[Leica] Re- Very Low Light Low Contrast

[BrutuS <brutus@mda.ca>]

My question concerned film/processing for shooting (very) low light low
contrast scenes.
Some good responses received (thanks), mostly copied below, with some
additional
information interspersed. Any additional comment or advice welcome.

>>Try Tmax P3200 rated at  EI 1600.  Develop for the EI 1600 time.  I used it
...
>>Neopan 1600 in Xtol might be what you're looking for.  Alternatively, try
>>Tri X pushed to 1600 in Xtol 1:2 if you think this would give you sufficient
>>shadow detail.  The pushing will mean the negatives will be higher contrast.
...
>>What are the conditions?  Where is the light coming from?  Are you shooting
>>at full aperture?  Can you shoot at a slower shutter speed if you steady the
>>camera somehow?
...

Light is diffuse/indirect, mostly from above. Sometimes low shutter speeds and
fast lenses are practical, but there are cases where the limits are about 1/30
(due to motion) and f/5.6 (for DOF). Unfortunately 1/30 and f5.6 with
Neopan 1600
(Xtol 1:1) or TMZ (pushed to 3200 or 6400 in TMAX) has produced thin/flat
negatives (quite underexposed), which can sometimes produce spooky prints
on G5 paper  with lots of darkroom effort.

Loss of shadow detail here is acceptable (if not inevitable), and higher
contrast
negaitives would be welcome.

Trying to start with a film/developer combination giving the highest possible
"effective" speed, where effective takes into account  low scene contrast and
allowance for weak shadows.

>>As for printing the negatives, I found a few techniques quite useful for
>>very thin negatives - chiefly, split grade printing and flashing (or partial
>>flashing).  I'm happy to go into this, if it would help.

By split grade do you mean masking (or dodging/burning) so as to print parts
at different grades? I have done a bit of this- found it tricky and hard to
repeat.

I'm not familar with flashing, so more info would be welcome.

>>
>>If you are desperate, there are a few other techniques listed in the Film
>>Developing Cookbook - chiefly hydrogen peroxide (essentially suspending the
>>film over a steaming hydrogen peroxide bath during the development to
>>'bleach' the shadows) or latensification (exposing the film to a safelight
>>at 10 feet for 15 - 40 minutes before developing).  Not for the faint
>>hearted and not sure how well they work with modern films such as TMax,
>>Delta and Neopan.
>>
Has anyone tried this?

I've heard of pre and post exposure to light from time to time, never seen any
results and do not recall any precise recommendations. I recall one scheme
which exposed the frame (for intensification) shortly prior to the actual shot.

>>You can, if the negative is really important to you, selenium tone the
>>negative which will do the same thing it does to a print, add a little
>>density.

I came across references to "chromium intensifier" though this is not longer
stocked at photo dealers. Has anyone tried this or equivalent techniques?
Is selenium toning comparable?



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