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Thread: whats this?

  1. #1

    whats this?

    I took some photos on APHS premium lith film I rated it at an Iso of 10. I developed it for 3mins with tetenal ultrafin for 3mins. and the negs came out with this strange mottled effect, what Have Idone wrong?

    bob

  2. #2
    lenser's Avatar
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    Tim from Missouri
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    Re: whats this?

    Definitely not sure, but it almost looks like the film may have been in a humid environment at some point at stuck to other film or to the holder. It's an "out there" idea, but the patterns kind of look like those I've seen on glass and other material that has been adhered with some other material due to moisture.

    Do you remember having to sort of peel the film away from anything prior to exposure?

  3. #3

    Re: whats this?

    thanks Jon
    No, It's been kept in my darkroom which is cool, and England this year as not been humid.
    I wondered if it was the temp of the developer, as this lith film will develop over a wide range of tempretures.

    bob

  4. #4

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    Re: whats this?

    I've never seen anything like it before, but my best guess would be either the developing time is too short, or uneven absorbtion of developer. If it's the former, dilute or cool down your developer to get a development time of 5 minutes or more. If it is the latter, try pre-soaking your film in water for a minute before development. A third posibility would be bad film; though rare, it's not unheard of.

  5. #5

    Re: whats this?

    Thanks Dave,
    I think it was something to do with the developer. I normally only develop 4 sheets at a time, but with this batch it was 10, and by the end it was full of silver,, it was at 1+9 but I only used a small tray with 300mls in it.
    I've normally had no trouble with it.

  6. #6

    Re: whats this?

    Four 4x5 sheets is about the same surface area as one 35 mm, therefore ten sheets amount to 2.5 rolls. So perhaps developer exhaustion is an issue?

  7. #7

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    Re: whats this?

    It looks to me as if two sheets were stuck to each other at the beginning. 300ml of developer for 10 sheets of 4x5 film (as I read it) isn't enough. To process 4x5, I use 2 liters of developer in an 8x10 tray. This makes sure that the dev doesn't exhaust itself, and leaves enough liquid for good flow, which helps to avoid unevenness. Lith (high contrast) film may be prone to unevenness when processed in a low-contrast developer- Tech Pan was the most obvious example of that, although your anomalies don't point that way. Personally, I presoak my sheets in a 1% Kodalk solution for 2 min before going into the developer, but that's probably not necessary for you.

  8. #8

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    Re: whats this?

    Not necessarily what may be going on with yours, but recently I was dev'g APHS in 1:9 dektol, and had the same issue. Too many sheets in one batch, stuck together. Used the exhausted dektol, dev'd single sheets, and had no problems. I use Mr Galli's timing method. Watch until image appears, Then wait. And wait. And wait. And wait some more. Seems to work. So, could be developer and time and multiple sheets, all combined, as opposed to any one single thing.

  9. #9

    Re: whats this?

    Thanks all,
    This is my lastest image, I've changed my processing. I presoaked two sheets of film untill the gunge came off,, then I changed my Tetenal dilution to 1+30 and developed for 6 mins
    I rated the film at an Asa of 6, I emailed Jim Galli and he uses and asa of 3. what do other people use? as this seems the next area to explore..

    bob

  10. #10
    JoeV's Avatar
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    Re: whats this?

    I rate APHS at "3", and have also found it helpful to presoak, prior to development, to remove the antihalation dye layer.

    I've had mottled, uneven images when the film has been given inadequate development. In my case, this arises when I'm struggling with controlling contrast, and trying to 'pull' the film from the soup early. I've since learned to use a more dilute developer and longer times.

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