I was given a roll of Kodak Technical Pan film, which expired in May 2001. I’ve been keeping it in the fridge for a decade, and just now decided it’s time to finally put it to good use.
Kodak Technical Pan is an almost panchromatic, slow-speed black-and-white film with very fine grain. Its base sensitivity is 25 ASA; it can be pushed and pulled from 4 to 200 ASA with a choice of a developer. Its developer of choice, for the finest grain and best tonal range, is Kodak Technidol, a liquid developer made specifically for this film. Unfortunately, both were discontinued in the early 2000s.
My specific roll was Kodak Technical Pan 6415, in 120, medium format. Being medium format means I can shoot it in three different formats, 6×4.5, 6×6, or 6×7. I’ve decided on the biggest, 6×7 format, and that meant stuffing it in Zenza Bronica GS-1. The finest grain film needs the best lenses, so it’s time for Zenzanon-PG 80mm F3.5. I’ll try to use Macro Zenzanon-PG 110mm F4 if I find a suitably well-lit scene for it – because the film is 20 years expired, I’ve down-rated it to 12 ASA, wide apertures are needed to keep the shutter fast enough.
At the moment, I’ve managed to shoot three frames and wasted one with a faulty lens, and with only six more photos to go, I’ll have to be careful. Let’s see what will turn out of it…
Read more about Kodak Technical Pan film on Wikipedia, and check out Kodak’s datasheet.