The reason I question the 'great dynamic range' is that the best color films
only get about 7-8 stops of dynamic range. And since chromogenic B&W films
essentially use the same technology/photochemistry, I'd be very surprised if
they can exceed that (slide film is around 4-5 stops). The traditional
'Zone System' was developed on the assumption (valid for the time) that B&W
film can capture 10 stops of dynamic range. Modern B&W films are better
than what Adams was working with when he co-developed the Zone System, so it
doesn't surprise me to see that FP4 has a usable 11 stop range
You can test this for yourself. Go buy a roll of T400 CN and a roll of
Ilford FP4. Then borrow or buy a grayscale step tablet calibrated in 1/3
stop steps.
Using the same camera,lens and lighting, shoot the step table (set the
exposure off a gray card in the same lighting).
Then still using the same gray card you used for your initial lighting, do
a range of exposures starting at -6 stops to +6 stops over the indicated
exposure (you might need to fiddle with speed/Fstop combos).
Get both rolls developed (but not printed). Take a look at the number of
stops between where the film itself goes from indistinguishable from the
'film fog' ie the same transmissivity as the sprocket hole exposure to shere
it is so black that you can't distinguish between two adjacent exposures. I
will lay good money that the range of T400 isn't close to that of FP4.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Berry Ives" <yvesberia@earthlink.net>
To: <karlsch@verizon.net>
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2003 7:17 PM
Subject: [filmscanners] Re: scanning TMAX 3200
on 10/15/03 1:05 PM, Austin Smith at asmith1@bellsouth.net wrote:
> It's true that high quality silver-based B&W film, when properly exposed
and
> developed, has a higher dynamic range than chromogenic B&W. It's also
true
> that it is not a classic "wet darkroom" film, since it's normally
developed
> by a one-hour type color lab. However, based on my experience with a
> "consumer" film scanner, low priced scanners don't have the dynamic range
to
> handle the range of density that good B&W negatives can produce, so this
may
> be a moot point. The chromogenic films are certainly convenient,
especially
> for the darkroom challenged, but I don't think that there's one out there
> with all the speed that TMAX 3200 offers.
Well, you may be right. I don't know. But there have been some pretty good
reviews of T400 CN film, which support my observation of the great range of
this film. If you have some lab test to refer to, I would be interested in
that. But, really, I think that Tony made the critical observation: you
have to adjust the curves to exploit the dynamic range. The dynamic range
it can handle is so great that the mid-tones are flattened until you tweak
them to get where you want to be. But the information is there on the film
if you want to exploit it.
Really, I am a relative novice with this film. But it is very interesting
to me, as someone who wants occasionally to make B&W images on film and scan
them to produce prints. Supposedly it is pretty good to 1600.
Here are a couple links with some review of this film.
Berry
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