- Joined
- Dec 19, 2017
- Messages
- 2,682
A bit of background. For some years Ilate 1980's onwards I used Agfa AP 00 then APX100 films with Tmax 100 as my backup the only difference was the Agfa 100 ISO films were an effective stop faster than Tmax 100, so Agfa at box speed, Tmax at half box speed, same development time and they printed on the same grade of Agfa Record Rapid paper. Fast forward and Agfa ceased production so I was 100% Tmax for all formats. Then I moved abroad and finding any Kodak B&W film was difficult in Turkey, and on a six week trip to South America. Ilford film was everywhere but FP4 and HP5 rather than Delta 100 or 400, and surprisingly Foma films where in equal abundance. No Kodak except a lot of 35mm colour film at the mini lab stores.
So I switched to Ilford films buying Delta 100 & HP5 while in the UK but had also begun using Fomapan 100 & 200 in 120 when that was all I could buy in 10 packs in Turkey straight off the shelf.
Now it's long been know that Ilford dominated B&W film sales in terms of their percentage market share fo decades and they actually ahd talks about manufacturing film for Kodak because they feared if Kodak ceased making B&W films the whole market would collapse, after all it was Kodak's sudden decision to cease B&W paper manufacture that caused Agfa's downfall and Ilford to seek Voluntary Administration.
That's in the past, but today Kodak aren't in the same market place price wise. Tmax 100 and 400 are no better than Delta 100 & 400, Tri-X I don't know with 35mm or 120 but with LF is no netter than HP5 which is superb.
Then it comes to pricing, I'm using 10x8 film as an example perhaps because the differences are more obvious:
10 sheets Kodak 320 Tri-X £174.99 thats £17.50 a sheet
25 sheets Ilford HP5 £150.64 that's that's £6.03 a sheet
50 sheets Fomapan 200 £135.61 that's £2.71 a sheet
At no time in the over 50 years I've shot film has there been such wildly diffrent pricing.
It's unlikely I'll ever shoot a Kodak B&W film again, Ilfor plenty, Foma thethe same. probably Adox.
Ian
So I switched to Ilford films buying Delta 100 & HP5 while in the UK but had also begun using Fomapan 100 & 200 in 120 when that was all I could buy in 10 packs in Turkey straight off the shelf.
Now it's long been know that Ilford dominated B&W film sales in terms of their percentage market share fo decades and they actually ahd talks about manufacturing film for Kodak because they feared if Kodak ceased making B&W films the whole market would collapse, after all it was Kodak's sudden decision to cease B&W paper manufacture that caused Agfa's downfall and Ilford to seek Voluntary Administration.
That's in the past, but today Kodak aren't in the same market place price wise. Tmax 100 and 400 are no better than Delta 100 & 400, Tri-X I don't know with 35mm or 120 but with LF is no netter than HP5 which is superb.
Then it comes to pricing, I'm using 10x8 film as an example perhaps because the differences are more obvious:
10 sheets Kodak 320 Tri-X £174.99 thats £17.50 a sheet
25 sheets Ilford HP5 £150.64 that's that's £6.03 a sheet
50 sheets Fomapan 200 £135.61 that's £2.71 a sheet
At no time in the over 50 years I've shot film has there been such wildly diffrent pricing.
It's unlikely I'll ever shoot a Kodak B&W film again, Ilfor plenty, Foma thethe same. probably Adox.
Ian