XP2 or Delta for Wedding Work

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Hoping to get some opinions on a good @ 400 speed B&W film for wedding photography. Like how fast and cheap XP2Super is to develop and print and I'm sure the customers would appreciate the lower reprint prices but the only work I've done to date has been with Tri-X & T-Max films. My pro processor says that he loves the Illford products and has perfected the printing of these films. However, some snapshots I took with the XP2 Super were creamy with slight blue tint. In my lab's defense, I did not specify any special printing or make my wishes known to the lab for these prints. So what do you guys who do wedding prefer for a mid to high speed film. And what would you consider best for 3200 in existing light? Thanks, JLee

-- JLee (jlee@sccoast.net), April 16, 1999

Answers

Hi. I don't do wedding work, but use mostly fast films,and have some experience with most of today,s emulsions. XP-2 or T-400 CN are great, but to get most of them, print on B&W paper. I prefer the look of the classical films Tri-X and HP-5+ are great. How large prints do you make? For me the grain is not bothering (unless huge) but customers often get dissapointed. If you prefer to be grainess above 18x24 size then stick to TMZ (XP-2 or T-400 CN also have very small grain) but beware that consistent processing is essential. At the fastest end Fuji Neopan 1600 rated at ISO 1000 is by far the best in therms of grain and contrast. Hope this helps. E.

-- Evgeni Poptoshev (evgeni.poptoshev@surfchem.kth.se), April 16, 1999.

Hi JLee,I will be shooting a wedding in about 6 hours from now.I will be using HP5& 4OOCN as recommended by other members of this forum.I used T-MAX one time and that was a mistake because it could'nt handle the contrast between the bride and groom , and to top it off it was a clear sunny day.I will tell you how it turns out. John

-- john koe (jvk@direct.ca), April 24, 1999.

Hi,Its me again ,well I shot 5 rolls of HP5+, one of them @1600.The ones rated @400 turned out very well,smooth tones with no sudden jumps.The one roll rated at 1600 was a diffrent story.I processed it in microphen as suggested but when you look at the negs they have the dreaded clear areas,very little shadow detail.I will continue to use HP5+ but only @400.

-- john koe (jvk@direct.ca), May 01, 1999.

Ive been very impressed with the sharpness and fine grain of both XP2 and TCN 400. Labs quite often will print these films on colour paper and as a result the prints will have a slight colour cast. They may look fine but you should be aware that you may be able to improve on them through printing on conventional black and white paper as you would have control over contrast. The reservation I would have in using chromogenic films for a wedding is the issue of longevity. My old XP2 negatives are very different looking than they were years ago although still printable. I would say my favourite films would be T-MAX 100 and 400. If you have a problem with high contrast try rating the film at a lower asa (64 and 250?) and have your lab reduce development by 20 or 25%.

-- WGoodman (good@bc.sympatico.ca), June 06, 1999.

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