35mm Tmax 400 in DDX

[h2oman]

I have a project that I plan to do in 35mm, and I need to be able to shoot at a film speed of 400. I have chosen to use T-max 400 developed in Ilford DDX - I'm committed to that combo for now. I have no experience in developing anything other than 4x5 sheets, so I'd appreciate any ideas or suggestions.

I expect to do some testing, but here are some specific questions:

1. Should I presoak? I have the impression that I should.

2. What dilution should I use for the DDX? I believe Ilford recommends 1+4, but I've heard up to 1+9 or even 1+12 as well. Comments/ideas?

3. Developing time?

Again, I'll do some testing of my own, but any suggested starting points woud be helpful.

Thanks,
Gregg

[Robert Ley]

The Massive Dev Chart gives a starting time for DDX @1:4 at 8:00 at 68degF

I have used DDX and it is a great developer, easy to use and with good keeping qualities in concentrate. It can be used at higher dilution rates, ie 1:9 w/o any problems At 1:9 you could try giving about 3-4 more minutes, but that is only a guess and YMMV.