first attempts at B&W film (C+C)

greeneyedspirit

So I've recently been shooting more and more film, and I absolutely love my little Porst CX 4.

I went to pick up the second roll of B&W film (Kodachrome ISO 400, C41 process EDIT: nope, not Kodachrome - thanks Charybdis... Kodak Professional BW400CN it is.) that I shot with it today, and I'm pleased enough with the results. I'd love to hear your thoughts on these, though...

1. Daisies!

I like the tones of this film, I know it's not 'real' black and white, but for the moment, it's good. And easier to get developed, locally...

2. Tagged ear...

This was supposed to be focused on the eye, but the cow moved, as they do... I like the blurry sister in the background best :pac:

3. sunkissed

not sure what exactly happened at the left side of this shot...

Next thing now will be 'proper' black and white film. Anybody know any good sources for that? Ordering online is probably the cheapest solution, I would guess?

cheers

charybdis

You got ISO 400 B&W C41 Kodachrome?

greeneyedspirit

charybdis wrote: »

You got ISO 400 B&W C41 Kodachrome?

Maybe not Kodachrome...? I just checked - it says:
Kodak Professional BW400CN on the box

sineadw

If you're in dublin, gunns is very cheap for b&w film. Saves p&p, and waiting:)

greeneyedspirit

sineadw wrote: »

If you're in dublin, gunns is very cheap for b&w film. Saves p&p, and waiting:)

Hmm, I'm in Galway... But thanks! Apparently Davitt's in Salthill would be an option locally. Might try that.

artyeva

i've bought film from 7dayshop in the past, mostly cause shops here in mayo charge an arm and a leg for it.... they have really quick delivery. i usually save up and buy a heap at once.*

*when they're on special offer

Heebie

Kodak's "CN" series films are "fake" black & whit films. (They are color-process films that produce monochromatic negatives.. if I recall correctly they actually are kind of a rown-ish color to look at once developed.. although I've not seen a roll in years..and I've never used it.. just processed it in photolabs for customers.) I hate the stuff.. nowhere near the results you'll get from a true black & white film.

You definitely wouldn't find "Kodachrome" that was black & white. "chrome" implies both color and slide film... and they stopped making Kodachrome a while back.. and there is only one lab in the world that can process it right now, and it's shutting off it's K14 (the Kodachrome process) processing equipment on 10 September... so if anyone has any Kodachrome.. get it processed now.

I would think that most good camera shops still keep at least some black & white film in-stock, so places like Gunn's and Conn's downtown should have some.

I generally prefer Ilford black & whites over Kodak.. although Kodak TMax can serve certain needs. (really really really high-contrast... as it's name implies it's a "maximum contrast" film.. if you look at it... the negatives are actually pretty much completely clear, where most B&W film once it's developed are kind of opaque-ish.)

I tend to stay away from Kodak Tri-X unless I'm going to process it myself. Most photolabs don't fix it long enough (the negatives come back looking purple instead of grey.. which means that there isn't nearly enough silver removed from the film..which means it will "silver" over time [basically the leftover silver in the chemistry that hasn't been taken out the the fixer will oxidize and the darker parts of the negative {lightest parts of the printed image} will turn visibly "silver"])

greeneyedspirit wrote: »

Maybe not Kodachrome...? I just checked - it says:
Kodak Professional BW400CN on the box

magicbastarder

C41 b&w is handy for anyone who doesn't live near a lab which does b&w processing; ilford XP2 is also available, as is fuji neopan CN; both are 400ASA.
one benefit of the ilford and fuji ones is that the film base is clear.

interesting that all such films are 400ASA, may be considered the sweet spot if you're going to make a film which is available in only one speed.

greeneyedspirit

Heebie wrote: »

Kodak's "CN" series films are "fake" black & whit films. (They are color-process films that produce monochromatic negatives.. if I recall correctly they actually are kind of a rown-ish color to look at once developed.. although I've not seen a roll in years..and I've never used it.. just processed it in photolabs for customers.) I hate the stuff.. nowhere near the results you'll get from a true black & white film.

You definitely wouldn't find "Kodachrome" that was black & white. "chrome" implies both color and slide film...

Yes I know that it's "fake" b/w film, but for getting into black and white, and figuring out if it's for me or not, it's simply easier to get it developed locally. Now that I've seen what it does, I'm certainly going to try real black and white film.
About that 'Kodachrome' bit, mea culpa - for some reason I had it in my head as that name, and that obviously wasn't correct..

PoleStar

Snap!

Just recently developed my first roll of black and white (ok, fake black and white C41!), taken on my Nikkormat FTN with 50mm f/1.4!

I share your excitement, its fun going to collect your film and see the results!

Just sent off a "real" B&W roll, obviously not as quick as C41 for developing though!

greeneyedspirit

PoleStar wrote: »

Snap!

Just recently developed my first roll of black and white (ok, fake black and white C41!), taken on my Nikkormat FTN with 50mm f/1.4!

I share your excitement, its fun going to collect your film and see the results!

Just sent off a "real" B&W roll, obviously not as quick as C41 for developing though!

Exciting!
Where did you send your B&W roll to be developed?

thefizz

Getting the gear to develop B&W film at home is worth doing and works out cheap in the long run. Much more exciting and satisfying also.

PoleStar

greeneyedspirit wrote: »

Exciting!
Where did you send your B&W roll to be developed?

After getting great advice, in the end I happened to be passing Conn's so left it in there. They send it off though so the turn around is quite slow.

Mr. Grieves

PoleStar wrote: »

After getting great advice, in the end I happened to be passing Conn's so left it in there. They send it off though so the turn around is quite slow.

Do Conn's really send out C41 35mm? Most places would have that for you in an hour.

coolmoose

Mr. Grieves wrote: »

Do Conn's really send out C41 35mm? Most places would have that for you in an hour.

Read his post again, he said he sent off a roll of "real" B&W...i.e. not C41.

PoleStar

coolmoose wrote: »

Read his post again, he said he sent off a roll of "real" B&W...i.e. not C41.

Thats right!

Simplicius

nice pictures - sharp and crisp where it matters. one thing though the tonal seperation from black to white seems to be very harsh. I might be wrong but it seems to indicate computer balancing or whatever with contrast levels after scanning.

With film the quality of negatives is all that matters, not what you can do afterwards (IMHO) . If you didn't have a yellow filter, i suggest you get one as this will augment the tonal seperation across the range and leave you with less work to do afterwards. This too applies even to C-41 B&W films.

Seems like a nice piece of glass that lens.... so treat it to a quality filter. you might already have one- step up rings are a great and cheap way to get maximum use from filters.. evil bay does tonnes of variations for buttons.

Simplicius

by the way welcome to the far more satisfying world of anticipation.... that film offers...:D

coolmoose

Simplicius wrote: »

by the way welcome to the far more satisfying world of anticipation.... that film offers...:D

Just got my first film SLR myself and getting the bits and pieces needed now for B&W development (and possibly printing)...can't wait to get started with it!

PoleStar

coolmoose wrote: »

Just got my first film SLR myself and getting the bits and pieces needed now for B&W development (and possibly printing)...can't wait to get started with it!

What did you get?

coolmoose

Got an F60 to start with, and if I like it, I'll invest in a nice Nikon F or something that the film types here recommend,

Any recommendations for a nice manual body for future reference?

greeneyedspirit

Simplicius wrote: »

nice pictures - sharp and crisp where it matters. one thing though the tonal seperation from black to white seems to be very harsh. I might be wrong but it seems to indicate computer balancing or whatever with contrast levels after scanning.

With film the quality of negatives is all that matters, not what you can do afterwards (IMHO) . If you didn't have a yellow filter, i suggest you get one as this will augment the tonal seperation across the range and leave you with less work to do afterwards. This too applies even to C-41 B&W films.

Seems like a nice piece of glass that lens.... so treat it to a quality filter. you might already have one- step up rings are a great and cheap way to get maximum use from filters.. evil bay does tonnes of variations for buttons.

Thanks! It's a lovely piece of glass, that Helios lens - I also have a Zeiss 135 mm that came with the camera, but I never use that. I really should alternate a bit! Good idea about the yellow filter, I think that would be a nice little addition. I don't have one, but will go on the hunt! I didn't do any PP (bar the name stamp) on these, maybe it was the way they were scanned in the lab (I don't have a scanner myself, yet...), they are not quite as contrasty in the prints.

coolmoose

Quick update, Nikon F60 now with a 50 f/1.8 and a roll of Ilford HP5 400 in it...let the fun begin!

Developing and darkroom bits & pieces are slowly being assembled!