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If your Ilford SFX 200 negatives look thin after using a red filter, check the exposure before changing development: the filter cuts the light reaching the film, and its compensation depends on its exact designation. Ilford also warns that some through-the-lens (TTL) meters can underexpose with deep red or orange filters. Identify the filter, apply its stated factor or meter through it cautiously, and bracket exposures while learning your camera’s response.
First, check whether the negative is actually underexposed
A thin negative can indicate that too little light reached the film. But a dark-looking scan or print does not, on its own, prove that the negative is thin: the same description can refer to a positive image that looks dark. The exposure guidance below addresses capture through the filter; it cannot diagnose a particular development, scanning, or printing workflow.
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SFX 200 is ISO 200 film. Ilford describes it as having extended red sensitivity and suitable for use with yellow, orange, or red filters. A deep red filter creates the more dramatic infrared-style effect, but also makes exposure compensation especially important.
Use the factor for your exact filter
“Red filter” is not a precise enough description to choose compensation. In its SFX 200 technical information, labeled November 2018, Ilford gives these guide values for Kodak Wratten filters:
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| Filter designation | Ilford filter factor | Exposure increase |
|---|---|---|
| Kodak Wratten 25, red | 2.8 | 1½ stops |
| Kodak Wratten 29, deep red | 3 | 1⅔ stops |
| Kodak Wratten 89B, very deep red | 16 | 4 stops |
These are Ilford’s guide values for the named designations, not universal values for every filter sold as red. The difference is substantial: a factor of 16 calls for much more compensation than a factor of 2.8. Check the label or manufacturer’s documentation for your filter rather than applying one fixed adjustment to all red or infrared filters. Ilford SFX 200 Technical Information
Correct exposure without trusting the meter blindly
If you meter through the filter
A TTL meter reads light through the lens, but Ilford warns that some common cameras may underexpose by up to 1½ stops with deep red or orange filters. Treat the indicated exposure as a starting point, not a guarantee. For initial use, Ilford recommends bracketing by ±2 stops around the TTL reading with the filter in place.
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If you meter without the filter
Take a normal meter reading, then increase exposure by the factor specified for that exact filter. For example, Ilford lists a 2.8 factor—approximately 1½ stops—for a Wratten 25 red filter. Its guide is to bracket by ±2 stops around the reading after applying the factor.
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- Read the filter’s designation and find its stated factor; do not infer it from the word “red.”
- Choose a base exposure using either a cautious TTL reading with the filter in place or an unfiltered meter reading adjusted by the filter factor.
- Make a bracket spanning two stops below and two stops above that base exposure, following Ilford’s initial-use recommendation.
- Compare the negatives under consistent processing and scanning or printing conditions. Use the results to learn how your camera and meter behave with that filter.
Ilford gives approximately 1/30 second at f/5.6 in bright sunlight with a deep red filter as an example exposure. It is an illustration from the technical sheet, not a universal setting: actual exposure depends on the light, filter, and camera metering.
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Expect the filter to change both tone and handling
The stronger effect has a larger exposure cost
Ilford says a deep red filter makes blue skies almost black and green vegetation almost white with SFX 200, producing an infrared-style look. The more dramatic result comes with a greater exposure demand for very deep filters. Ilford notes that very dark filters can require very long exposures and recommends a tripod in that situation—not for every red filter.
Focus and compose before the filter gets in the way
Ilford cautions that focusing through a deep red filter is difficult and that some lenses focus red light at a slightly different point from other visible light. With short to moderate focal lengths, its guidance is to accommodate the difference by stopping down to the smallest working aperture; some apochromatic (APO) lenses may need no correction. Plan composition and focus before fitting a filter that makes viewing difficult.
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- Low Speed Color Negative: for kodak gold 200 35mm gold film is a low speed color negative.
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Load SFX 200 in subdued light
Ilford says SFX 200 should be loaded in subdued light. Unlike true infrared film, it does not require total darkness for loading.
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The filter factors, TTL-meter warning, bracketing guidance, example exposure, and handling notes above come from HARMAN technology Limited / ILFORD PHOTO’s SFX 200 Technical Information, labeled November 2018. Ilford’s product page describes SFX 200 in 35mm and 120 formats and its deep-red-filter effect; regional availability may vary. ILFORD PHOTO Canada: SFX 200 35mm Film
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