Agfa Aviphot Aerial Film just bought some 9x12cm

[Daniel Unkefer]

Agfa Avipan 9x12 102 sheets from Russia 1 by Nokton48, on Flickr

Agfa Avipan 4x5 Neg supplied fits Lisco Holder OK by Nokton48, on Flickr


Got a package today from Russia, 102 sheets of 9x12cm Agfa Aviphot Aerial Film. I have been shooting this in 70mm long rolls and like it; want to shoot it in large format also. The prints and test negative were in the package. I tried the 4x5 negative in a 4x5 Lisco Film Holder and it is a bit smaller nominally, but fits tightly in the holder once all the way in. I believe it would be ok but the film is coated on a thin aerial film base. I have some spring loaded Linhof holders in 9x12cm that might work well with this film?

I am planning to try MeCD4 and have ordered CD4 Color Developer and Sodium Metabisulphite from Artcraft Chemicals. I have used and like Rollei Supergrain which Freestyle sells fresh

You can shoot Infared in 8x10 and 18x24cm

[Daniel Unkefer]

I opened the lighttight package and loaded up two old Sinar Norma 9x12cm holders successfully. Enough to make a film run in my old Unicolor Grey 8x10 Unidrum, which I modified to fit four 9x12cm sheets. This is indeed very thin aerial film quite flimsy. It seems to want to curl naturally so I hope I have established the emulsion side. Most sheets I tried seem to fit OK and tightly into the Norma holders; a couple did not, (too wide) so may need some trimming. I moved the pile into an old Kodak 4x5 Hold Box and relabeled the box.

If this works well I may spring for some in 18x24cm and 8x10.

[popdoc]

I just received a roll of this film that is 9.5” x 250’, and need to cut it into 8 x 10 sheets.

After looking at the film specifications sheet from Agfa and seeing that the film has no sensitivity to anything 900 nm or longer, I’m researching 900 nm LEDs and some form of night vision scope. It seems that the night vision scopes will have to be helmet mounted and with some form of a hood that prevents any light seeping out from around the eyepiece to prevent fogging.

I have tried cutting a sample of the film on a standard guillotine cutter, and it doesn’t look like such a good or reproducible idea.

Have any of you done this successfully?

Would love suggestions and guidance!

[Daniel Unkefer]

400s 70mm Supergrain Blad 30 Distagon 2 by Nokton48, on Flickr

Agfa Aviphot 200 70mm Hasselblad 500C/M 30mm T* Distagon Rollei Supergrain Developer. The film has some Infared qualities even without red filtration.

400s 70mm Supergrain Blad 100 Planar 1 by Nokton48, on Flickr

Agfa Aviphot 200 70mm Hasselblad 500C/M 100mm T* Planar Rollei Supergrain Developer. Test roll (31 exposures) fresh 70mm Rollei 400s, processed in Rollei Supergrain. JOBO 120/220 reel modified to 70mm width by me, JOBO Multitank 2 Agitated by hand. Film shot last spring, then life came along...................

Hasselblad A70 mag, 100mm Zeiss T* Darkroom print Omega DII Omegalite head Aristo #2 RC Ultra Multigrain Dev

400s 70mm Supergrain Blad 100 Planar 4 by Nokton48, on Flickr

[Sam L]

I have cut a lot of 14x17 x-ray film down to 8x10 and 4x5. X-ray film is highly prone to scratches but not thin or curly like the Agfa film. You can work with x-ray film in dim deep red visible light. I would not use a paper cutter by feel in the dark so I think you'll need to figure out IR goggles with an external IR source that won't fog the film. I'd be curious to hear how this works if you figure it out.

8x10 is not quite 8"x10" and there is very little tolerance for error in the 8-inch direction. I use a back-stop guide to make the cuts reproducible and I wear clean powder-free gloves while handling the film to avoid fingerprints. I also make sure the film is not contaminated with darkroom chemicals or dust by touching the counter or paper cutter bed. For that, I put a layer of fresh tracing paper everywhere that the film is going to touch.

I tested a few types of paper cutter:

The first was a fancy rotary cutter, the Dahle 552 ($200 on Amazon). It has a stop that mounts to the top rail that is really useful when you're trying to make precise and repeatable cuts. It is also nearly impossible to cut your fingers with, which is a great thing in the dark. I ultimately returned it because I could not figure out how to use it without scratching the film. There is a clear flexible plastic strip that holds the work down while you're cutting. You have to slide the work under this strip, which means dragging it across the base or across the sharp cutting edge to get it into position. Other people have recommended this one.

The second was an xacto brand guillotine cutter that I use for trimming prints. It was a lot easier to gingerly place the film on the cutting table without dragging it around cutter because the blade lifts away. However, holding the film down while cutting was nearly impossible and the cuts tended to wander more than the tolerance of the film holders. There was also no easy way to make a stop for repeatable cutting and I had issues with the burr on the edge of the lower blade scratching the film. I also almost cut myself trying to hold the film too close to the blade (I snipped off the tip of a rubber glove).

The winner was the Dahle 18e guillotine ($60 on amazon). This is a cheap cutter and mine needed some adjustment when I got it. I loosened the screws for the top rail and squared it with the blade and I sharpened the blade with a stone to remove the paint that was on it. This cutter won out because of two features: it has a soft rubber foot that comes down with the blade to hold the work in place while cutting. You don't need to use your fingers. The foot does not scratch film and it will cut the full 17" without the film wandering. The second feature is that the bed is metal. This allows me to put a drafting triangle on the bed and hold it down with magnets to create an easily movable stop. I adjust the stop position with a piece of commercial film for reference.