It is sad to see any film discontinued. It wasn't my favorite straight to print, from a retailer. It always looked a little green to me. But scanned and converted to true monochrome, it rendered nicely.
As mentioned elsewhere on the net, the big loss is that it was a "gateway drug" for new film users. Something they could drop off at the mini lab, until they were hooked deeply enough to home process true B&W.
As for Ilford. I've seen comments from them in other forums. The tone, as I read it, was B&W C-41 process film is not dead. They also state that survival of Kodak is seen by them as a good thing. I would have to agree. If Kodak or Alaris wrap it up. Even more will think film is totally gone, than think it now. That might be the tipping point from which the industry might not recover enough to survive at all.
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C41 processable film
IS "true black and white". If prints have a green tinge, that's because the lab's kit needs recalibration, not a fault with the emulsion. I had that problem a few times when I used Neopan 400CN and the lab was happy to re-print when I showed them a chemical print made from Acros, via an enlarger as a comparison. In fact, the lab owner thanked me as it also improved all the colour prints he produced.
The use of C41 isn't just a "gateway drug". I know photographers who use C41 processable as a specific choice because of their liking for its tonality and lack of apparent grain relative to other 400 ISO traditional B&W films; I even know one or two who use it and process it traditionally. For the rest of us, whatever our reasons, it's good and it's convenient.
I don't see anyone on FW turning their noses up when anyone posts a photo which used C41 process for B&W. In fact, I would bet a reasonable amount of money that few photographers could identify C41 film B&W prints apart from traditional ones "in the flesh" if they were produced to equally high standards to one another.
As you say (and as I've said earlier in this thread) losing
any film stock is not a good thing. Thankfully, this time, there are alternatives. If Ilford or Fuji were to withdraw their equivalent stock, however, those who are unable to process traditionally (for whatever reason) would either not shoot film or they'd have to shoot colour film and convert that to mono - which is not as easy as it sounds to get a good result, and you have to have the right software. Not a cheap option.
Many of us shoot digital as well as film - and let's not kid ourselves, the quality of digital sensors and software (different "quality" admittedly) is ever improving. This isn't a digital v film thread (nor must it become one) but, if film manufacturers keep making incremental reductions in film stock choices, some photographers will switch allegiances and that will just help increase the speed at which film usage reduces.
Personally, I have no problem at all with Ilford for saying "we're still here for C41 mono users" as they need to secure their own longevity. Film production is becoming even more "niche" and, if we don't like what Kodak is doing, we should be banging on Kodak's gates and persuading them to reverse their decision - or at least give some crumb of comfort that this isn't another step down the road to even more cuts.
