Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

This film is a bit tricky. It scratches easily, it's very sensitive to stray light during loading/unloading, and it seems to pick up more minerals from my developing water than other film. That said, it renders scenes just beautifully, and some of my favorite shots have been on this film. It can be frustrating, but it's definitely worth it. Personally, I love slow film, and ISO 25 is a rare beast these days…

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

I got back into film photography about 2.5 years ago. I've always loved the low ISO films and this seemed like a a great film to try out. After I shot a few rolls and managed to tame the muscular curl into my scanner (no easy feat, believe me), I was truly blown away. Not just the detail - which was truly stunning, but the depth of tones. I was amazed. But as I went through the rolls, I was getting fogging throughout, ruining some of the images. I've gone with this film about 10 times now (the 25, 50 and 100) and had the problem on all of them - something I've never had on any other emulsion.
As I said above, when it's good, it's great. And when it's not, well, the images are ruined. If that were fixed, this film would be great.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

This old emulsion works today like it did in the 50's I have used almost every single layer films out today and keep coming back for the smooth fine grain of this film. Together with rodinal, this film makes me smile every time!

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

This is the kind of film that loves light. Especially artificial light. It is beyond a doubt, one of the most enjoyable b&w films on the market. The film sings with detail.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

Trying to use old lens with no shutter and wanted a slow b&W film. The results were better than expected.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

I have use this film primarily for product shots. It produces crisp detail with good contrast but not too harsh. It dries straight and scan easily! I plan to use a lot more of this film.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

Using this in a TLR Camera for portraits

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

This is a thick-based old-school black and white film that gives me stunning results. I did comparisons with Agfapan 25, Kodak Panatomic-X 32 ASA and Ilford Pan-F Plus 50.

When it comes to grain size, no comparison: Efke R-25 (old Adox) gives me not only smaller grain, but detail at 100 feet that was noticeably sharper than the other films.

While Agfapan 25 has a more subtle and wider tonal range without loss of contrast, I found by shooting Efke through a yellow filter, it gives me better contrast while maintaining tonal range across the spectrum. (The resultant exposures appeared flat, before filtration).

I've gotten best results developing it in Edwal FG-7, 1:15. The drawbacks mentioned by another user have not been experienced by me, even after using about 200 rolls, from many different emulsion lots.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

I use this for nearly everything film. I am mostly a digital shooter now, but when I do use film (mostly studio portraits) I always use Efke 25 and develop in HC-110. The results scan very well and I love the nearly grain free image.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

Ultra fine grain and great detail.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

Mostly landscapes, greyscale is fantastic, and latitude is much better than expected (18' Rodinal 1+100 @68F). Careful with emulsion, is very delicate: as a minimum use Photo-Flo rinsing after washing.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

I have bought this film on several occasions---about 30 rolls total from 3 or 4 different batches. I like the look of it, but there are some issues:1. Every batch I've received has, on some occasions, chunks of emulsion missing. Usually they are no bigger than .5 mm in diameter, but they are a pain to deal with in the darkroom (no problem for digital retouching, of course).2. The film curls heavily (once developed), and the curl is dependent on the "density" of the negative. I suppose this is due to their thick emulsion. In short, a picture of a black wall will sit straight, a picture of a white wall will make the film twist and curl around your desk if you don't hold it down. This can be a problem for scanning unless you're rich.3. The last batch came fogged from the factory. One end of the roll is fine but it gets progressively worse. On the ones where I didn't use the last frame, I can clearly see some focused images of squares and several copies of the number 15---that's no light leak in my camera.[...] save your money. I won't bother with this film again.

Comments about Efke R25 Black and White 120 Size Film:

I have to admit, that having just returned to serious photography after a 12-year hiatus, I was skeptical about trying Efke film; my past experience with low-speed film was limited to Pan-X 32 & Kodachrome 25. But after using Efke 25 ISO twice on two separate subjects, I am thoroughly impressed.My original intent was to photograph the California silver ghost town of Bodie with Efke 25 ISO 120 film, using a Mamiya 645AFDii & a Cokin red filter. The combination of the low grain, great transitions and amazing contrast, made the high altitude, cloudless mid-day images spectacular. Ive enlarged several of the images to 20 x 30 and the natural wood grains of the buildings, the sharpness of the dried grasses and rough edges of the stones are so clear in the images, that you feel you are there.This past weekend, I tried Efke 25 ISO 35mm with my new Nikon F6 at an outdoor wedding. The unfiltered contrast and sharpness of the film scans have produced magazine quality images, which required virtually no level adjustment in Photoshop; Ive already had several enlarged to 16 x 20.

Expertise: Former Pro, who has returned to serious photography

Problems Encountered: None that I've noticed

Previous Equivalent Item Owned: Kodak Pan-X 32 & Ilford Pan-F 50

Items I Recommend: Light meter