Developed my first B&W film.

[coops]

I must say it was a thrill opening up that little inversion tank and seeing images on the 120 film I just developed.
I do have a few questions though:

I used Kodak TMAX RS developer. If I want to develop 2-3 rolls one after the other, can I use the same developer? Or do I throw it away after each roll?
How do I tell if the fixer has gone bad?
Can I use the above developer for printing?
How do I develop 4x5 in the inversion tank?

Thanks

[Gary L. Quay]

Congrats! You have entered a brave new world.

A. It all depends on the capacity of the developer. Kodak has this on it's data sheet. I generally don't use film developer for more than one session. I'd also rather gnaw off a foot or two than replenish.

B. Get Edwal Hypo Check.

C. No.

D. You shouldn't. There are a number of options for LF developing in the articles section on this site. I started out with a dip and dunk system. I really don't like shuffling negaives in a tray. Photographer's Formulary sells a tray for developing 4 sheets in a paper developing tray. I've heard that it works well.

[coops]

Thanks Gary. I will look again at the Kodak site. The inversion tank holds 600 cc of developer. You said you don't use it for more than one session, but how many rolls in
that one session. I'll check it out.

Cheers

[steve simmons]

One of the advantges of using large format is sheet film. You can expose and develop each one according to the situation and scene in front of you. Developing sheet film in a closed tank removes this opportunity. This is one of the reasons I like trays. In almost 30 years of tray development I have scratched may one or two pieces of film.

A step by step description of my tray developing process is in the Free Articles section of the View Camera web site

www.viewcamera.com


steve simmons
www.foto3-2008.com

[Gary L. Quay]

As mentioned by steve, there are plenty of folks who have had good success with tray developing. I don't want scare you away from it. I ruined the first batch of negatives I did that way, so I never went back. I have done single sheets that way since then because I can just pick ip the tray and agitate it without touching the negative. I just won't do multiple sheets

My sessions aren't ususally that long. My time to shoot these days is limited due to my day job, so I generally never have to process more than 3 or 4 rolls of 120 film, and a liter of developer will do that just fine. I play it very conservitive, and don't test the limits of the film developer. Last week, I developed 10 sheets of 4x5 in a liter of HC110, and retired that batch afterward. I've gone mostly to single-use developers like PMK Pyro. HC110 can be used this way because you use so little of it. By the time I'm done with them, my developers aren't usually mildly tired, much less exhausted (PMK's rapid oxidation notwithstanding). So, I'm probably the wrong person to answer this question.

By the way, that Steve Simmons guy in the post above this one. He's a really good resource for this stuff, and he puts out a good magazine. I'm a subscriber.
--Gary

[Michael Heald]

I used a 4x5 tank when first starting, but it took a lot of developer to fill. I switched to an 8x10 Unicolor drum and roller. The drum holds four sheets and the drum and roller are available on Ebay for about $30 total. It gives consistent agitation and repeatable results.

There is an article on the site about using the system for chromes as well. The technique works for B&W, but is much simpler and needs much less developer than many other techniques. I use 135cc of TMax RS for my TMax film, though I could probably use less.

Great for me when I was beginning (and now, since I am still a newbie!)

Michael A. Heald

[Bobf]

Most people use fresh developer every tank/dish of film. You can reuse most developers but it makes things a bit tricky as you have to alter the time and quality can apparently suffer depending on the developer used. The manufacturers' data sheets will have tables showing how to reuse their developer.

A couple of ways of testing fixer: I use Tetenal indicator test strips and a clearing-time test (put a bit of undeveloped leader in some fresh fixer, swill it about a bit and time how long it takes to become clear (typically 15-30 seconds in rapid fixer mixed at film strength); make a note of this time; repeat every time you reuse that fixer; when the clearing time doubles discard and make a new batch of fixer.

Use a standard paper developer. With a few exceptions, you generally use different developers for paper and film.

I have used the Jobo 25xx series reels and tanks since I started 5x4 a few years ago now and have never felt the need to change. You normally use some form of roller (I use a CPE-2) system but you can invert them if you wish but they will use a lot of chemical that way (over a litre). Others prefer different systems - the Jobo "Expert" system is very popular but more expensive. See what looks right for you in your price bracket and give it a try.

Good luck, Bob.

[Gary L. Quay]

I just remembered... Photographers' Formulary makes a universal film and paper developer.

http://www.photoformulary.com/DesktopModules/StoreProductDetails.aspx?productID=31&tabid=9&tabindex=2&categoryid=31&selection=0&langId=0

I've never tried it, but it's been around for a long time.

--Gary

[Clay Turtle]

A little off topic but I had shot some T Max 400 but during processing I quickly realized that some of my chemistry (developer) was over due for recycle. Mixed fresh D-76 (little choice there) & stop bath & (KodaFix) fixer. Processed shots seem to have magenta stain in mid areas but not along the edge? Any one else run into this problem before in b&w processing?

[Gary L. Quay]

I ran into a magenta stain when I first started processing my own film. It was on, you guessed it, T Max 400. I was told by folks on this very site that I needed to fix the negatives longer. I've watched films clear during fixing, and it seems to happen from the outside, moving inward. This could be the same for the removal of the magenta stain. Try fixing the negatives again, and the stain should go away.

--Gary

[John Kasaian]

I use a pre-wash with TMY and never have stain issues. They dye washes out with the prewash. BTW regular TMAX developer is spec for roll films, TMAX RS is for sheet film or replenishment IIRC. :)

[Clay Turtle]

Ah, thank you for your responses. I kept thinking that I had ran into this before but I was thinking that it was due to with Kodak chemistry / Ilford film . . . I knew that there was some reason why I disliked T Max besides it replacing all those oldie but goodies film! Unforunitely I tried soaking it in some hypo, lost some of the depth in details at least.
The good news was that these were shots made to work with 150mm that I had recently mounted on a board for the 5x7 Short/Bender, I am building. Ya, prewash the T Max , hmm . . . funny, I didn't notice it with the Microdol or Accufine? But then I was using Ilford liquid rapid fix. I had switched to powder fix for a specialty process. OK, negatives are in some of the left over rapid fix & I will make sure to run longer in the fixing solution & see what comes out of the batch.

[coops]

Thanks for all the great info. I have developed several rolls now without problem, but disapointed that my film looks kinda gray and flat. Even exposing dark areas and and shooting 2 stops under. Once scanned, a small curves tweak works well, but I want to use the enlarger for the first time this week, and concerned I may not be able to tweak them as well as with the computer.

[Clay Turtle]

Thanks for all the great info. I have developed several rolls now without problem, but disapointed that my film looks kinda gray and flat. Even exposing dark areas and and shooting 2 stops under. Once scanned, a small curves tweak works well, but I want to use the enlarger for the first time this week, and concerned I may not be able to tweak them as well as with the computer.

hmm . . . I find the oppose to be true my b&w scans don't look as good as an enlarger print?
I use a universal can which is tall enough to insert the 4x5 film length ways, leave out the reels but use the down tube. You want to be sure that when you are putting the film in the can that you have emulsion side out & I I only use the darkroom light until I get it to the into the fixer stage. Heard other say that they have problens with streaking but the only time I ran into that was because I had the emulsion-side to the wall. My can is big enough for 2 sheets at once but you really need to add a ribs (2 line of epoxy) down the wall if you were going to do this regularly. Just a precaution that the sheets don't scratch one another during processing.
I used this method alot for b&w using both inversion & rolling proceedures, rinse your can good & leave it wet as this helps to seal the base to the container wall which is probably why the sheets tend to remain in place during processing.
PS As I stated that I used both methods, I realized that it isn't necessary to complete invert the can. (my can has snap on lid which leaks if I use the continous roller method) I generally give the can a quick shake or spin it a little at 30 sec or 1 minute intervals which is more than enough to create flow into the solution, bringing fresh solution into contact with the emulsion surface.

[Gary L. Quay]

Thanks for all the great info. I have developed several rolls now without problem, but disapointed that my film looks kinda gray and flat. Even exposing dark areas and and shooting 2 stops under. Once scanned, a small curves tweak works well, but I want to use the enlarger for the first time this week, and concerned I may not be able to tweak them as well as with the computer.

What film / developer combination are you using? How old is your developer?

--Gary