prinothcat wrote:Which film(s) do you like to shoot and why. I recently found a ripping good deal on an F100 which I suspect will be loaded with B&W most of the time. I come from the days of PlusX and TriX. What has come along that really floats your boat and why? Assume that due to time, space and living arrangements, I will not be doing my own darkroom work. I do have an excellent (by reputation at least) custom lab 30 minutes away. Knowing this what further should I be able to tell the lab guys beyond the speed at which the film was shot?
Depends on the conditions but for B&W
35mm - Kodak Tri-X & Plus-X – I like Tri-X for low available light and rating higher (1600/3200) and Plus-X when shooting for tone and fine grain in normal lighting conditions.
MF - Ilford Pan F & FP4+ - For medium format I just love Ilford. I feel that I get the best tone and grain with these films.
Sheet - Ilford Delta 100 & FP4+ - Same as above
I do all my own processing so I can control my results better. Developer type and processing method makes for different resluts so the results that make a particular film my favorite might not have the same qualities if lab processed. I recommend getting a few rolls of the top 5 or 6 and run some test shots in different conditions. You can then send them all to the same lab and get a better understanding of what you should expect in the future.