Reviewing the Rollei Infrared 120 ISO 400

Rollei Infrared is the film you need for your newest experience in photography. It is a high-speed panchromatic b&w film with special infrared sensitivity up to 820 nm with filtration.

How to Use It and What to Expect

There are two different ways of using it:

Number 1. To get a good IR effect, you must use a deep red or R72 filter. The R72 filter is really kinda opaque (you will lose approximately four to five stops so your ISO 400 is gonna be at around 12 to 25 ISO only) and because of that you'll probably need to make long exposures if you don't want to get a black picture and also to get a strong IR Effect. The outcome you'll have will be black and white and all the things that comes with IR sensitivity such as the sky, water, and people will appear intensely white.

Number 2. You can also use this film for a basic b&w picture. Shooting this at 400 ISO will give you some very fine grain and superb detail in highlights and shadows.

Tools Needed

It's recommended to use a tripod for a steady picture with a cable release system, IR Filter as Hoya R72 or #89B.

Loading

Rollei Infrared 400 can be loaded and removed from the camera in subdued lighting conditions. Complete darkness is not required!

Exposure Times

In full midsummer sun with a Hoya R72, exposure times of around one second is a good starting point then you need to double those times when winter comes. If it is cloudy, try around four seconds exposure, if you are in the shade, 8-16 seconds or longer would do. This, of course, means a tripod is needed and a cable release system is quite handy as well. One thing to keep in mind is that the reciprocity factor with IR film is pretty high and it is better to overexpose a little bit rather than to underexpose the film. As an example, in deep shade late in the day, I have gone as long as 60 seconds during exposure. Also remember that you need to double your exposure times to move up a stop. So eight seconds is only one stop more than four seconds, and 16 seconds is only two stops while 32 would only be three.

Storage and Use

It is recommend not to leave the film material exposed in direct sunlight, strong heat or relative high humidity. Cooled stored film material should not be used until film is warmed up and thawed. For unexposed film, up to 24 months in cold storage by 8° C is recommended while for exposed rolls, please keep film in cold condition, processing as soon as possible is recommend.

I've used the Diana F+ 75 mm and 38 mm lens, Rollei Infrared (120, 400 ISO), Hoya R72, Gorillapod, and Cable Release on shots found in this gallery.

I hope you found this brief article helpful. Enjoy!

This is a review submitted by Community Member dfred.

written by dfred on 2009-08-07 #gear #infrared #rollei #120 #review #400-iso #b-w #infra-red #diana-f #infrarot #hoya-r72 #r72-filter