Low light 4x5?

[athanasius80]

So my buddy is having a 1950s coctail party birthday party tomorrow night. He and I are both vintage dorks, so I am considering bringing my B&J press camera and doing 4x5 grab shots with it. I have no flash unit, and I'm working with an f4.7 Ektar lens and no tripod. What film and developers would work well in average Los Angeles apartment light in my situation?
Thanks!

[David Karp]

Tri-X and Diafine? Just guessing.

[Frank Petronio]

Get a 500 watt tungsten work light and bounce it off a high corner after people have drunk for a bit. They will complain for about 30 sec until they adjust and then they will forget about it. Seriously, I have done this. Girls will gather near because it is warm. Take some clothing off.

Focusing is the most critical part. Double check that your RF is accurate wide open at 6-10 foot distances or learn to compensate for it.

I think you can do fine handheld like that at 1/30 @ 5.6 so either ISO 400 if you bring extra light or 1600 if you don't.

Look for faces pointed into a light source... you'll lose the shadows no matter what so don't worry about em.

[Vaughn]

T-grain 400ASA film (ie TMax 400)...has more exposure latitude than conventional film.

[John Curran]

I would give HP5 a shot. It pushes to 800 or 1600 well.

john

[Gordon Moat]

If you have a Polaroid back, they make an ISO 3000 film. I think Fuji might also have a similar instant film. Definitely makes what you want to accomplish easy, and with the added benefit of being able to show everyone your images fairly quickly as prints.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio

[Jiri Vasina]

I would give HP5 a shot. It pushes to 800 or 1600 well.

john

I'd second John in using (and pushing) HP5 - and if using the additional light bulb as suggested by Frank is feasible, it will be a plus.

Here is an example of HP5+ at EI 1600, but as it is only a small 6×7cm negative, it's not presented here

[Ben Chase]

Get a 500 watt tungsten work light and bounce it off a high corner after people have drunk for a bit. They will complain for about 30 sec until they adjust and then they will forget about it. Seriously, I have done this. Girls will gather near because it is warm. Take some clothing off.

lol - Frank you never cease to amuse....