On the hunt for alternatives to the almighty Kodak Tri-X, I stumbled upon the APX 400 from Agfaphoto. The story of the company is quite complicated, but from what I understand, the films are still being made in Belgium. Which also happens to also be where I live. One more reason to try this one.

I loaded the film into my beloved Nikon F3. A gift from my dad, which he previously used for many years with full satisfaction. A Japanese camera designed by an Italian: the best of both worlds. This camera is a joy to use: reliable, fantastic ergonomics, spot-on metering, beautiful to look at. The feel is quite unique when you hold it. Remove the prism finder, and you’ll find yourself believing that you are dismantling a firearm. My F3 is coupled with a Nikkor 50mm f/2 lens, which may not be the fastest on the range, but has great character and is very sharp once stopped-down.

I shot the roll of APX while wandering a remote region of Belgium, with very limited human imprint. At that time (January 2020), the weather conditions were very damp, dense clouds were preventing any sun to come through, and a light fog was present all day. This highly contributed to the gloomy, dark and deserted look of the photographs, which was exactly what I was aiming for. Once shot, I chose to self-develop the film in Rodinal for its grain-preserving and high acutance capabilities; two features that makes this developer one of my favorite. The film was then finally scanned at home on an Epson V600 Scanner.

Despite the very dull light, the APX delivered beautiful high-contrast images while retaining details on both shadows and highlights areas. Speaking of the highlights, this film gives a very distinctive and unique look to them. Even when blown-out, they are very diffuse and very soft, almost silky. It helps building an intriguing look to the photographs.

Finally, the grain of APX 400 is very interesting. Compared to the Tri-X, it’s a bit less present than Kodak’s, but coarser. This should make it beautiful when printed on FB paper.

Agfaphoto APX 400 definitely has its unique character. For me, it’s a film worth shooting in flat lighting conditions, and when the weather is not on your side. This is where I think it’ll shine.

~ Nicolas

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5 responses to “5 Frames… In remote Belgium on Agfaphoto APX 400 (EI 400 / 35mm Format / Nikon F3)”

  1. Beautiful photography, beautiful film.

  2. At the end of the day, “made in UK” or “made in Belgium” does not matter. Most importantly, there are film stocks to choose from.
    But somehow I feel you are right; manufacturer line and year of manufacturing should be marked somewhere on the outside of the product package as well as imprinted as an edge mark on the film itself. Refer to https://www.kodak.com/uploadedfiles/motion/Guide_to_Identifying_Year_of_Manufacture.pdf – for example.
    I suggest to collecting data about this and share it somewhere easy to find in the net.

  3. Matthew James Longstaff Avatar
    Matthew James Longstaff

    I believe the current Rollei range is actually made from repurposed Agfa-Gevaert industrial film, but it is harder to find than the more familiar brands.

    Incidentally, having AgfaPhoto APX made by Harman means that I probably bought a British product while on holiday in Germany. Normally, it is very much the other way round!

    I just wish everything could have it’s country of origin clearly marked. ‘Made in the EU’ means nothing to me.

  4. thank you for sharing your frames with us 🙂
    Are you shure AGFA-GEVAERT in Belgium does make consumer films? I googled a bit and found they are producing black & white films for aerial photography only: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agfa (the German wikipedia site contains more information) and: https://www.agfa.com/specialty-products/solutions/
    Maybe APX is produced by Ilford; you will find hints at the wikipedia site.

  5. APX400 is made by Harman in the UK. Agfaphoto is only licensing the name, and has nothing to do with Agfa-Gevaert in Belgium, otherwise. I bought two rolls at a drugstore when I started with film. It’s capable, I think. A bit more grain perhaps, then more expensive films.

    I ended up with bulkloaded HP5+. But you can buy this one in bulk, as well, and bulk APX400 (and 100) is really quite cheap at Foto Impex. If you like it I suggest getting it. Holding a bulk roll in the dark (when placing it into the loader) and then loading your own rolls is quite magic to me.

 

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