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Looking for an inexpensive, but quality 120 B&W film?
The Arista Edu Ultra 400 is under $5 (as low as $4.25 with a Google search) and has a relatively fine grain with a mild contrast, wide exposure latitude, and very pleasant tones.
We shot the Arista film with a Pentax 67 and an old Mamiya 6. When metering we erred on overexposure since like most B&W film, including this film, has great exposure latitude and always looks better when it’s not underexposed. The B&W film was developed in our lab and scanned using our Super Scan option.
Below are examples of the images with 200% closeups to show the detail & grain. B&W images developed at The Darkroom.
Click to enlarge photos
We’d love to hear what you think of this film and if you have shot with this film before we would love to see some of your results in the comments below on our Facebook post!
Looking for a cheap but very good 120 B&W film? You can pick a 120 roll of Arista .Edu Ultra 400 for under $5! It has…
Posted by The Darkroom on Monday, March 11, 2019
I ordered four rolls of Arista EDU, but it was 35mm. Got a deal on it at a popular online camera store. The Darkroom developed two of them, and a local camera shop developed the others.
My experience with this film is that every roll had visible imperfections in at least some of the frames (white dots, visible white scratches and not as often black dots). One exposure of my grand-daughter had no less than 20 imperfections that had to be corrected. One of the rolls developed a tear while rewinding, but only tore out a piece of the edge. That was enough to ruin two exposures on the roll. The grain
If you want to blow through a couple rolls just for giggles, go ahead. Don’t use it for anything important.
*The Darkroom,
It would be great if we could upload examples.
I can’t edit my previous comment. I wanted to add that the grain seems a bit harsh, in the rolls I purchased.
I have used this film to test vintage cameras before selling. The results have been acceptable, stand development with rodinal 1-100 1 hour. It is easy to see that student learning is great w/ this film.
Ilford Hp5 plus for anything serious
I think Arista EDU 400 is a good film. I’ve shot a lot of it over the years. Mostly 35mm. However, some 120 also. I process the film in Rodinal, lately 1+50, but have also done 1+100 stand. (I think I may have processed some in Caffenol, too, a few years back.) I quite like the results I get with the Arista film. However, the 120 film in particular seems to have a tendency to curl.
I’ve been using .EDU Ultra 100 and 400 for about fifteen years. It’s the bargain basement steal of the century, like getting 100% Colombian beans for store brand pre-ground price.
Do shoot the EDU 400 at 400? Or do you rate it for something else?
I’ve shoot several rolls ARISTA EDU ULTRA 400, 200, and 100. And I developed these film on my own.
I think it is a cheap, easy-to-use film that is easy for beginners to develop.
Sometimes I felt that the ISO sensitivity is lower than the displayed number. So I always shoot so that the one-step exposure is overexposed.
I’d like to do that. What developer/temp and time do you use?
I’v used this film Arita edu ultra 400 in 35m for years now, and I find it a good film , the latitude is good. I used tri x in the past but it got very expensive. I bulk load so I buy 100 feet rolls, the trix is over $100 , the Arita is about $53.00. My only problem is when I send My camera out for repair there is always a peace of film left in my camera. I find that Tri-x has a thicker bass.
I mostly use the 400-speed film in 35mm, rated at an EI of 200 in 1:50 Rodinal and at 250-320 in 1:7 T-max Developer. Developers with a bit of compensating effect seem to work better than, say, straight D76 or HC110 Dilution B, at least that’s been my experience. The film has a pretty, old-fashioned look, a nice range of tones, and I don’t find the grain to be as intrusive as others claim that it is.
I just ordered 10 rolls of 35mm iso 400 arista edu. It’s a GREAT film. shot tri-x just before the arista…like the arista better. Develops perfectly in Hc110 dilution B.
hello, no one has tried with a 4×5 camera of 100 ISO, what are the results?
Someone tried with a 100 iso movie developed with X tol.
I’ve dabbled with Arista EDU Ultra 400 and 200 4×5 sheet film, but not the 100 ISO. Good results with both 400 and 200. Soft emulsion when wet so watch out for scratching surface. I tray process in Legacy Pro L110 – the HC110 equivalent. Probably better off not tray processing. Decent film overall for the price.
I absolutely loved using the Arista EDU Ultra 400 B&W film! The contrast and grain were perfect for the moody, dramatic photos I was trying to capture. I will definitely be using this film again in the future.
I absolutely loved the Arista EDU Ultra 400 B&W film! The contrast and grain were just perfect for the moody, dramatic shots I was going for. I will definitely be using this film again in the future.
I’m gonna pick some of this up – for the price it’s a no brainer!
As an aside – I recognize the spots that the sample pics were taken! What an awesome surprise. Are you guys local to that area?
Please tell me where you bought the film. I have several old cameras I’d like to use again before I pass them on.
Last weekend, my friends and I decided to take a trip to Liverpool to enjoy its rich culture and art, visit museums and have fun. Traveling in a large group was incredibly fun and cohesive, especially driving our 9-seater rental car on Rental24.co.uk which allowed us to move easily and comfortably between the sights and provided us with enough space for all our belongings