Paterson Acupan 800

The Paterson Acupan 800 is a black and white film. The film was sold in the UK under the Paterson brand. The film stock was produced in the cartridge by the Foma company. The Czech company offered it as Fomapan T800.

The Paterson Acupan 800 is a film for monochrome images. The sensitization of the film is panchromatic. The sensitivity of the film is specified in the data sheet as ISO 800. The ISO value is used to describe the sensitivity of the film material to light. A higher value means a higher sensitivity. With this sensitivity, it is well suited for photographing in low available light. Graininess clearly appears at this high sensitivity.

The discontinuation of new film production probably means that most of the film stock that can still be purchased today has already passed the manufacturer’s expiration date. Of course, this does not mean that the film can no longer be used for photography. It is only an indication of the guaranteed quality of the film material by the manufacturer.

A decrease in sensitivity to light can occur with older film stock. Besides the age of the film, storage is also an important factor. A lower ISO than the specified value can help prevent underexposure in photographs. It is possible that the storage conditions of unexposed film stock will affect the quality of subsequent photographs.

Film stock should be stored under ideal conditions, such as in a dry and cool place. The exposed film should be developed within a short period of time for best results.

Developing the Paterson Acupan 800

The Acupan 800 must be developed in a proper black and white developer. Film development can be done by a lab, or you can choose to do it yourself at home with the proper photochemistry. The choice of film developer can significantly affect the final result of the images.

If development specifications are not available for the Paterson Acupan 800 developer, you have to try it out if you want to use it. The results of development are film strips with the photos taken. After development, the negatives can either be digitized or processed into photo prints. As a service, most developing labs directly offer to make prints in various sizes.

The scanner is a useful tool to convert the negatives into digital form. There are various devices for digitizing negatives that vary in functions and quality and are suitable for different budgets. It is possible to share the digitized photos on social media or to process them in digital form.

Availability and alternatives

You could buy the Acupan 800 only for 35mm format. The number of images was specified as 36. There is a wide range of cameras for 35mm format from various manufacturers, including Contax, Yashica and Mamiya.

The film is no longer manufactured.