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radchad
5-Sep-2007, 11:59
I was wondering what film developers everyone uses. I have used only Kodak D-76. I was looking into Xtol. What does everyone use? I plan on shooting Efke IR820 Infrared and Ilford films.

davidb
5-Sep-2007, 12:10
I use Rodinal for FP4+ and anything under 125.

I use XTOL for HP5+ and anything 400 and faster.

Peter Lewin
5-Sep-2007, 12:42
PMK for HP5+ in 4x5 and 120, D-76 1:1 for HP5+ 35mm.

Eric Biggerstaff
5-Sep-2007, 12:44
Here is a link to a poll done on this topic last year:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=19508&highlight=Poll%3A+Favorite+Developers

This might give you some information (hope I did the link correctly)

Ron Marshall
5-Sep-2007, 12:55
About a year ago I experimented by using several different films and developers; not to find the magic bullet, just to have a better understanding of the differences between different films and developers.

I tried D76, HC-110, Rodinal, Pyrocat-HD and XTOL. All did an excellent job once I was used to the particular film-dev combination. Some are slightly sharper than others or give faster emulsion speed, or finer grain; but the overall image quality with LF and moderate enlargements was not very different. (This is for 100 ISO films; Rodinal negs are a bit grainy for my liking with faster films)

I finally settled on XTOL. It is cheap, easy to mix, good film speed, can process at high temps, good sharpness, no grain. It works very well with TMX and TMY, which is what I now use, and great with FP4 and HP5.

Dave Brown
5-Sep-2007, 13:14
About ten years ago, I switched to HC-110 from D-76. I get the same results I did before, but I appreciate the longer shelf life of HC-110. I've considered going to XTOL because it's easier on the environment, but if I'm going to switch developers, I'll go with someone like Ilford or Photographer's Formulary that has a commitment to silver based photography. I have a hard time beleiving that Kodak will be marketing any film developer five years down the road.

mike kwiatkowski
5-Sep-2007, 14:16
I usually use XTOL. Works well for me and I get good film speed with it.

Bruce Watson
5-Sep-2007, 14:35
I finally settled on XTOL. It is cheap, easy to mix, good film speed, can process at high temps, good sharpness, no grain. It works very well with TMX and TMY, which is what I now use, and great with FP4 and HP5.

XTOL also dilutes well, and gives excellent film speed. I've been using XTOL 1:3 to process 5x4 Tri-X for years with excellent results.

Andrew O'Neill
5-Sep-2007, 15:06
Why do you want to change developers? Are you happy with what D-76 gives you? Have you tried it at 1+1? I used to use D-76 but it became unavailable where I was living but xtol was. Xtol is a great developer and I still use it once in a while. Probably the easiest powder developer to mix up. I use it with HP5+, FP4+, Efke 25, and Efke infra-red. My main developer is pyrocat-HD. Pyrocat is way more economical for me than xtol as I mix it from scratch.

Brian Schall
5-Sep-2007, 16:01
I use HC-110 or Rodinal just because they last forever once opened. Also use DiXactol but I haven't figured out the shelf life of it yet.

Michael Heald
5-Sep-2007, 16:12
Hello! TMax RS with TMax 400 film in a Unidrum on a roller. Great reproducibility! Best regards.

Mike

Toyon
5-Sep-2007, 17:12
Rodinal for slow speed, XTOL for high, though every once in a while a batch of XTOL mysteriously fails.

Ron Marshall
5-Sep-2007, 18:21
Rodinal for slow speed, XTOL for high, though every once in a while a batch of XTOL mysteriously fails.

Just curious when you mention failures. Were they with the 5 liter size, and do you mix the powder with distilled water, and dilute the stock with distilled water?

fhovie
5-Sep-2007, 19:26
PC-TEA for pushing
Pyrocat P for accutance

Andrew O'Neill
5-Sep-2007, 21:08
Xtol failures never happened to me...mind you, I've always used the 5 litre packages.

davidb
5-Sep-2007, 21:44
I've never had an xtol failure. I think it's all bullshit at this point. Or poor handling.

Brian Ellis
6-Sep-2007, 00:16
Except for brief flings with PMK and Rodinol, I've used D76 1-1 exclusively for all formats for about 14 years. D76 has been around for almost 100 years, I seem to remember reading somewhere that it's the oldest developer still on the market. I figure it must be doing something right to have lasted that long with so many films having come and gone.

Gary L. Quay
9-Sep-2007, 21:46
I'm currently using Photographers' Formulary WD2D+ for low speed films, but I want to switch back to PMK Pyro when my current supply is gone. For higher speed films I use Clayton F76+. I have a bottle of Kodak HC-110 that's waiting in the wings. I want to see what results I get with it. I've heard that it's really good. I don't seem to be able to settle on one or two developers. I want to try everything. I have a bottle of Photographers' Formulary FX-2 on order, and I really want to see what Rodinal can do. I'm nostly happy with PMK Pyro, but I ruin a lot of negatives with it. I suppose I really should find something and stick with it, because that way I can more accurately adjust my technique. My darkroom has been up and running for under three years, though, and I still haven't found the magical combination that does everything I want. I'd like to have extremely fine grain, razor sharpness, and decent contrast. Unfortunately for my Pyro habit, I also want to move toward environmentally friendly developers.

--Gary

Philippe Gauthier
10-Sep-2007, 08:26
Except for brief flings with PMK and Rodinol, I've used D76 1-1 exclusively for all formats for about 14 years. D76 has been around for almost 100 years, I seem to remember reading somewhere that it's the oldest developer still on the market. I figure it must be doing something right to have lasted that long with so many films having come and gone.

Actually, Rodinal is older. It was first marketed in 1890 (or was it 1892?) which makes it at least 115 years old.

That said I agree that the differences in developpers are rather small, especially in large format. I mostly use HC-110 and Rodinal myself. I appreciatetheir convienience (high concentration) and their long shelf life.

Lenny Eiger
11-Sep-2007, 12:28
I think a discussion of this should include what kind of prints you want to make - darkroom, scan and inkjet, whether they be contrasty like Ansel, or smooth like much of the rest of the pack in the History. Hey, maybe you want to print like Steichen - and that would be a different developer.

FWIW, I use D-23 these days and I like it.. I print not-so-contrasty, I don't care about a big black in my images, I prefer to reproduce images closer to what I see in the world. This is all totally subjective and opinion-based, of course, and no "facts" are represented...

Lenny
EigerStudios

robert fallis
11-Sep-2007, 12:38
I use Tetenal ultrafin at 1+10 but it will dilute to 1+30, it gives a nice black

bob

David Karp
11-Sep-2007, 12:38
I use the late Barry Thornton's 2-bath developer:

A bath - 750 ml water, 6.5g metol, 80g sodium sulfite, water to make 1L.

B bath - 750 ml water, 12g sodium metaborate for N development, water to make 1L (7g/liter for N-, and 20g/liter for N+).

In spite of the formula, I have also split the sodium sulfite 50/50 between the two baths with good success.

Five minutes in each bath without a wash in between works well. As with Diafine, extra time or temperature variations make little difference, especially if you split the sodium sulfite between the two baths. I have used this formula with HP5+, FP4+, and Delta 100. I have not tried it with T-Max films. I expose HP5+ at 200, and FP4+ at 64-80, depending on how I feel that day, and Delta 100 at 50.

SamReeves
11-Sep-2007, 22:21
Nothing to exotic for myself. Just D-76 1:1 on the Jobo at 70°F for 5:45 on my HP5. Dektol has always been great for the prints. No complaints about either.

jnantz
12-Sep-2007, 04:27
i use sprint film developer, caffeinol C, ansco 130, caffeinolC+ansco 130,

Ed Richards
12-Sep-2007, 11:59
> I've never had an xtol failure. I think it's all bullshit at this point. Or poor handling.

I had an Xtol failure (5 liter) last year. Ruined some serious negatives, made worse since I tried another set, just to be sure. (Sometimes dumb just reaches out and grabs you.) Since then, I make sure the first round in a new mix is something that I can reshoot. I think it is poor handling, but we have no way to know how the stuff was handled before we get it, esp. for most of us who have to buy mail order. Xtol is cheap, and 5 liters does 100 sheets at 1:3, so doing a test is a small price for such a good developer. Like many others, a main draw for me is that Xtol 1:3 is really good for high temp developing, saving a lot of trouble in the tropics.

Scott Davis
12-Sep-2007, 12:55
I'm a dedicated Pyrocat HD user. I use a limited variety of film (mostly FP4+ and Fomapan 200, with the occasional sheet of HP5 tossed in for good measure). I now contact print exclusively, in platinum/palladium. For this purpose, Pyrocat has been an ideal developer. It is extremely economical, and produces beautiful negatives.

John Bowen
12-Sep-2007, 18:49
I too use Pyrocat HD with T-Max 400 for anything that will be contact printed (5x7,8x10, 7x17)

For stuff that will be enlarged (35mm & 4x5) I use Tri-X and HC-110

Andrew O'Neill
12-Sep-2007, 20:13
Just tried Efke IR 8x10 in Pyrocat-HD and turned out quite nice. Good stain. Looks like an EI of 12 (bright sunny morning around 10am) and 16 minutes in developer works (BTZS tube).

Andrew O'Neill
12-Sep-2007, 20:22
I use the late Barry Thornton's 2-bath developer:

David, what is your agitation regime? Constant in bath A and none in B?

David Karp
12-Sep-2007, 21:11
David, what is your agitation regime? Constant in bath A and none in B?

I do 10 sec. every minute (in a slosher). I have heard that some follow your proposed method with 2 baths, and I have also heard of continuous agitation in bath B. Never tried either though.

nehartmannn
12-Sep-2007, 22:49
Started up (when I started up again after many years) with Tetenal Ultra fine....
But now I use APH09 deluted 1:100 and standing development for 1 hour...