Fomapan Retropan 320

Retropan 320 Soft was released around 2015 as Foma's answer to shooters who wanted the look of older orthopanchromatic portrait films without the handling headaches of actual ortho stock. The name is accurate: the curve is notably flatter than Fomapan 100 or 400 Action, the shadow-to-highlight range is wide, and the grain has a softer, more diffuse structure than the main Fomapan line.

The 320 speed is real, not a marketing stretch. Metered at box speed in even portrait lighting it produces a negative with a long shoulder and shadows that stay open. The tonal compression at the highlights is where the soft designation comes from; skin tones fall into the midtones rather than peaking into the upper curve, which is why it works well for outdoor portraiture in direct sun. The look has been compared to Agfapan APX 100 from the late film era, though the grain is different: looser and a little more irregular.

Foma's official recommendation is their RETRO SPECIAL DEVELOPER, a powder developer designed specifically for this stock; published times run 4-5 minutes at 20 C for box-speed exposure. The film also takes well to Rodinal at 1:50, where the compensating action of the high-dilution developer matches the emulsion's natural flatness. In more energetic developers it can go thin and grey-looking if you're not careful with timing.

Available in 35mm, 120, and sheet film through 4x5, 5x7, and 8x10. The 120 frame is the more common choice for the portrait work the film is designed around, but sheet shooters use it for the same reasons in larger contact-printable formats.

Reciprocity exponent is 1.31, matching the standard Fomapan line. Zone Light Meter applies the correction past one second, which matters if you're shooting open-shade portraits in low autumn light with a slow lens.