Problems with RA4

[SeanEsopenko]

I tried RA4 for the first time with Kodak chemicals using a Jobo CPA-2 I picked up on Friday. I printed one contact sheet which looked like the top-most image and thought I did something wrong. I retried, filling the little jobo graduates with fresh chemicals from my accordion squeeze bottles. I got the exact same results, producing the image at the top.

Then I read that the above might have been caused by exposure to "white light" so I thought maybe the light was reflecting around in the glass for the contact sheet. Kinda strange but I thought "what the hell, I'll see what it does with a negative in a carrier" and printed the second image above.

The two topmost images were done with 30 seconds pre-wash, 45 seconds developer (started dumping at 40 seconds and poured the stop bath in within 8 seconds). 30 seconds of stop. 30 seconds of rinse. 1 minute of blix (recommended by jobo). 30 seconds of rinse 3 times. Everything was done at 35 celcius +- 0.2 degrees (digital thermometer with readings down to 0.1 degrees)

Then, according to some documentation from Fuji, I learned the brownish colour could be caused by being in the blix too long. I shortened the blix to 45 seconds and it got pretty much the exact same result.

I'm at a loss as to what's causing this. My starting filter was 40 magenta and 40 yellow after reading that as the general advice for fuji CA paper on the net. I have a dichroic head. Any advice?

forgot to mention: after the contact prints I realized the non-expert jobo drums with the cogs aren't daylight tanks. so I kept the lights out until the tank was installed for the second contact print (shown above) and it got practically the same results. You can see the light leak streaking across the page in the contact print but the two enlarged prints didn't have any contact with white light.

[jayabbas]

Have you looked at any issues with the paper itself? Old color paper can look reallly bad -- base fog, heat fog, etc.

[Robert Ley]

Exactly what Jobo tanks were you using? The Print tanks should have a cup in the lid to hold the chemicals and will be light tight. Are the paper and chemicals fresh? Are you using enough chemicals. Over Blixing like you did should not cause the problem as blix is essentially a run to completion step.

Let us know more of the perimeters of your printing session.

Why are you giving it a pre-rinse? You have the CPA-2 and you should be running a water bath. Let the water bath preheat the drum for a few minutes.

[jayabbas]

Does your enlarger have white light focus lever( like my Omega D5) If you flip the dichros out of the light path and expose; the image looks much like what you are showing--reddish, way overexposed -- check your enlarger for that feature.

[SeanEsopenko]

Exactly what Jobo tanks were you using? The Print tanks should have a cup in the lid to hold the chemicals and will be light tight. Are the paper and chemicals fresh? Are you using enough chemicals. Over Blixing like you did should not cause the problem as blix is essentially a run to completion step.

Let us know more of the perimeters of your printing session.

Why are you giving it a pre-rinse? You have the CPA-2 and you should be running a water bath. Let the water bath preheat the drum for a few minutes.

I'll try to be as detailed as possible describing what I did.

I'm using a CPA-2 at 35C (confirmed +/- 0.2C with a digital thermometer left in the bath). I'm using a 2830 tank and 2850 (without the extension so basically another 2830). they both have the cog lids, not the rubber ones with the light trap.

I'm using brand new Fuji crystal archive ordered from B&H. Arrived 2-3 weeks ago and was put in the freezer right away. I pulled it out of the freezer last night in preparation for today (sat in the basement at around 18C for 10 hours before use).

I have the thermostat light on the jobo taped over with electrical tape (man that thing's bright!). After sitting in the darkroom for 5 minutes it's very well sealed against light leaks so I know fogging of the paper isn't happening. The perfectly clean white borders of the enlargement prints show that.

Both the jobo instructions and the kodak instructions "for tray and rotary tube processing" recommended a pre-rinse, development, rinse, blix, rinse, rinse, rinse. They both recommend 35C temperature, both recommend 30 seconds pre-rinse, both recommend 30 seconds stop bath and both recommend 1:30 of final rinse (3x 30 seconds). The jobo instructions recommend 1 minute of development and 1 minute of blix. The kodak instructions recommend 45 seconds of development and 45 minutes of blix. For all prints I did 45 seconds of development but I switched up the blix time after reading kodak & fuji recommended something shorter.

The first two prints (the first contact sheet, not shown, and the second contact sheet shown above) were done where I wasn't aware of the lid not being light sealed. You can see the light leak across the lower left of the contact sheet. The first two contact sheets and the one enlargement test sheet shown above were done at 1 minute of blix.

The final enlargement was done at 45 seconds of blix without much change.

Does your enlarger have white light focus lever( like my Omega D5) If you flip the dichros out of the light path and expose; the image looks much like what you are showing--reddish, way overexposed -- check your enlarger for that feature.

As far as I'm aware my enlarger doesn't have this feature or I don't know how to engage it. I could see the light colour changing when rolling the colour wheels to 40M and 40Y for the above prints. I was looking Robert Hirsch's Exploring Color Photography and thought I probably had too little filtration. My omega head has 3 digits for each colour and I had 040 magenta and 040 yellow. Does that mean 40 or 0.4?

[jayabbas]

Try adding substantially more filtration say 80-90M and 90-120Y -just throwing that out there. If your enlarger does not have white light focus feature ,it looks like too much light getting to paper with the filtration you are currently using. Adding filtration to the head decreases total light reaching paper which your tests look like could use.

[SeanEsopenko]

Try adding substantially more filtration say 80-90M and 90-120Y -just throwing that out there. If your enlarger does not have white light focus feature ,it looks like too much light getting to paper with the filtration you are currently using. Adding filtration to the head decreases total light reaching paper which your tests look like could use.

Ok so the good news is I probably don't have 8 liters of botched chemicals by the sounds of it . I'll be printing again next Saturday so I'll try the filter amount you're recommending. Thanks for the advice.

[Greg Blank]

You forgot to answer his question completely do your tanks have the light trapping print cups?



[QUOTE=SeanEsopenko;748110]I'll try to be as detailed as possible describing what I did.

I'm using a CPA-2 at 35C (confirmed +/- 0.2C with a digital thermometer left in the bath). I'm using a 2830 tank and 2850 (without the extension so basically another 2830). they both have the cog lids, not the rubber ones with the light trap.

[Greg Blank]

[SeanEsopenko]

You forgot to answer his question completely do your tanks have the light trapping print cups?

Nope none of the cog lids I have for the 2XXX tanks have those light trapping chemical cups. I'm using a lift so the chemicals are poured in and out through the lift and not in cups within the tanks so I think that's why the cups aren't there. Are you referring to non-jobo tanks? I have a few tanks meant for old fashioned rotary bases that have what you're talking about but between the various jobo tanks I've scrounged up none of the jobos I have appear to have that.

I have an expert 3063 drum, which has light traps, but I haven't used it yet because I haven't figured out a way to get the lid on evenly enough to keep it from wobbling while rolling. Plus I have to figure out how to have 360mL of chemicals handy when the little jobo graduates only hold about 250mL.