Frequently Bought Together
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Product Description
(free converter plug included if required)
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By Jonny_S
FP4 has been around for many years in one form or another (since about 1935 according to t'internet) and there's a good reason for that - it is an excellent film. Those beautiful rich landscapes and moody portraits that black and white film excels at are very much what this film is about.
The depth and gradation in tone achievable is fantastic, so long as you get the exposure and developing right ! The film is reasonably tolerant of exposure/development conditions, and badly exposed or developed negatives can often be scanned and rescued.
If you don't plan to develop the film yourself, be warned that professional black and white developing can be expensive, especially if you want the negatives scanned. If you have a scanner that can handle 35mm film, a Paterson tank and £20 of chemicals will last you for dozens of films. Using C41 black and white films (eg XP2, BW400CN) will work out significantly cheaper in the short-term, but these films seem far too contrasty to me- ideal for photojournalism but they cannot match FP4 for richness of tone. If you ever want to try medium format (ie 120 film), FP4plus is also available in this format and home-developing will make even more sense.
At ISO125, this is a good general purpose film, though perhaps not ideal for sports, long telephoto, or indoor with ambient lighting. I'm taking off one star because reasonable quality but less expensive films are available- I still keep buying a high percentage of FP4plus though.
The depth and gradation in tone achievable is fantastic, so long as you get the exposure and developing right ! The film is reasonably tolerant of exposure/development conditions, and badly exposed or developed negatives can often be scanned and rescued.
If you don't plan to develop the film yourself, be warned that professional black and white developing can be expensive, especially if you want the negatives scanned. If you have a scanner that can handle 35mm film, a Paterson tank and £20 of chemicals will last you for dozens of films. Using C41 black and white films (eg XP2, BW400CN) will work out significantly cheaper in the short-term, but these films seem far too contrasty to me- ideal for photojournalism but they cannot match FP4 for richness of tone. If you ever want to try medium format (ie 120 film), FP4plus is also available in this format and home-developing will make even more sense.
At ISO125, this is a good general purpose film, though perhaps not ideal for sports, long telephoto, or indoor with ambient lighting. I'm taking off one star because reasonable quality but less expensive films are available- I still keep buying a high percentage of FP4plus though.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Mr Baz
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
I've used quite a few makers for b&w and there are some good emulsions out there no question.
But I keep coming back to FP4 it's a wonderful b&w film with a cult following for good reason.
The latitude on the film is simply superb it's extremely tolerant of exposure variations and unlike many negative flims it copes very well with quite notable underexposure.
My summary as follows:
Pro's:
+ Nice fine grain (not the best but very good for it's rated speed)
+ Excellent latitude both over and underexposed in some cases I pushed the film over 3 stops and without a serious hit in quality
+ Great dynamic range in both highlight and shadow, good resolution for decent sizes prints
+ Stores well over extended time and is tolerant of quite a few various developers
+ Scans well with a good scanner though note you'll want to ensure minimal marks/scratches on the emulsion (IR scannig does not work with real b&w flim very well so you have to use software to remove marks)
Cons:
- Price has gone up a bit but this is art and you pay for the look so I can live with that
Overall a champ of a b&w film the contrast of this film is "medium" which I prefer to the Delta range which is quite contrasty. But that is down to personal taste.
Good uses for this film are landscape work, and good light portraits. Can be pushed but for lower light work I would suggest Ilford's HP5 which is an ISO 400 film or other high speed films for very low light work, both are wonderful b&w films in their own right.
But I keep coming back to FP4 it's a wonderful b&w film with a cult following for good reason.
The latitude on the film is simply superb it's extremely tolerant of exposure variations and unlike many negative flims it copes very well with quite notable underexposure.
My summary as follows:
Pro's:
+ Nice fine grain (not the best but very good for it's rated speed)
+ Excellent latitude both over and underexposed in some cases I pushed the film over 3 stops and without a serious hit in quality
+ Great dynamic range in both highlight and shadow, good resolution for decent sizes prints
+ Stores well over extended time and is tolerant of quite a few various developers
+ Scans well with a good scanner though note you'll want to ensure minimal marks/scratches on the emulsion (IR scannig does not work with real b&w flim very well so you have to use software to remove marks)
Cons:
- Price has gone up a bit but this is art and you pay for the look so I can live with that
Overall a champ of a b&w film the contrast of this film is "medium" which I prefer to the Delta range which is quite contrasty. But that is down to personal taste.
Good uses for this film are landscape work, and good light portraits. Can be pushed but for lower light work I would suggest Ilford's HP5 which is an ISO 400 film or other high speed films for very low light work, both are wonderful b&w films in their own right.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By E. D. Barnes
Over a period of many years, I have shot and home-processed well over a thousand rolls of Ilford FP4+ (and its predecessor, FP4) in 35mm, 120 and 220 formats. I won't say never, but I would have a long think before using another B&W film stock.
It is a truly great all-round film. Medium speed, sharp, fine-grained with good contrast and wide exposure latitude.
(Ultimately its speed rating, contrast, acuity and granularity depend upon the chemistry in which it is processed - but if the qualities are not inherent in the film, even the best processing will not bring them out).
Unlike the C41 chemistry for chromogenic films (such as XP2), most traditional processes for FP4 are carried out at room temperature - much easier for simple home processing.
Sadly the combined effects of the price of silver and the decline in the use of film mean that FP4+ is becoming more expensive and harder to find.
It is a truly great all-round film. Medium speed, sharp, fine-grained with good contrast and wide exposure latitude.
(Ultimately its speed rating, contrast, acuity and granularity depend upon the chemistry in which it is processed - but if the qualities are not inherent in the film, even the best processing will not bring them out).
Unlike the C41 chemistry for chromogenic films (such as XP2), most traditional processes for FP4 are carried out at room temperature - much easier for simple home processing.
Sadly the combined effects of the price of silver and the decline in the use of film mean that FP4+ is becoming more expensive and harder to find.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 6 reviews
4.5 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
|
