Tray vs. tank/hanger development

[Chad Jarvis]

I've only developed in open trays, which for me has it's advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that it's cheap (a few plastic trays is all you need to get started), and a LOT of 4x5s can be developed at one time (a good 8 to 10). Personally my batches are sized depending on the format, as the films become considerably more difficult to manage with size (e.g. 10 - 4x5s, 8 - 5x7s, 6 - 8x10s). On the flip side, the disadvantages are that (for me) it is difficult to manage multiple development times within one batch (I don't bother even trying). And I am slightly allergic to hypo, as many people are, so if I process a few batches and go to sleep shortly thereafter, I will "develop" red splotches on my chest, where my hands have rested. If you don't want your hands soaking in chemicals for 30 minutes at a shot, you'd be better off with a tank.

[Doremus Scudder]

Dan, here's my two-cents worth. First, let me say that I develop 4x5 only (not larger) and in relatively small batches. Sometimes I have 100 or 150 negs to develop, but these are usually the result of a several week "photo safari" and I don't mind spending a couple of days in the darkroom developing them all. I use the tray method, developing no more than 6 sheets of film in a deep 5x7 tray at one time. Many use 8x10 trays, but I've found that the smaller trays keep the film straighter and therefore easier to handle. Since I use two developers, two films and a myriad of development times as standard, the tray method works best for me. I can change developer and time for each batch. Tray development is uncomplicated, but does require a bit of dexterity and practice (the simplest tools require the most skill). I have had (and solved) problems with scratching negs and uneven development, and now rarely have defective negatives. I shuffle through the film stack once every 30 seconds, which means a different speed for larger and smaller batches, i.e. one shuffle every 5 seconds for a 6-sheet batch, one every 10 seconds for a 3- sheet batch, etc.

Practice in the daylight and with your eyes closed with a tray of water and four or five scrap sheets of film to get the hang of it, and see if you feel confident enough to adopt this as your developing system.

If I had hundreds of sheets to do every week, I'd probably find another way to develop that lent itself more to bulk processing. As it is, tray processing by hand is ideal for me. See Ansel Adams "The Negative" and many others for an in-depth description. Hope this helps. ;^D)

[Jim Noel]

Good morning, I have been developing large film since the late 1930's. If there is a method available, Ihave used it at one time or the other. I own tanks, Unirollers, Jobo and trays. After may thousands of sheets of film of all sizes I have for the past 15 or 20 years used stainless steel wire baskets in trays. The baskets hold 6 sheets of 4X5 in an 11X14 trays, as well as other configurations I have had made. I have also made trays from plastic which also work well. In use, the wire baskets are loaded with one sheet of film in each section. The basket is then placed in the processing trays in order and agitation is by lifting alternate corners of the tray. To move from tray to tray, the basket is lifted, film drained and then placed in the next solution. The advantages are: no danger of scratching, no streaking, agitation patterns are easy to establish and maintain, hands stay dry. it is as if one were developing single sheets in a tray, but more can be done simultaneously. For the past several years I have had my college students using this method, and the number of failures due to processing is almost zero. If you are interested, e-mail me directly and I will write you more detailed information about constructing and using baskets from stainless wire and from plastic. Jim

[John H. Henderson]

in the short time I've been shooting and developing 4x5, I've tried trays (cheap to start out with, but messy, prone to scratching, poor temperature and processing in the dark), Combi-plan inversion tank (leaked like crazy, took so long to pour chemicals in and out that times were hard to keep uniform), tanks (Back to working in the dark, to much chemical required for one-shot processing) and finally got a Unicolor drum and motorized base. I wished I had heard of these much sooner! They are fantastic! I got the used base and drum off eBay for about what the hard rubber Kodak 4x5 tanks cost me used. You work in the light, you can go away and do something else while developing, the temperature remains pretty constant, agitation is consistent, chemicals are poured in and out quickly, it requires very little chemicals so you do one-shot processing economically (avoiding having to adjust times for developer depletion, keeping track of number of films processed, having to replenish, etc.), it is fairly free of mess (no pouring chemicals back in bottles, etc.), and takes little space.

I since found a deal on a used Jobo CPE-2 and bought the sheet film reel and drum kit. That's getting pricier, but it works like a charm!

[Raven Garrow]

I do film hangers exclusively. Only because this is the method I like. If you choose it as well, keep in mind that you can use single hangers, or quad hangers. My experience is this. In order to use the quads, it is next to impossible to find a container to submerge two hangers, and not use a lot of chemistry. Its a personal thing for me, the chemistry and the environement. If you choose the single ones, Calumet has Cesco 4x5 single tanks, and hangers. I couldn't find single hangers anywhere but Calumet. They are on back order. Its extremely frustrating waiting for them.

[Bob Salomon]

"Combi-plan inversion tank (leaked like crazy, took so long to pour chemicals in and out that times were hard to keep uniform), "

1: We stand behind our products. Did you contact us about a new tank that leaked so we could replace it? Or was this a used tank of uncertain age and heritage?

2: Timing is so simple. The clock starts when you start filling and ends when you stop, The fill and drain times are even. Especially if you popened the air vent when filling or draining.

[John Layton]

My approach might sound a little unusual.

For 5x7, I first presoak six negatives (with a few drops of photo-flo) in a single 8x10 tray, then transfer each neg, face up, into its own 5x7 tray (each with 10 ounces of developer)...six of these trays fit into a single 20x24 tray, which I then tip around to agitate all of the small trays at once for agitation cycles, before then transferring each negative into single 8x10 trays for the remaining steps.

The beauty of this approach is that it allows the negatives to effectively be processed "individually" and allows agitation to remain consistent from negative to negative during the development phase. I also feel that the "time of rest" between agitation cycles is more effective (and measurably consistent/adjustable) when compared to what is realized in a batch (tray) development scenario.

Furthermore...I can "fine tune" agitation for individual negatives within the same overall development cycle (by simply tipping small trays individually), given that I can corner-trim prior to pre-soak so I can identify the small trays (within the large one) where these "special" negatives end up.

Finally...before I employed the above process, I tested with six fresh (sacrificial) negatives, with freshly mixed developer (not plain water), with the lights on - to both observe agitation effectiveness and to verify that the negatives would not "float" to the surface between agitation cycles.

[Pere Casals]

flashback to a first post.

Beyond a flashback, Jim's pure wisdom.

I read this post some 3 years ago and since then I follow his recommendation, also I place the developer tray inside a light tight box wich is easy to do, so I can open lights during development. Thanks Jim.