I had another roll of this shizz, so while I gave it three stars because I didn't exactly fall in love with it the first time around, I gave it a second chance.

These was shot in stronger - as in right over the back of your loaf lighting - and they're not so bad.

I never got the infra-red vibe out of it, despite using a red filter so dark even Nostradamus would struggle to see through it.

And noisy, probably not helped by dropping the blacks a bit and giving the contrast a tickle in post.

But it's given me an idea - like give the wolf a blast of flash next time - so maybe good enough to get another roll in the stash.

Shot it through a red filter as suggested and the results were just too noisy for my liking.

You'd probably do better with one of the bog-standard mid-speed films like HP5 if this is anything to go by.

Great film, lots of contrast, lots of texture. Works well on bright days. Has higher than normal grain. I would definitely shoot again.

Photo by reviewer: False Spirea Starburst, Cheshire, 2024.

I loaded this film and went out looking for subtle infrared effects in plants and leaves. The photographs I took were in shade rather than direct sunlight. I used a 3-stop red filter on the camera lens and therefore a tripod was needed. I have found that photographs made with this film without a red filter look very similar to normal black and white film images, so a red filter is essential if you are looking for effects.

This film should be handled and loaded into the camera in subdued light, although total darkness is not required. If you are developing the film at home, total darkness is required when loading the film onto the reel and into the developing tank, just as with regular black and white film.

This photograph of a False Spirea plant (above) was my favourite. I was delighted with the gentle glow of the leaves in the image.

Some previous testing with another roll of SFX film showed that, with my equipment, I needed to add an extra stop of exposure in addition to that determined by the through-the-lens metering (with the filter on the lens). However, I would advise bracketing in any case, because results can be a little unpredictable.

The film was developed in Ilfotec DD-X for the manufacturer's recommended time. I printed the image on Ilford Multigrade RC Deluxe (pearl) at Grade 3. I applied some dodging to the centre leaves and a little burning to the leaves at the bottom of the image.

The image uploaded here is a photograph of my print.

Using a Yashica Minister and an r72 it was great fun to see what I could achieve, involving a lot of messing about with Photoshop. The first thing I noticed was that my iso was too low, and the negatives were very grey. Next time I shall up it to 12, maybe 25 just to see what happens. There is no setting for infra red focusing, so a little twist down from infinity seemed appropriate. Sadly, carrying a tripod is not part of my usual routine, as I have cameras with stabilisation, hence all my shots are hand held, around 1/8 of a second. I could have done with one here!