Kodak Tri-X 400 Black And White Film Guide

Oh boy. Welcome to the wonderful world of black and white film. I’ve shot a lot of types of B&W film (Ilford HP5, Ilford Delta 3200, Kodak P3200 Tmax, Acros, Kodak TMAX 400 and Delta 400. Kodak Tri-X 400 has exactly what I’m looking for. Great contrast, good latitude, rich tones and perfect grain. Here are some of my experiences and examples using it.

Buy Tri-X 400 on 35mm film

Buy Tri-x 400 on 120 film

Black and White photo of a barber on Kodak Tri-X 400 film

Good Light

First and foremost, find good light. Black & white film does best in good light. You want some strong differentiation between highs and lows, shadows and highlights. I like the look of all types of lighting, it just has to have good contrast in the scene. Struggling to tell if a scene is going to look good in black and white? Try taking out your iphone and switching the camera to mono or noir filter. This will give you a live view of how your scene will look stripped of color.

PORTRAITS

Portraits look especially good and classic in black and white. It removes the distraction of colors and really gets you to focus on the light, expression and emotion.

Black and white photo of trees in a field in mammoth

Landscapes

If you’ve ever seen a single photo from Ansel Adams, you know the power of a good scene in black and white. I personally haven’t shot a ton of landscapes in black & white but am always pleasantly surprised and pleased when I get my scans back.

Black and white photo of leo cabal and a pentax 67 camera.

METERING TRI-X 400

Tri-X 400 does better when you meter for the midtones or shadows. It can lose detail in the shadows rather quick so it’s better to err on the side of overexposing. I typically meter my Tri-X 400 at 320 for normal developing and at 640 if I’m pushing it one stop. This puts me on the side of overexposing.

black and white film photo pushed one stop on tri-x 400 of a couple and dog in their front yard

EMOTION

With any black and white film, I think it does amazing at helping the viewer focus on the emotion and feelings of the scene. The lack of color helps your eyes focus on people’s eyes and expressions. I love black and white to show emotion and love using a longer lens with black and white film for the best expressions.

WINDOW LIGHT

If you’re new to black and white film or an expert, you’ll know the power of window light. Get in to any room with a big window, turn off all the other lights in the room and place your subject so the light coming through the window lights up your subject. Meter for the midtones/highlights and you’ll have some dramatic falloff and beautiful light. It’s the easiest trick to use and always makes for beautiful portraits.

black and white photo of a man getting his hair cut at a barber shop

Pushing Tri-X 400

Tri-X 400 is such a strong professional film with lots of latitude. It does very well in pushing one, two or even three stops. In the first image of the couple, I had very little light and was forced to push two stops. I really lost lots of the shadows and it forced a lot of contrast. It made it so I could shoot film in very low light, but was pretty much the furthest I like going with the film. In the second image, I had much better window light. It was still pretty dark in the barber shop so I metered at 640 and pushed one stop. This was medium format with my Contax 645 so the image is better than the one above, but to me, this is how I want my Tri-X 400 to look.

black and white photo of a couple on their wedding day kissing

Tri-X 400 Black and White Film at Weddings

Black and white film and weddings are a match made in heaven. Typically the bride is in a white dress and the groom is in a black and white suit. It just lends so nicely to black and white film. Too easy.

A couple taking a photo in black and white

Tri-X 400 with a Flash

Tri-X 400 does great with a flash. I typically shoot it with a point and shoot so I don’t need to rack my brain trying to figure out flash power and settings on film. I love the classic look of black and white film with a flash.

A couple walking on a cloudy day in joshua tree

Moody

Just like black and white film does amazing to show emotion, it also makes some interesting light very moody. In this scene the silhouette of the couple and the clouds made for a very moody scene. #vibes

GRAIN

That grain tho. Tri-X 400 has a very nice fine grain that is pleasing to the eye without being overbearing. If you want that chunky grain, try some 3200 film. If you like that subtle beautiful grain, Tri-X 400 is for you.

Double Exposures

Double exposures with film are so fun. I made a whole video with an incredible photographer Brian Smith about shooting double exposures on film. With black and white it simplifies the end results a bunch.

a couple sitting on wood steps at the beach on black and white film

couple swinging around at the beach on black and white film

Tri-X 400 on a Disposable Camera

You don’t need some fancy film camera to shoot black and white. Kodak came out with an amazing disposable camera that’s less than $15. I shot a few frames at an engagement shoot and LOVE the results. Definitely a bit more contrast and more grainy looking than my Leica setup, but it has that film vibe that is too good not to love.

Buy Tri-X 400 Disposable Camera

You can’t go wrong with Kodak Tri-X 400. If you’re not a fan of the juicy contrast that I like, try the beloved Ilford HP5 400. This has a bit softer contrast and all the great benefits of Tri-X. Now go load up your camera with some black and white film and let me see the results! DM me on Insta @tonywodarck.