Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/06/11

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Subject: [Leica] Pushing Provia F400--one stop, two stops
From: mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)
Date: Sat Jun 11 14:52:22 2005

On 6/11/05 2:04 PM, "Richard" <richard-lists@imagecraft.com> typed:

> Some people don't believe there is such a thing as pushing a film. I asked
> that a couple months ago re: Tri-X and got lots of different answers.
> Search for the archive for that. The conventional wisdom is also that slide
> films do not push as well.
> 
>  From my experience, pushing Provia 400F one stop is OK but I wouldn't do
> two, exactly for the reasons you mentioned.
> 
I'm skeptical of a lot of pushing in black and white but with some
developers, usually ones you'd never want to use in a million years, you can
get a stop out of it or perhaps even a tiny bit more.
Xtol I believe gives you your real film speed and no more. No less.
The best developers tend you give you the number on the box or darned close
to it.
The even better ones, Pyro, Glycin, others give you a tad less. They're
worth it.

Color slides though is a different thing and some slide films I think are
designed for a push and seem to thrive on it. With full shadow detail and
little if any overage of grain.

I find In black and white the pushing of medium speed films to be a bizarre
aberrance of logic and common sense.
The use of the higher speed film is in order.
Or let me just say that you're never going to get the results from Plus X to
give an generic example supposedly pushed to 400 in Turbohype that you are
with Tri X rated normally at 400 with excellent developers.

I say "supposedly" about every time I use the term "push" become I've found
in the vast majority of cases "pushing" is just under exposing with  more
development to keep the contrast the same.
You're just not getting the shadow detail that's supposed to be there.
But you ARE going to be able to use the same grade paper.

But as stupid "pushing" often seems to me it's "pulling" that really gets
me.
Over exposure = death when it comes to quality black and white image making.
And all "pulling" is is over exposing with a smug attitude.
:)?



Mark Rabiner
Photography
Portland Oregon
http://rabinergroup.com/





Replies: Reply from scott at adrenaline.com (Scott McLoughlin) ([Leica] Pushing Provia F400--one stop, two stops)
In reply to: Message from richard-lists at imagecraft.com (Richard) ([Leica] Pushing Provia F400--one stop, two stops)