Film Review—Fuji Neopan Acros II black and white film
Unparalleled sharpness and elegant tones for timeless black-and-white photography
Why I Picked Up Fuji Neopan Acros II
On a bright September day, I visited Castle Farm, nestled between Eynsford and Shoreham in Kent, England, to see their sunflowers in full bloom. While most people would instinctively reach for colour film to capture the vibrancy of these golden blooms, I decided to take a different approach. I was curious to see how black-and-white film would interpret the texture, contrast, and character of sunflowers. With the sun high in the sky, it felt like the perfect opportunity to shoot with an ISO 100 film—a rarity for our often overcast UK skies! As luck would have it, I had a roll of Fujifilm Neopan Acros II waiting in my fridge, ready for this creative experiment.
Fuji Neopan Acros II film: the Specs
Fujifilm Neopan Acros II is a black-and-white film known for its sharpness, fine grain, and unique tonal rendition and it is available in both 120 and 35mm formats.
- ISO Rating
Acros II is rated at ISO 100, making it ideal for daylight and controlled lighting conditions. Its low ISO contributes to the film’s exceptionally fine grain and sharp detail. - Grain Structure
This film is known for its super fine grain, which makes photos sharp and full of detail. It produces smooth tones and beautiful contrast, making it great for all kinds of photography. - Tonal Range
It has a wide dynamic range, offering rich blacks and bright highlights with subtle mid-tones. This characteristic gives it a modern yet classic look, appealing to those who appreciate elegant contrasts. - Sharpness
Acros II is known for its exceptional sharpness and it can capture intricate details, making it a great choice for medium and large format cameras, as well as 35mm. - Reciprocity Failure Characteristics
Acros II is famous for its minimal reciprocity failure, requiring no exposure compensation for exposures up to 120 seconds and only slight adjustments beyond that. This makes it a top choice for long exposure photography, such as nightscapes, star trails, and light painting. - Versatility
While primarily designed for ISO 100, it can be pushed to ISO 200 or even ISO 400 in some scenarios, though pushing may slightly increase contrast and grain.
ANALOGUE WOnDERLAND
Analogue Wonderland are a UK-based lab that offer a wide variety of films. Some films sell out fast though, so it’s worth signing up to be notified when it comes back in stock.
They also offer developing for black and white and colour films, as well as specialised developing, such as for souped films.
Out and about—How I used Fuji Neopan Acros II
As mentioned, my main subject was a sunflower field at Castle Farm, Kent. It was late summer with a pale blue sky—a perfect day for photos and I wanted to get photos of the flowers and also the people in the field, including Mary, who was taking photos with me. I used a Canon EOS 600 with a 100mm f/2.8 lens, and I shot this at box speed (ISO 100), aiming for a range of wide, mid, and close-up shots of the sunflowers, exposing mostly for the shadows. I deliberately set the shallowest f-stop I could (f2.8) as I didn’t particularly want extremely sharp photos—I wanted some ‘softness’ and bokeh in my images.
The Results: Fuji Neopan Acros II
Although Fuji Neopan Acros II is known for being really sharp, I wanted a dreamy effect, so I deliberately set my f-stop quite low on many shots, and used a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lens for close-up and portrait shots. And I was delighted with the results—this film captured the texture and shape of the flowers in a way I don’t think I could have achieved with colour film. I shot this film at box speed (ISO 100) and metered for the mid-tones rather than the brightest or darkest points. in the frame.
There were almost no photos I didn’t like and there was a much higher rate of ‘keepers’ than I expected. The portrait photos were flattering and soft—I particularly adore the shots of Mary taking photos with her new Fuji retro digital camera!
I had Analogue Wonderland develop the film, and I requested premium TIFF scans to allow for some adjustments in post-production, but apart from lifting a few shadows, I made almost no changes.
Final thoughts on Fuji Neopan Acros II
I adore this film stock; it’s one of my favourites and I know I’ll come back to it again and again, especially for bright days or for long exposures. It’s great for long exposures as you don’t need to make so many adjustments for reciprocity failure. Reciprocity failure happens when film doesn’t behave as expected during very long exposures, requiring adjustments to the exposure time or aperture to get the right result.
It’s such a classic film, and I love the wide range of tones you get. I feel it has a lot in common with HP5+; both films are renowned for their wide dynamic range, and are really versatile and both deliver a ‘timeless’ and elegant look.
What 3 Words for this film?
- Sharp: Acros II is renowned for its unparalleled sharpness, capturing intricate details with precision.
- Elegant: IThe tonal range offers a sophisticated balance of rich blacks, luminous whites, and smooth mid-tones, making every shot look timeless.
- Reliable: Its minimal reciprocity failure and consistent results make it dependable, especially for long exposures and critical projects.
Behind the Lens: Shooting Sunflowers on Acros II
Black and white film captures mood and texture – but sometimes it’s nice to see the full picture.
Here’s a short video from the day I shot these sunflowers on Fujifilm Acros II. Filmed on my iPhone, it gives you a sense of the light, colour, and surroundings – the warmth, the breeze, the late summer feel – that inspired the roll.
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