Best B & W film and developer for 4 x 5 newbie? Tank? Tray?

[ROL]

The tray development seems intuitive but has the issue of temperature control if one doesn't have a water jacket/ sink arrangement.

You don't need that kind of temperature control for personal developing from 6 to 20 minutes, especially if you're in a temp controlled environment (i.e., inside) as almost all B/W is standardized at 20ºC (i.e., room temperature). I don't use water jackets with open trays, and I'd be surprised if many here do either. Any real temperature variations will likely either be insignificant or built into your work flow as you learn to process.

Nothing could be simpler and less inexpensive than trays. You might as well learn to do it (easy) before investing in other, more involved, techniques. At the very least, it will give you a reliable method to fall back on if/when your tanks, rollers, cap, etc. fail you (i.e., see voluminous threads here).

Almost any film is good with a general purpose developer like XTOL. See the Massive Development Chart.

[Karl A]

My approach when I started was to develop a single sheet at a time in trays. Tri-X in D-76. All at room temperature. It's a pretty foolproof method. And I haven't found a more reliable one yet. I learned how to do it from here:

http://www.kodak.com/global/en/profe...bs/j78/j78.pdf

No fancy equipment needed.

[BetterSense]

There are many films out there which will do fine, but you asked about the best. Probably the best film ever made is TMAX 400. It's just amazing.

Lots of developers will do, but Xtol is some good stuff. Like D76 but slightly faster, less toxic and more stable.

I started with trays, tried daylight tanks, tried hangers, and am back to trays. It takes skill to avoid scratches.

[angusparker]

FP4 film and XTOL developer: a good combination of forgiving film and fine detail developer that is non-toxic and won't stain your sink!

[Leigh]

XTOL is probably the worst developer on the planet. Even regular users have problems with it.

Don't believe me? Search the archives.

- Leigh

[angusparker]

XTOL is probably the worst developer on the planet. Even regular users have problems with it.

Don't believe me? Search the archives.

- Leigh

I think that might be before Kodak discontinued the smaller packages. XTOL can also die after a few months after mixing and may be unreliable if diluted. So I guess I should caveat - use it fresh-ish, use it one shot, and use it as Stock solution and you should be fine.

[cjbroadbent]

My approach when I started was to develop a single sheet at a time in trays. Tri-X in D-76. All at room temperature. It's a pretty foolproof method. And I haven't found a more reliable one yet. I learned how to do it from here:

http://www.kodak.com/global/en/profe...bs/j78/j78.pdf

No fancy equipment needed.

Agreed. My darkroom is a loo, a 5x6 tupperware container, two plastic cups and a laxative measure.

[Ed Bray]

Nancy, I am going to go against popular opinion here and suggest initially using trying a Paterson Super System 4 Universal Tank and try the Taco Method (google it). The tank is just very slightly too small for the film and seems to squash it slightly when you close the lid but with no ill effects (the use of a 3 reel tank stops this but needs more chemicals to fill the tank). This is a very low cost option for daylight processing as a Paterson universal tank can be picked up very cheaply.

The negatives obtained from this method are as good as anything I have had from using the Jobo Expert Drums or any other method I have used.

[Jeff Dexheimer]

Ha, so you see there are as many "best" combinations as there are people. For me trays are ideal. My favorite film is ilford delta 100 because for my purposes i want fine grain, but i also have to balance cost. I find for the price, delta 100 the best bang for the buck. I don't have any fancy temperature control equipment either. I just mix my chemicals to slightly above 20 c. By the time I am done they are slightly below 20 c, and thus I estimate the average temp was close enough to 20 c. For developer, I haven't found the perfect one. I usually try one and stick with it for a while to get used to it. Then I switch to something else to see if it gets me a "better" development. So the answer is really there is no best. There are many choices, all of which are good in their right.

[DG 3313]

I use a Beseler 8x10 color drum on a motor base. It holds two sheets of 4x5 at a time. Once the negs. are loaded the rest can be done with the room lights on. The drum needs 2oz of chemistry to cover the film (or paper if you are making prints) but, I use 3oz to prevent streaks.

I am using expired Ilford Fp4 or fresh T-max 100 in D-76 @1:1.