It's not always the film. Sometimes it is actually the Photographer ; ) The most important piece of equipment is the Lens. If that sucks, then 90% of the time you will be very unhappy with your results. T-Max 100 and 400 are SOME of the best black and white films out there. IMO BUT, one does need to run some ASA/ISO rating tests with these films to fine tune them to your exposure meter.(because they are ALL slighty different) Development/Developer is KEY. (HC-110 rules......for tmax...no need to buy that special "t-max" developer.....HC-110 can be made into dilutions for what ever your needs may be.....IMO the best all around film developer out there)