Shawn;
Here's my 2cents. Tech Pan is unlike any other B&W film that I know of . It is
without doubt the sharpest film of any kind, well let me rephrase that to say "I
believe it is the sharpest film available today in terms of resolution." It is
extremely versatile in that it can be developed over a huge range of contrast
indices, and exposed over a wide range of ASAs from 25 to 400 I think is useful.
It is also very often 'hypered' (sped up by use of soaking in cold nitrogen gas)
for use by astrophotographers, because of it's sharpness and it's spectral
response. It is often used for 'scientific purposes'
Having said all that, I don't think it would make a very appropriate portrait
film: too sharp, too contrasty. But for landscapes, it can be quite good. You
must be very careful with exposure and development to control contrast AND you
must focus very accurately because any focus errors will be exagerated by it's
sharpness/contrat properties.
It's major advantage for me is that it can produce gobs of contrast when very
little exists in the scene. I always have some Tech Pan when I travel in the
SouthWest. I'll use TMax or Tri-X for 'normal' scenes, but when the contrast is
low (and I mean REALLY low, like less than 1 ev difference) I'll shoot Tech Pan
at 100 and get lots of contrast in the negative.
george
Shawn Wright wrote:
> John P. said:
>
> Kerry,
> Sadly, Panatomic-X is no longer available. It's replacement however is up
> to the task and is outstanding in its own right. Technical Pan film (TP) is
> very low speed, depending on the exposure conditions and developer used, but
> ISO 25 is a fair nominal starting point. It is nearly grainless, has a very
> full tonal range with excellent gradation. Enlargement to 16x20 and beyond
> is common. Interestingly, almost paradoxically, astro shooters love this
> stuff for its remarkable resolution. The paradox is its low speed. To
> reduce the low-speed problem they perform a process called hypering, where
> the film is subjected to high temperature (about 50 degrees C) and high
> vaccuum in a gas mix atmosphere of nitrogen and hydrogen. This process
> effectively boosts the film's speed to around ISO 250 and dramatically
> reduces reciprocity law failure. Curious stuff, this Tech Pan. So for
> those whose stockpile of Pan-X is nearly depleted, the Great Yellow Father
> has provided an even better successor. It is available in 36 exposure
> rolls, 100 foot rolls, 120 rolls and 4x5 and 8x10 sheet sizes. Oh yeah, its
> expensive too - nearly double Tri-X according to my most recent price list.
> John P
> ============
> How does Tech Pan compare to Pan F for portrait and landscapes? I'm nearing
> the end of my bulk FP4+, and was thinking of trying Pan F again for a change.
> Is Tech Pan worth a try, or is it limited in its usefulness?
>
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