"classic" emulsions?

[Shootar401]

Can anyone recommend a 50 or 100ASA B&W 120 film that accurately represents tone and grain in film found in the 20's and 30's? Other than looking on the bay and buying film of that era and and taking a chance of it not exposing or developing correctly.

Thanks

[zsas]

What about PanF+?

[Photo Engineer]

None or very very few exist today.

"Classic" emulsions were orthochromatic (green and blue sensitive) and todays are panchromatic which includes red sensitivity.

PE

[zsas]

Thanks Ron, so if that is the case, maybe the OP wd like Rollei Orthochromatic 25?

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/372100...xed?cat_id=403

[Photo Engineer]

Maybe. IDK, as I don't know his tastes nor have I tested that film.

Good idea though.

PE

[werra]

Efke emulsions are supposedly virtually unchanged from 50-s. Still closer to 30's than sterile t-grain.

[rorye]

Adox CHS 100 is a beautiful film, very much reminds me of the thirties look. Freestyle carries it.
http://www.freestylephoto.biz/126112...0-Art-120-size

The Rollei Ortho 25 is great tonally, just a bit slower-
http://www.apug.org/gallery1/showima...atid=newimages

[Shootar401]

Thanks for the info, I'll pick up 2 rolls each of the Rollei and Adox, and I'll see which ones look better to me.

I plan on shooting a roll in my 645, then move it over to a folding Brownie for some shots. I have a idea for a 30's style photoshoot using the brownie, just taking care of some details before the shoot.

[steven_e007]

Maybe the best approach would be to use a medium speed film, say FP4+, and use filtration (minus red) to get that 'ortho' look?

[Ian Grant]

Efke emulsions are supposedly virtually unchanged from 50-s. Still closer to 30's than sterile t-grain.

Actually EFKE emulsions are far removed from the Classic thick emulsions of the 20's and 30's they were way ahead of their time when released in the early 1950's.

Can anyone recommend a 50 or 100ASA B&W 120 film that accurately represents tone and grain in film found in the 20's and 30's? Other than looking on the bay and buying film of that era and taking a chance of it not exposing or developing correctly.

Thanks

The 20's & 30's look of films of the era with regards to tonality etc is more to do with the use of uncoated lenses and quite different ways of working in terms of exposure and processing. As both Orthochromatic and Panchromatic films were readily available by 1910 photographers in the 20's & 30's had a wide choice of films to work with and it's not really this factor.

It was an era before the general use of exposure meters and films were exposed at approx half the speeds we'd use now and negatives were processed to much higher densities and contrasts. (ASA/BS speeds were doubled in the early 60's when new standards were adopted). 20's& 30's negatives don't print as well on modern papers and the dgree of enlargement used was much smaller, if you see pre-WWII contemporary prints of work by photographers like Kertesz they have a very different quality (small and jewel like) to modern prints made much later off the same negatives.

So it's not as simple as just the film, the use of uncoated lenses and the way you expose and process would be important as well. In terms of grain modern films are so far advance you's need to use a 400 ISO film to be in the ball-park