Today’s batch of large format black-and-white plant photos come from reader Christopher Moss, whose captions and IDs are indented. You can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.
Since you have expanded the definition of wildlife, I thought I send along some plant studies. They are all taken on film, indoors, and the medium format photos (the first four) used a strobe. All are taken on Ilford XP2 Super film, which is a black and white film made with the same chemistry as a colour film. It was produced when black & white developing at the High Street chemist had disappeared, and is usually developed in the same CD-4 process as colour films. I have found a way to develop it with (I think) superior results in traditional B&W chemicals.
Amaryllis, Hasselblad 500c/m, Planar 80mm/f2.8, Ilford XP2 Super, one monolight, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
Bromeliad, Haselblad 500cm, Sonnar 150mm/f4, Ilford XP2 Super, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
Coleus, Hasselblad 500cm, Distagon f4/50mm, Ilford XP2 Super, ISO 100, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
Strelitzia, Hasselblad 500cm, Distagon f4/50mm, Ilford XP2 Super, ISO 100, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
Orchids, Nikon F6, AF MicroNikkor 2.8/105mm, Ilford XP2 Super, ISO 200, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
Orchid, Nikon F6, AF MicroNikkor 2.8/105mm, Ilford XP2 Super, ISO 200, Kodak HC-110, Hasselblad X1 scan:
B&W photograph can be spectacular! It emphasizes dynamic range, which color seems to mute. Very cool.
Really nice photography, especially the bromeliad and Strelitzia. I am skeptical of the ID of that “coleus” though.
Beautiful photos, remarkable effect.
Very dramatic. The shapes of the plants, and the patterns on the leaves and petals, really take center stage when you see them in black and white.
Probably shouldn’t correct our host, but these are all medium format film, not large format (I have gone as far as 10×8″ negatives at times). For anyone curious about film chemistry, the unusual aspect here is that Ilford XP2 Super (a black and white film made to be developed in C-41 colour chemistry when High Street B&W development was no longer available) can be developed in traditional B&W developers, and rather nicely, if I say so myself. The lack of grain is quite remarkable. It can be pushed or pulled just like a silver halide film too. See http://drmoss.ca/xp2.htm
These were really cool. A nice change.
So is the B&W of the XP2 Super created by colors and therefore can be processed with color chemistry? Or put it another way, I know you can create a rich black with the CMY color space, so does this B&W film have a color attribute? Either way, it produces beautiful contrasts.
It uses the same technology of dye clouds activated by a tiny amount of light sensitive silver halide. But the dyes used are not coloured in three layers as in a colour film, just a single layer of extremely dark blue which then looks like a slightly purple B&W negative.