Classic Car Show

An opportunity to try out Ilford Pan F Plus while enjoying some vintage automobiles.

August 9, 2024

Tags: Classic Cars, Out and About, Film Photography, Photography

A few weeks ago, I attended an annual classic car show that benefits one of our local school programs. Just like last year, I thought it was a great opportunity to do some film photography. This time around, I had my Nikon F loaded with Ilford Pan F Plus, a slower ASA-50 film stock that I had never tried before.

My results were more or less what I expected based on what I had read in various film reviews including one by Blue Moon Camera and Machine in Portland. In a nutshell, Pan F Plus’s grain is extremely fine, and it rendered grey tones in a nice and rich way. Shadow brightness was somewhat disappointing, though. I would have expected a slower film stock like this to show shadow regions with just a bit more detail. I also found Pan F to be a little on the unforgiving side in terms of exposure setting mistakes. If I was more than a stop off of what I should have made an exposure at, I definitely noticed it.

I scanned all of the following photos using my Plustek OpticFilm 8200i SE film scanner, and I applied the plain-vanilla monochrome film profile in SilverFast. In Paint.NET, I did a quick levels adjustment and increased contrast for a bit more pop.

1968 Mercury Cougar. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/4.

Left: 1929 Ford Model A. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/2.8. Right: 1930 Plymouth. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/500 sec., f/2.

1927 Bugatti Type 35 VW Kit. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/4.

Left: 1927 Bugatti Type 35 VW Kit. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/250 sec., f/2.8. Right: 1967 Chevy Impala. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/2.

1957 Chevy interior. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/500 sec., f/2.

Left: 1966 Ford Mustang. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/5.6. Right: 1966 Pontiac GTO. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/1000 sec., f/2.

1969 Plymouth Roadrunner. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Ilford Pan F Plus 50 film, 1/500 sec., f/2.8.

All in all, I think I may pass on using Ilford Pan F Plus again. The more time goes on, the more I’m convinced that Ilford FP4 Plus is my go-to black and white film stock.

I’ve added a section on Ilford Pan F Plus to my collection of mini film stock reviews.

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