Hello! I have been experimenting with an 8x10 pinhole camera with a pinhole of 0.032 inches and a focal length of 12 inches. During initial testing, there have been no light leaks; coverage looked good.
To learn, I am using paper negatives - AGFA Multicontrst B/W paper, developed with 100cc of Ilford PQ Universal developer, processed in an 8x10 Unicolor print drum rolled by hand on my sink countertop.
I've taken the test shots in my backyard during bright sun mid-days. I've adjusted the exposure times (significant reciprocity failure!) to get reasonable shadow detail. However, the highlights are blown at the recommended development time of 1 min 30 deconds. I've tried one minute, with marginal improvement of the highlights on the paper negative. Even underexposing the shadow detail still results in blown highlights!
I suspect that the problem I'm having is the contrastiness and smaller tonal range of paper, especially compared to the 4x5 TMax I was using?
I have a couple of questions.
1) Should I pre-soak paper negatives?
2) Would highly dilute development with extended development time and minimal agitation keep the shadow detail and bring the highlights under control?
Once I think I've learned enough, I'll probably switch to EFKE 25 and contact print it since it has low red response, which should give me a pleasing image with the soft pinhole effect. Best regards.
Mike
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