A practical guide to the best black and white films for scanning, including T-Max 100, Delta 100, FP4 Plus, HP5 Plus, Tri-X, Acros 100 II, Kentmere, and Fomapan Classic 100.
Category Archives: B&W Film Alchemist
Why Your Black and White Film Scans Look Bad
Black and white film can scan beautifully, but only when the negative is made with scanning in mind.
Many photographers expose and develop film the same way they would for silver gelatin printing. That can work, but scanning changes the goal. A darkroom negative needs to print well through an enlarger. A scan-first negative needs to hold enough shadow detail, smooth enough midtones, and controlled enough highlights to give you room to work in Lightroom, Photoshop, or your preferred editing software.