Film speed and the seasons

[Learner]

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Hello,

 

Is it so that film that 100 speed (ASA/ISO?) is suitable for bright, summery days, and that as the number gets higher the film is ideally suited to duller, grayer days.

 

To put the question another way, do people use 400 speed film on bright days?

 

I ask because someone has recommended Ilford XP2 film to me... This is 400 speed C-41 film. Can it be used successfully on bright days?

 

Apart from the XP2 what other C-41 B &W film is recommended?

[tgray]

XP2 probably looks better at 200 than 400. Or at least most people think so. At 200 (or 400) it should be perfectly useable in the full sun.

 

The other C41 B&W film is Kodak BW400CN. The same advice applies. Fuji used to (still does?) have a C41 B&W film as well.

[joeswe]

Hello Learner,

 

XP2 is a ISO400 film that has a very wide exposure latitude, it can be used from EI 50 to about EI 800 within the standard C41 process (= you can use different film speed setting on the same roll of film!). Optimum results are achieved around EI 200. There is a datasheet available from Ilford that explains how the film reacts to different levels of exposure. I don't think there is a major problem rating it at EI 100 (finer grain but a slight loss of sharpness, if I remember correctly). Of course, the lower the EI setting, the denser the negatives will get and accordingly take longer exposure times when printing.

But even if you rate XP2 at 200 or 400, it should be no problem to use this film on a bright day, as long as your camera has fast shutter speeds (1/1000 up) and/or the circumstances allow you to stop down your lens reasonably. Of course it can become difficult to shoot wide open with fast lenses in bright light. You would then need neutral density ("grey") filters. But depending on you subject, in B&W photography you sometimes want to use a color filter anyway (yellow, green...), which will eat another stop or two of light.

I would recommend XP2 over BW400CN for one simple reason: The latter one is a excellent film with beautiful skin tones, but it is optimized for printing in a color process and cannot be printed in a classical B&W darkroom. If you set up your own darkroom one day and want to do your own enlargements, you don't wanna find out that you cannot print your own archive, because it is all captured on BW400CN!

Besides, the chromogenic B&W films like XP2 and BW400CN are very forgiving to use, but to really exploit the full potential of B&W you will have to try out classical B&W films and do your own developing at some point.

[j. borger]

If you shoot higher iso films in summer you can stick a ND filter in front of it in full sun and remove it when shooting in the shade or inside.

Sometimes i like the look of Pushed iso 400 film. If i want this in bright sunlight i use a ND filter too.

So there are also several reasons to use higher iso film in the summertime.

There is also nothing aganst Iso 100 film in winter if you like to shoot wide open or use a tripod.

 

XP2 is a different animal. You can shoot from Iso 100 to iso 800 on the same roll and get good results. I preferred it at Iso 200/iso 400 however.

[aesop]

 

...<snip> Apart from the XP2 what other C-41 B &W film is recommended?

 

 

...Learner, off the top of my head, and as far as C41 B&W film availability goes, I can only recall Fuji Neopan 400NC and Kodak BW400CN. Whilst I have heard good things about these films, I personally have no first-hand experience of these films - I am therefore unable to give any recommendations. Perhaps someone else can offer first-hand guidance.