Just ordered some Plus-X, any thoughts?

elemental · Nov 17, 2008

I just ran out of fixer (actually, I've been out for weeks and letting film pile up because I'm lazy), but I got around to ordering more and needed a few more dollars' worth of merchandise to put me over Freestyle's $25 minimum. Of course, what better way to spend a few bucks than on new (to you) film? I threw five rolls of "Arista Premium 100" (Plus-X 125 in $2 sheep's clothing I'm told) and checked out. I've never used PX before, and was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on it. Is it best used at box speed? Does it respond well to push/pull processing? Anything else I might like to know about it? I'll be developing it in Clayton F76+, so chances are little information exists about that development combo other than the starting point times.

nealjpage · Nov 19, 2008

I've used it before with pretty good results...

myopia · Nov 22, 2008

I really like this film. It's cheap and has great grey tones. I have always rated it at 100 with good results.

Paul Ron · Nov 23, 2008

That is all I used for 30 years till the T-Grain films hit the streets. It has wonderful tone n can use a bit of a yellow filter to boost it's color responce n contrast. I love the grain when enlarging to it's limits. Pushing is very interesting n the results are great, it really shows off it's character in HC110, more in Rodinol.

The T-Max films are very fine grain n are more linear in color n contrast responce. That may be a good thing to some, I like it but PX does have a certain feel you don't get anymore with ultra fine T-Grain. I was recently playing with some russian ORWO that is very similar to PX n Panatomic but 1/10th the cost.

Go shoot some fog n see how sweet the results are wiht PX.

I've always rated my PX low... maybe 50-100ASA n pushed it to 800 with some very interesting results.

elemental · Nov 25, 2008

Interesting.

Thanks for the advice everyone. The PX is now lounging in my fridge awaiting the next bright opportunity. Actually, since I have two compatible bodies, I should probably just drop it in one.

I'll try to post some results, but scanning has been an issue of late. A major issue.

jstuedle · Nov 25, 2008

100 ft. rolls of PX and TX were my mainstay for over 3 decades. Plus-X was/is a great fiml with nice mid-tones, decent contrast and smallish grain for it's speed. Good all around outdoor film. No worries.

djacobox372 · Nov 25, 2008

I shoot a few rolls of plus-x 100iso in NY this summer... developed in hc-110... VERY grainy compared to t-max but that isn't necessarily a bad thing depending on what your looking for.

nealjpage · Nov 26, 2008

Is Plus-X an older film than Tri-X? Just curious about that...I ask because I've heard that Trixie is just a shadow of it's former self...

compur · Nov 27, 2008

^ Kodak introduced Tri-X in 1954. Plus-X is older. I believe it was
introduced in the late 1930s.

Both films have evolved since their introduction, of course.

elemental · Nov 28, 2008

djacobox372 said:
I shoot a few rolls of plus-x 100iso in NY this summer... developed in hc-110... VERY grainy compared to t-max but that isn't necessarily a bad thing depending on what your looking for.

What isn't grainy compared to TMX/TMY?

I'm glad to hear there are people who really like this film, and I'm excited to see the results. I shot about 2/3 of my first roll at the Met on Wednesday (a lot of wide open and longish handheld exposures, but I really wanted to try it even though the APX400 would have been a more logical choice), and I'm excited to see the results once it's finished. Unfortunately, all of my inexpensive scanning options have dried up (I just paid $23 for five scans destined for 8x12 and 8x10 prints), so I might not be seeing the results until the holiday (my own negative scanner? 6400 x 9600 dpi optical resolution?!!?!).

snap1 · Feb 5, 2009

It's been awhile since I've had my lab. I remember how T-max negs looked very impressive, but couldn't seem to hold back the light as well as the silver emultion in Plus-x and Tri-x. The result was, that fewer zones of grey were visible. Too much black and white and too little grey! I believe that T-max is made from dye and uses little or no silver. This would explain the lack of grain. Try using more dilution with your HC-110 and extend the time. Plus-x shouldn't be that grainy. Hope this explains a bit.

bhop · Feb 6, 2009

elemental said:
II'll be developing it in Clayton F76+, so chances are little information exists about that development combo other than the starting point times.

FYI, Clayton F76 is supposedly the same, or similar, formula as Kodak D76, (hence the '76') so if you can find push/pull info about D76 and Plus X, then you're set. I use Clayton myself, it's just too easy not to. (and cheap)