Technical panning
14 December 2021
I try to resist getting too geeky about equipment and materials, but I do come over all techno-fabby about this very old-school film.
Kodak TP6415, better known as Technical Pan, was a crazily slow (25 ISO) film that was originally intended for graphic design and records/plans use. But it's almost invisible grain meant a lot of fine art photographers, and others seeking a certain 'look', started to use the film. A much younger me, ferreting away in the darkroom at night school, discovered the wonderous properties of this emulsion and it became, then and forever, my fave filmstock, especially when I got hold of medium format roll film, which allowed for almost grain-free printing and a gorgeous smooth tonal range.
To keep things totally retro, this image was taken on my old Mamiya 645 with a standard lens and tripod, as people drifted past the front door of St. Giles' cathedral in the heart of Edinburgh, a quarter of a century ago...
JGF-06001 St. Giles, Edinburgh 1996
![](https://assets.zyrosite.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,w=392,h=560,fit=crop/AVLL35Jlv1CorROX/img-YKbbzPG3ePhV8V4v.jpg)
![](https://assets.zyrosite.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,w=328,h=475,fit=crop/AVLL35Jlv1CorROX/img-YKbbzPG3ePhV8V4v.jpg)