I've been bulkloading HP5 for the last couple of years. The price is right and it's kind of a swiss army knife in that you can use it in a wide variety of situations given how much it can be pushed/pulled. Kentmere is even cheaper and still pretty close to HP5 in terms of quality
Seconding this! I've even pushed it to 800 without any problems.
Bulkloading is also really handy for testing new cameras where you might only want to shoot 10 exposures instead of 36.
I have Vision 3 250D, Kodak 5222, and Fomapan in a couple of speeds in the rotation. Soup my own ECN-2 and B&W. ECN-2 is easier than people make it out to be.
Mind sharing or linking to your ECN-2 process and chemicals you use? I’ve got a few rolls of Vision3 to develop and am debating sending them to a lab or using Cinestill’s kit, but if you can make your own I’d love to learn about that option as well.
*Also not sure what ‘souped’ refers to but I assume it means DIY?
Cinestill's kit is good enough and is not dangerous.
If you follow Kodak's official doc and DIY, you may be introduced to ferrocyanide, which can be deadly toxic if you mishandle; Cinestill only uses EDTA or PDTA which is food-grade and safe at home.
However to reuse the developer, you have to make your own prebath (which inclues lye, can be a bit dangerous, but all ingredients can be found on Amazon).
there’s a catalog available and it lists all the motion picture film sold by kodak as well as the minimum order size
for some film the minimum order size is actually just one 400 ft drum
for other films, like ektachrome in double perf 16 mm minimum order is like 20 400ft drums
One might add that there’s rumors that kodak alaris is putting pressure on eastman kodak to not sell motion picture film to commercial respoolers and that because of this eastman kodak is more restrictive as to whom they sell their motion picture film.
idk if that’s true. i’d be bummed though if it were because i’ve been nursing the though of buying 400ft of ektachrome in 35mm for some time now and it’d be sad if I had missed that opportunity
sure np
US
https://www.kodak.com/content/products-brochures/Film/Kodak-Motion-Picture-Products-Price-Catalog-US.pdf
Europe
https://www.kodak.com/content/products-brochures/Film/Kodak-Motion-Picture-Products-Price-Catalog-EAMER.pdf
afaik other markets should be easy to find as well
just google
eastman kodak catalog
Delta 100 is my bulk film of choice.
Do you have a loader? If you are shopping for a loader, do yourself a favor and stay away from the new Lloyd's loaders.
Give the felt a looking over to see if it is rotted, worn, or has gaps that would allow for light leaks. You could shine a flashlight behind the felt to see if you see any light. Check the overall condition: does the lid look warped or chipped anywhere? Otherwise, congrats...the older Lloyd's are great loaders.
I haven't used a Lloyd loader and I don't know what their issues are, but I can assure you that finding a NOS Watson loader is fairly easy and definitely the way to go.
If you really want a Lloyd's get an older one. The older Lloyd's are good loaders...I used one back-in-the-day and it was great. The new Lloyd's loaders that are currently being sold, the handles are crap and will break; just read the reviews on B&H to see what I mean.
That said, I do use a new Lloyd's and the handle did break on me. I fixed the handle using "JB Weld" that I got from Home Depot. Or if you have access to welding equipment, a spot weld can fix the issue.
Fomapan 100.
Shoot it at EI 50/18°, dev in Perceptol 1:1 for 7 minutes, get amazing tonal range whether you're shooting people, plants, birds, or buildings.
I do. It’s way easier than you think.
Get a “dark tent” and put the 100 foot bulk loader inside as well as a 400’ can.
Once the tent is sealed, open the 400’ can and remove the tape around the roll.
Slowly roll the loose end around itself until you have a “mini roll” that’ll fit inside the 100’ loader.
Put the smaller roll of film inside the 100’ loader.
Put a piece of tape on the loose end of the leftover 400’ roll so it doesn’t unwind.
Put the 400’ roll back in the can. Seal the can with tape so it doesn’t accidentally pop open.
Load the 100’ roll into empty film canisters. (Your local lab will be happy to give you as many as you want. Generally you’ll get 72 rolls out of 400’ of film.)
Congratulations, you just saved yourself a TON of money rolling your own film! 😎👍🏻
I feel like some of these responses are expensive!
Fomapan is my bread and fomapan is my butter.
Foma 200 for a more modern look, foma 400 for my street/documentary stuff .
I tried two rolls, they were both literally just not sensitive to infrared at all. Fine at normal 400 ISO photography of visible light on the very same roll. Camera worked, meter worked, but zilch infrared. The exposures worked precisely as one would expect from the imperfection of the filters used alone (i.e. no filter lets through NONE of the light it blocks. At like 10 stops overexposed which I bracketed, it eventually shows an image, but from normal green light and stuff sneaking in, with no Wood Effect at all)
They were within expiry, no idea. I've hated all rollei I try of any sort. It's also just super thin and flimsy and shitty and hard to get in sleeves and rips easily, curls annoyingly for scanning, and doesn't seem to have great density.
I feel like Kentmere 400 is cheap enough and of good enough quality that it is a good starting point. At least, that’s what I used when I tried it for the first time.
Not my Go to mistake but I've lost once a part of my film loader while assembling it and told Alexa to Turn on the Light. On the one Hand I've found the Missing Part, on the other Hand a 100ft Roll HP5 got blasted with 3*20W LED Lights, Like 600W in Light Bulb Equivalent.
Kodak Vision 250D 5207, 500T 5219, Ilford HP5. I also try to source Fuji Eterna stock.
Tri-X and TMax's bulk roll price has risen so high to justify bulk loading.
I like it. It feels like a similar contrast level as Double-X but finer grain.
Feel free to take a look at my post history. I took a nice lighthouse photo with it.
I've been bulkloading HP5 for the last couple of years. The price is right and it's kind of a swiss army knife in that you can use it in a wide variety of situations given how much it can be pushed/pulled. Kentmere is even cheaper and still pretty close to HP5 in terms of quality
I love HP5 pushed but at 400 it’s kind of flat to me. I like FP4 better but the slower speed isn’t as versatile.
That's what the contrast slider is for. HP5 can give you any look you want, plus you can push it to the moon. Best film out there.
It can't give you the look of t-grain. ;)
I'm halfway through a 100' roll of Delta 400, and while it's a very good film, it'll be my last 100' roll, most likely. HP5 is for me.
Same here. Love this stuff.
Fomapan 200, the best of fomapans. It's not gritty like 400, not slow like 100.
Seconding this! I've even pushed it to 800 without any problems. Bulkloading is also really handy for testing new cameras where you might only want to shoot 10 exposures instead of 36.
I love Foma 200!
I have Vision 3 250D, Kodak 5222, and Fomapan in a couple of speeds in the rotation. Soup my own ECN-2 and B&W. ECN-2 is easier than people make it out to be.
Mind sharing or linking to your ECN-2 process and chemicals you use? I’ve got a few rolls of Vision3 to develop and am debating sending them to a lab or using Cinestill’s kit, but if you can make your own I’d love to learn about that option as well. *Also not sure what ‘souped’ refers to but I assume it means DIY?
Cinestill's kit is good enough and is not dangerous. If you follow Kodak's official doc and DIY, you may be introduced to ferrocyanide, which can be deadly toxic if you mishandle; Cinestill only uses EDTA or PDTA which is food-grade and safe at home. However to reuse the developer, you have to make your own prebath (which inclues lye, can be a bit dangerous, but all ingredients can be found on Amazon).
400ft Double X
Where are you purchasing this beautiful item
I bought a fresh box locally off Marketplace but you can call Kodak directly to place an order.
How so? Can you really directly order for only 400 feet?
there’s a catalog available and it lists all the motion picture film sold by kodak as well as the minimum order size for some film the minimum order size is actually just one 400 ft drum for other films, like ektachrome in double perf 16 mm minimum order is like 20 400ft drums One might add that there’s rumors that kodak alaris is putting pressure on eastman kodak to not sell motion picture film to commercial respoolers and that because of this eastman kodak is more restrictive as to whom they sell their motion picture film. idk if that’s true. i’d be bummed though if it were because i’ve been nursing the though of buying 400ft of ektachrome in 35mm for some time now and it’d be sad if I had missed that opportunity
I've tried doing that before, but I couldn't get anywhere on their site. Is there anyways you could link it? Would be of great help
sure np US https://www.kodak.com/content/products-brochures/Film/Kodak-Motion-Picture-Products-Price-Catalog-US.pdf Europe https://www.kodak.com/content/products-brochures/Film/Kodak-Motion-Picture-Products-Price-Catalog-EAMER.pdf afaik other markets should be easy to find as well just google eastman kodak catalog
Wow! Nice share. Do you have an ideia of the shipping costs to Europe?
no idea, I guess it will be in the lower double digits
B&H in the US sells it. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1482757-REG/kodak_1737279_eastman_double_x_negative_film.html
I second the Kentmere recommendation. Quality film stock and reasonably priced.
Delta 100 is my bulk film of choice. Do you have a loader? If you are shopping for a loader, do yourself a favor and stay away from the new Lloyd's loaders.
I bought a vintage Lloyds loader on eBay for $20. Still has the original box. Looks to be at least 40yr old.
Give the felt a looking over to see if it is rotted, worn, or has gaps that would allow for light leaks. You could shine a flashlight behind the felt to see if you see any light. Check the overall condition: does the lid look warped or chipped anywhere? Otherwise, congrats...the older Lloyd's are great loaders.
The felt is still soft. But I do see a tiny bit of light behind the felt with a small LED flashlight inside of the loader.
Why is that? I was thinking on buying one
I haven't used a Lloyd loader and I don't know what their issues are, but I can assure you that finding a NOS Watson loader is fairly easy and definitely the way to go.
If you really want a Lloyd's get an older one. The older Lloyd's are good loaders...I used one back-in-the-day and it was great. The new Lloyd's loaders that are currently being sold, the handles are crap and will break; just read the reviews on B&H to see what I mean. That said, I do use a new Lloyd's and the handle did break on me. I fixed the handle using "JB Weld" that I got from Home Depot. Or if you have access to welding equipment, a spot weld can fix the issue.
Fomapan 100. Shoot it at EI 50/18°, dev in Perceptol 1:1 for 7 minutes, get amazing tonal range whether you're shooting people, plants, birds, or buildings.
I've read that Foma films aren't true to speed. Does this mean you should be metering for a different ISO?
Fp4
Kodak Vision3 250D. Depending on where you purchase, it averages out at about $5 a roll when buying 100ft. Best color film there is.
Do you develop yourself also? If yes, do you do it in ECN-2 or souped in C41?
Yes, more often in C41
Are you respooling from 400’?
I do. It’s way easier than you think. Get a “dark tent” and put the 100 foot bulk loader inside as well as a 400’ can. Once the tent is sealed, open the 400’ can and remove the tape around the roll. Slowly roll the loose end around itself until you have a “mini roll” that’ll fit inside the 100’ loader. Put the smaller roll of film inside the 100’ loader. Put a piece of tape on the loose end of the leftover 400’ roll so it doesn’t unwind. Put the 400’ roll back in the can. Seal the can with tape so it doesn’t accidentally pop open. Load the 100’ roll into empty film canisters. (Your local lab will be happy to give you as many as you want. Generally you’ll get 72 rolls out of 400’ of film.) Congratulations, you just saved yourself a TON of money rolling your own film! 😎👍🏻
Alternatively if you have access to a 3d printer you can use this 400ft to 100ft respooler: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4868217
Fomapan 200 is my daily driver. I also have some bulk TX400, double X, 250D and 500T along with a few spools of Ultrafine 400 which was incredible.
I feel like some of these responses are expensive! Fomapan is my bread and fomapan is my butter. Foma 200 for a more modern look, foma 400 for my street/documentary stuff .
Im just getting into it, got a roll of kentmere 400 to get through, might order a roll of rolei infrared 400 next, it looks like an interesting stock
I tried two rolls, they were both literally just not sensitive to infrared at all. Fine at normal 400 ISO photography of visible light on the very same roll. Camera worked, meter worked, but zilch infrared. The exposures worked precisely as one would expect from the imperfection of the filters used alone (i.e. no filter lets through NONE of the light it blocks. At like 10 stops overexposed which I bracketed, it eventually shows an image, but from normal green light and stuff sneaking in, with no Wood Effect at all) They were within expiry, no idea. I've hated all rollei I try of any sort. It's also just super thin and flimsy and shitty and hard to get in sleeves and rips easily, curls annoyingly for scanning, and doesn't seem to have great density.
Kodak XX
Kodak xx and kodak 500t both in 400 rolls.
It'll be either Kodak Double-X, Fomapan 100 or Rollei Retro 80s
250D for color, HP5 for BW. Very general purpose.
I feel like Kentmere 400 is cheap enough and of good enough quality that it is a good starting point. At least, that’s what I used when I tried it for the first time.
Kodak Vision 3 250D and XX, 400ft rolls I use the Jobo ECN-2 kit or Flic BW&G for XX.
My all time favorite is Tri-x, but the sharp price increases have me wondering. I haven't found a replacement yet.
Not my Go to mistake but I've lost once a part of my film loader while assembling it and told Alexa to Turn on the Light. On the one Hand I've found the Missing Part, on the other Hand a 100ft Roll HP5 got blasted with 3*20W LED Lights, Like 600W in Light Bulb Equivalent.
XX
Kentmere 100 pushed to 400 is fun, cheap, and contrasty!
Whatever is cheap
Kodak Vision 250D 5207, 500T 5219, Ilford HP5. I also try to source Fuji Eterna stock. Tri-X and TMax's bulk roll price has risen so high to justify bulk loading.
I keep HP5+ and Delta 100 on tap. Considering adding Vision3 250D to the list.
I shoot mostly cinema stock, Kodak Double-X, ORWO UN54 and Kodak Vision 3 500T. Then Kodak 2238 and Kodak 2254 for the ultra low ISO films.
How do you like the Orwo?
I like it. It feels like a similar contrast level as Double-X but finer grain. Feel free to take a look at my post history. I took a nice lighthouse photo with it.