Check out my vlog-style video below to see how I took four different shots (two portraits and two landscapes) to test Arista 100 4x5, and to figure out its one major flaw. The video is a bit more detailed than this post, and you can skip to the end of it for a quicker overview.
Whether you watch the video or not, the major flaw is that sometimes, the film will be covered in white specks that look like dust which can only be removed by soaking the sheets in alcohol. Even then, it's not guaranteed that the alcohol will remove the white specks.
Arista 100 4x5 is a cheap film that, overall, delivers a nice grain, good tones, good sharpness, and deep contrast. HOWEVER, the major flaw is that if you happen to get a bad batch of the film, your negatives will be covered in tiny white specks that look like dust but most certainly aren't. At first I thought maybe it was an issue with bad fixer, but I quickly confirmed the white specks issue with a handful of other film photographers who said they see the same thing happen with theirs (one person even theorized that he thinks Fomapan labels their bad batches of film as Arista and ships them out to the US while keeping the better batches branded as Fomapan. Multiple sources confirmed that they've never had an issue with Fomapan 100 despite the two films supposedly being the same emulsion). I've heard that this issue does not happen with Arista 200, and rarely happens with Arista 400. It's also not as much of an issue on 35mm or 120 film sizes.
Sorry, we just need to make sure you're not a robot. For best results, please make sure your browser is accepting cookies.
Type the characters you see in this image:
Try different image
Conditions of Use Privacy Policy
© 1996-2014, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates
I first tried Foma Bohemia’s films in around 2008 when I moved to the Czech Republic. Since then I’ve purchased them in both 135 and 120 formats and although I switched to other brands of film for a while, I did try a bulk roll of Fomapan 100 Classic just to see if I could load cartridges myself.
A few years ago I decided to try and settle on one black and white film, which was ultimately Fomapan 400 Action. It was an easy decision to make because by that time it has become my favourite 400-speed film.
Before I continue with this review I need to note that these days I use my Olympus XA almost exclusively, so I will be talking about 35mm format, mainly. That said, in my experience, this film behaves the same regardless of the format – the same contrast, the same shadow detail, etc., except for the grain, which is more apparent in the smaller formats, of course.
The only difference between 135 and 120 formats worth mentioning is the base curl. While 120 film curls a bit lengthwise after drying, 135 stays perfectly flat. I’ve never had ILFORD or Kodak films dry as flat.
Since I already mentioned grain, let’s cover this aspect first. Fomapan’s grain is quite fine for an ISO 400 traditional-grained emulsion. It has a regular and pleasing structure and is at least on par with similar films from Tier 2 brands if not marginally better. Many say that these days it looks more Kodak Tri-X than Tri-X itself.
As with all other black and white films, grain size and structure can be altered with the choice of developer – Rodinal will accentuate grain, while Perceptol will give you the smoothest tonalities possible.
I think I mostly like this film because of it’s distinct look, some people use the word character, defined by the classic grain structure and lovely tonality it provides. It prints really nice, the grain doesn’t distract even at 30×40 size enlarged from a 135 format frame.
If I want to get even smaller grain and/or to lower the contrast of a scene, I expose it at EI 125-160 and shorten development time by 1/3. This way the grain becomes almost inconspicuous at 30×40, certainly comparable to best in class traditional (not T-grain) ISO 100 films.
Shooting mostly with an Olympus XA I found that EI800 works best for me, I can get faster shutter speeds at low light while keeping sunny scenes manageable. This means that I almost always push Fomapan 400 by one stop. If I need to shoot hand-held at night I will rate this film to EI 1600 and get good results with prolonged development in diluted Xtol.
You might be interested in...Of course with this film’s latitude, correct metering is critical. I don’t own a light meter, but I found out that a digital point-and-shoot set to B&W with maximum contrast can be used to “pre-visualize” the scene. After that, I transfer the exposure parameters to my Canon 50 and get the picture I want.
Anti-halation layers in Foma films are not in the same league as the ones of Kodak/ILFORD, and make the final picture a bit softer and flooded with light. I don’t consider this to be an issue at all, I love the glow that occurs in the adjacent bright/dark areas and it can be very useful in portraiture.
Another lesser-known feature of Fomapan 400 is its near-infrared sensitivity. My recipe for IR shots with this film is to dial in EI 6 and let the camera measure exposure through an IR 720nm filter.
This way I get quite predictable results with my Canon 50.
As with all IR films one needs to bracket (mainly on the side of overexposure), because the intensity of IR radiation varies a lot during the day and also depends on a number of factors including weather conditions, time of the year, etc.
Foma Bohemia also makes a line of tremendous black and white papers and darkroom chemicals both very reasonably priced. I use their Fomatone and Fomabrom papers and many of their chemistry products including film and paper developers, wash aid, stop bath, fixer and even sepia toner.
In conclusion, Fomapan 400 Action (also sold as ) is an excellent mid-range film at a good price, but you might want to do some quick testing to find developing times and EIs that suit you best. It’s well worth a try.
~ Alex
Share your knowledge, story or project
The transfer of knowledge across the film photography community is the heart of EMULSIVE. You can add your support by contributing your thoughts, work, experiences and ideas to inspire the hundreds of thousands of people who read these pages each month. Check out the submission guide here.
If you like what you're reading you can also help this passion project by heading over to the EMULSIVE Patreon page and contributing as little as a dollar a month. There's also print and apparel over at Society 6, currently showcasing over two dozen t-shirt designs and over a dozen unique photographs available for purchase.
Who makes Arista Edu Ultra 400?
Product information.
What is Arista Edu Ultra?
Arista EDU Ultra 400 35mm EDU Ultra is a flexible film type that is ideally suited for use in general photographic applications. This is one 24-exposure roll of 35mm format film.
Is Arista a good movie?
This is a good affordable film for a college student. I did find that it lacks contrast compared to more expensive brands and did require a longer development time in order to get a better range. Wouldn't be my first choice of film but good when you're on a budget. Best for beginning B&W photo developing.
Is Arista Edu DX coded?
PLEASE NOTE : Due to current supply chain issues, this film is UNBOXED and in PLASTIC, NON-DX CODED cartridges. Manually select your ISO on your camera, or use an ARISTA DX CODE LABEL. Please see PROCESSING TIPS below for important info about opening these cassettes.