Red TMAX (expired?)

Hi, I encounted an interesting problem. I developed a roll of

tmax-100. I know it is expired. (8/2003). I shot it anyway. Now the

negative came out kind redish. the images are still clear though. I

remember before I put developer in i put water(same temperature) in

for a while (30-60 sec.) to pre-wet the film. And everytime I pour

solution out from the tank, it's kinda redish too.

 

Is this because the film is expired? Anyone developed expired film

before??

O, btw, the developer is Kodak Microdol X 1+3. I did 21 min under 68 F.

Ok this is what it look like after I scanned in as a color positive film.

That is a dye added to the film. It's a Tmax thing, you need to fix it longer and make sure that your fix is still good. It does not have to do with the age of the film.

 

If you have already cut the film, I'd use a paper dev. tray filled with fresh fix. Drop the strips in for a few more minutes then rewash and redry. The purple should disapear.

Dear D,

 

The color is the anti-halation layer. After proper fixing (T-Max uses fixer up faster per the Kodak data sheet), hypo clearing agent aids not only in clearing the excess fixer, it also helps clear the anti-halation layer.

 

Neal Wydra

Do i have to do it as soon as possible?

The fixer I use is Kodak fixer. It says 2-5 minutes on the package. I did it for like 3.5 minutes. How long it's supposed to take?

The fixer is almost new since I only used it once for 11 frames. Now the fixer is a little bit pinkish, should I continue to use it or throw it away?

 

Last time I was using Ilford HP5+ and everything was ok.

 

Thanks a lot!

 

-D

I use Kodak fixer closer to ten minutes. Also, I wash twice with a good shakin' before I use HCA for about ten minutes as well. This expells lots of pink from the tank and is noticable from the first to the second. After that, two washes for 10 minutes each should have no more pink pouring out of the tank. I takes a bit to get frid of the pink, unlike HP5 which gets it killed in the fixer.

Yes, you should refix as soon as possible -- based on your scan and the time you gave, it appears your film is significantly underfixed, and prolonged exposure to light will result in permanent fogging of the slightly milky area (this may have already happened, in fact). The fixer you're using is fine, but I always give the T-Max films at least 6 minutes in rapid fixers like what you have, sometimes up to 10 minutes. You won't hurt the negatives with more fixing, up to at least a half hour, as long as you wash them correctly afterward, but leaving them incompletely fixed is a guarantee that they'll deteriorate over time -- possibly as little as a few days, if the underfixing is severe.

T-MAX films really require a rapid fixer, like Kodak Rapid Fixer or Ilford Rapid Fixer. You can fix them in the ordinary hypo fixers like Kodak Fixer (the powder stuff), Kodafix, or the like, but it takes 5-10 minutes, and it exhausts the fixer really rapidly. Also, the non-rapid fixer has a hard time clearing the anti-halation and sensitizing dyes.

The other posters are absolutely correct that your first step should be to refix the film. However, fixing T-Max for the recommended time (6-10 minutes in Kodak Fixer) to clear the emulsion of undeveloped silver may not be enough to completely remove the anti-halation dye. But soaking the film in hypo-clearing agent should remove any remaining pink dye.

Hi,

 

I did what pros here suggested-- re-fixed it. Now it's much better. I did 22 minutes since my eyes looked everything purple when I was doing it. I am not sure overdoing the fix hurts the film or not? Do you guys have any idea? Besides, how can I tell if the fixer is still reusable or not? I hope someone will still follow-up on this post. Thanks.

 

-D

A liter of film strength fixer working solution is rated by the manufacturers as good for 20 to 24 films, IIRC, though there is some evidence to suggest that figure may be optimistic, especially with T-Max or Delta films (due to idodide buildup in the fixer, which is also the reason these films take longer to fix). Much longer life and better fixing can be obtained with a two-bath fixing process, in which each bath is used (half the normal fixing time in each) for 20 films, then Fixer 2 becomes Fixer 1 and fresh fixer is mixed for Fixer 2; after 5 cycles, both are replaced with fresh (also due to iodide buildup, which carries over into the second fix).

 

Fixing times of up to a half hour generally won't hurt films (with the possible exception of document films like Tech Pan or microfilm stocks, where the silver grains are extremely small and all the same size). Rapid fixer in acidic solution does have some bleaching action, but the bleaching is very, very slow at film strength. In general, as part of your regular developing routine, you may wish to implement a "clearing test" -- with fresh fixer, drop a piece of undeveloped film leader into a container of fixer and agitate (in the light); start a timer when you drop in the film, and stop when the film has cleared (one way to be sure when the film is fully cleared is to put a drop of fixer on the film and wait 30 seconds before dropping the film into the container; when you can no longer tell the spot from the drop apart from the rest of the leader, it's cleared). Fix for twice (for conventional films) to three times (for T-grain and Delta) the clearing time, and when the clearing time doubles from that of fresh fixer, recycle the fixer and mix fresh.

 

Don't put exhausted fixer down the drain; it contains toxic levels of dissolved silver. Instead, make arrangements with a photo lab, where they can add it to their silver recovery system and dispose of the residue appropriately (if you develop a huge amount of film, it may become economical to acquire or make a silver recovery system of your own, but few of us find that sensible at today's silver prices).

Hello, I discovered a small trick by mistake. To make a long story short, after you fix (or re-fix) it, just leave them in water for a while, like 20 minutes. A lot of redness/purpleness will come off. Then perma wash. good luck.