their pants, fearing that analogue film may disappear completely very soon and here is a producer who actually develops a NEW product of probably GOOD quality. And what happens? You guys complain about the PRICE! When I first tried the old Adox CMS 100, I was shocked and very frustrated by the poor manufacturing quality (thanks to efke). I actually talked to Mirko Böddecker from Adox and told him that I'd be happy to pay more for this film, if QC would be on a par with other quality producers like Kodak or Ilford but that I wouldn't waste my money on that crap. And it seems that he did exactly what I was wishing for. Plus, the price is still considerably below that of Kodak or Ilford, at least if you buy from the source. Is freestyle trying to kill it?

I certainly will give it a try as soon as I find time...

[StoneNYC]

Tobias,

Thanks a lot for posting your first tests and results of the new film. Though my monitor doesn't show enough detail to judge it, I just believe you that it's worthwhile trying.

And here is the thing I don't quite understand: Many people pee in their pants, fearing that analogue film may disappear completely very soon and here is a producer who actually develops a NEW product of probably GOOD quality. And what happens? You guys complain about the PRICE! When I first tried the old Adox CMS 100, I was shocked and very frustrated by the poor manufacturing quality (thanks to efke). I actually talked to Mirko Böddecker from Adox and told him that I'd be happy to pay more for this film, if QC would be on a par with other quality producers like Kodak or Ilford but that I wouldn't waste my money on that crap. And it seems that he did exactly what I was wishing for. Plus, the price is still considerably below that of Kodak or Ilford, at least if you buy from the source. Is freestyle trying to kill it?

I certainly will give it a try as soon as I find time...

In the US can you buy from the source without paying crazy prices on overseas shipping?

[polyglot]

129.95 for 50 sheets is kind of steep (Freestyle). And then you need the special developer to make it work well. But the results are impressive... However Ilford hp+ film is my film of choice right now.... it is very versatile with developer choices and the push capability is super .... My customers like the "grain" effect because it looks like film. The pictures Adox CHS II produces looks like a very good digital camera....Tobias; your picture is super good, I like it a lot... my monitor does not do it justice however.... i cannot see detail in the hair...but i bet it is there.

Wrong film. We're talking about CHS-100 II which is a replacement for the old Efke 100 which is a fairly modern take on a traditional-grain film while you're talking about CMS 20 which is a high-contrast document film.

Freestyle doesn't have the new CHS-100 in stock yet.

[photobymike]

I have an email announcement from freestyle that said they are getting it in stock soon and the price would be on par with CMS II that is 129.99

[polyglot]

Well that would suck, considering the old stuff was $50/50 in 4x5.

[IanG]

I have an email announcement from freestyle that said they are getting it in stock soon and the price would be on par with CMS II that is 129.99

Something sounds wrong there as CHS II is much less than CMS II from Fotoimpex themselves, roughly 60 euros as opposed to 84.50 euros for 50 sheets.

Ian