PDA

View Full Version : Uneven Development



rbudhu
15-Dec-2016, 18:54
Hi,

I just tried to develop my own B&W photo but it seems as though it was developed unevenly with a dark streak in the middle. After some googling and reading threads, I think it may be uneven agitation. I am attaching a copy of the negative for help. Thanks so much.

Gary Samson
15-Dec-2016, 19:18
Hi,

I just tried to develop my own B&W photo but it seems as though it was developed unevenly with a dark streak in the middle. After some googling and reading threads, I think it may be uneven agitation. I am attaching a copy of the negative for help. Thanks so much.

Can you describe how the film was developed, tray, tank or deep tank with hangers?

David Schaller
15-Dec-2016, 19:19
Yep, that's uneven development. You might want to tell us your procedure, step by step. How are you developing?

Dustin McAmera
15-Dec-2016, 19:22
A very sharp change half-way along the picture: as if the left-hand side wasn't in the developer for the whole time.

rbudhu
15-Dec-2016, 19:28
Thanks for the replies. I am using a Paterson tank (two 4x5 sheets) with 500ml HC-110 (484ml water and 16ml concentrate), 500ml Ilford Rapid Fixer (4+1 dillution). I used the mass. dev. app. with 6 min developer, 1 min stop bath, 5 min fixer, and 10 min wash.

Willie
15-Dec-2016, 21:53
You say TWO sheets of film. Are both showing this density difference?

How much liquid in the tank to fill it completely?

rbudhu
16-Dec-2016, 07:21
Yes, both are similar. I'm not sure. I am using the Paterson Super System 4 Film Developing Tank (Multi-Reel 3) so I'm not sure how much liquid would be needed to completely fill it.

Huub
16-Dec-2016, 08:08
You need at least 1 L of fluid for that tank, which explains why about half of the negative is relatively well developed and the other half isn't. But there seems more issues to the negatives. Did you use the MOD54 insert for this tank?

Dustin McAmera
16-Dec-2016, 08:08
If I recall correctly, Paterson tanks use 300ml to cover a single 35mm film, so a three-reel tank must hold at least 900 ml. Each of those reels is (I guess) 40 mm tall. I haven't used a Paterson tank for a while, and never for sheet film. How are you holding the film in the tank, and which way round? If it sits with the four-inch side vertical, I guess you need about (4 inch*25 mm/inch) * 300 ml / 40 mm = 750 ml, as long as the film is at the bottom and can't stray upwards. If the 5-inch side is vertical, that's about 940 ml.

(Aha! I'd forgotten the MOD45)

rbudhu
16-Dec-2016, 09:40
Yes, also used a Mod45! I appreciate all the help!

Willie
16-Dec-2016, 11:28
Yes, both are similar. I'm not sure. I am using the Paterson Super System 4 Film Developing Tank (Multi-Reel 3) so I'm not sure how much liquid would be needed to completely fill it.

Fill the tank with liquid and measure how much it takes. Make sure you fill it next time you process film. Developer costs a lot less than wasted film.

Martin Aislabie
16-Dec-2016, 11:28
It looks to me like the two sheets of film have come in to contact with each other at some point during the development.

If you are only doing two sheets, put one on either side of the MOD54

With so much film area as a 5x4 sheet, it is always really easy to dislodge a sheet of film from its carrier, so very gentle agitation is a must.

I always rock my Negs in the carrier to make sure they are securely held by the carrier - it so easy to get them in but not quite "home"

I did lots and lots of trial loadings with dud sheets of film in the daylight before I did it for real

Also, remember with agitation you are simply trying to move exhausted developer from the surface of the film, the design of the tank and its light baffles will do the developer agitation for you.

So a nice gentle rocking motion will do (I rock mine at roughly 2 sec each way) - you are not making cocktails.

I use 1 litre of chemicals to cover 5x4 film in a MOD54 holder - your Negs have either floated to the top of the tank or you were a little short of volume.

Good luck

Martin