joshua_son

Im using illford bw IV multigrade rc deluxe paper. No filters. It is glossed on one side and not the other so im pretty positive the glossed side is the right side of the paper to point the enlarger at. I am also using dektol 1:2. I guess I will just have to acxept the long times as a quirk of this enlarger until I can get a nicer one

Ok Noel, thanks for the advice. Does exposure time have more affect on the developing than the developer itself? If I expose the paper for a minute and a half I get a decent exposure with some negatives. Others have needed longer than that, I see people using times of just 20-30 seconds and it leads me to believe that A. They have a brighter bulb in their enlarger thus leading to shorter exposure times, or B. They are getting much more out of the developer than I am. I leave it in the dektol for about 3-4 minutes usually. By exposing the negative at half box speed do you mean in camera when actually taking the shot to treat iso 400 film as if it is 200? I did notice that in some instances on this neopan roll that shots which should have been well exposed came out at very thin negatives. And my developing time was fight on the dot. Whereas the tmax I developed at iso 400 came out much better. Some of the neopans was good but others where pretty much unsalvageably thin. I am using 8x10 papers but im about to buy a box of 5x7 once I can get a hundred sheets so cheaply. I plan on actually shooting film for some portraits and weddings alongside my digital so I will be in the blackroom alot practicing.

I have it hooked directly to a timer, I set a time and it comes on and exposes it for that long. I assume the shiny side of the paper is the one I am supposed to be exposing. The brand of my enlarger is hansa. Its not super expensive. Just a basic rig

Well I got a second roll developed. Some neopan 400. Now im trying to figure out my paper exposure times. It seems like alot of people only expose for 12 to 30 seconds? When I did strip test with the aperture set to f8 it took about a minute and 45 seconds to get a good exposure. How much does does your developer affecf the print? Im using dektol 1:2

Ok so I checked all my developer and the problem was some fixer left in the tank. Went through a roll today at the park and it developed :) my first roll of film ever. And no I did not squeal like a school girl...well a little. I let them dry out with little issue then it was to the enlarger with them. I tinkered around with times and such a little but the one thing I keep noticing is white spots on the photos. They correspond with little hard dots on the negative. I assume that this is due to my having mishandled the film in some way. Anyone know where I screwed up? Sorry to keep asking questions but im young and inexperienced.<div></div>

Thats probably what happened then. I didn't clean it out not thinking about it. Ill try again with another roll tonight. Good thing I put the used chemical in a separate bottle.

Oops sorry about the typo. It was hp5. I ruined that roll by improperly loading the reel. (Dont ask). The roll that came out completely clear was kodak trix400. I just checked my xtol from the same bottle like you suggested ( I stored it in 5 1 liter bottles) and it definitely is still alive and well. I also checked the shutter on my ae1 to make sure that it is working and it is working normally. When winding I get the squeal but other than that all is well. I know I didnt use fixer first. I have my fixer in a gallon jug and my xtol in 1 liter bottles. The only way fixer was in there was if some was still in the tank from my last roll I developed a few minutes beforehand. I didnt rinse it out but had dumped it. Could the small amount of kodafix in the tank from the previous roll kill the xtol before it could develop the new one? If so I think I have my answer.....stupid me lol.

John, If the tank still had a little fixer left in it from the last roll of film would that have killed it? I have all my bottles very clearly marked so I didn't mess up there. But I don't think I rinsed the tank out as it didn't come to mind...im using the liquid kodafix diluted to film solution. I understand if I made a stupid mistake as its my first time. Just want to get it right for the next roll. The one im now afraid to develop has some shots from a recent trip to Mexico. I might put off developing it and shoot a few rolls of another film to practice on..

No markings at all. There is one section about 3 or 4 inches long on one end that is pretty dark then on the other end about 8 or 9 inches that is darker than the rest of the film but not as dark as the three inches at the other end. Hopefully that makes sense.

<p>Hello.</p> <p>I just recently got into film shooting. Im from a small town and nobody I know shoots film or ever has before except for the grouchy owner of the local photo shop. I went for bw film in a canon ae1 since I already had lenses for the fd system. I shot my first 2 rolls of film (illford hp4 iso 400 and trix400 pushed to 1600) and went to develop them tonight. I just finished mixing my xtol and diluting my stop bath and fixer all from kodak. I majorly screwed up the development on the hp5 (loaded the reel wrong) but when I went to develop the roll of trix400 it came out totally blank! I used xtol 1:1 and followed kodaks recommended 12 minute development time for film pushed to 1600. I am absolutely positive that my shutter works, I didn't accidentally use fixer first, amd my developer should have been 20 degrees c. It has me really confused and im wondering what it could be? Surely the developer couldnt have died within an hour of mixing it? I put it in 5 1 liter pet bottles. </p> <p>Really hope some more experienced individuals can help me out with this. If I left out any important info let me know. I did this all in a dark room lit only by a safety light. Maybe I left the fixer in too long?</p>