Best films to use with Rodinal?

<p>OK Nicholas, I'll add that to my final selection list. Aaahhh, the Olympus 35RC... I need to get hold of one of those.</p>

<p>Rodinal is my favorite all time developer! Contrary to popular opinion, you <strong>can </strong> develop 400 speed films with it. You may lose some speed, but the current version of Tri-X works at 400 ISO for me and has a really cool sharp look to it that I like.<br>

TMAX 100, Fuji ACROS, and all the Fomapan films work well in Rodinal. In fact the FOMAPAN films seem particularly suited and produce amazing mid tones. Yes, Rodinal lasts for decades either opened or unopened.</p><div></div>

<p>(Coming in late but . . . )</p>

<p>If I had to choose a single, long-lasting film developer to use with 35mm film, it would definitely be HC-110, not Rodinal. HC-110 is much more of an 'all-around' developer.</p>

<p>But if you really want Rodinal, I find it most useful (for 35mm at least) for the slower, super-high-resolution, fine-grain films like T-Max 100 and Delta 100. For best results with those combos, you have to expose the film at about EI 50 or 64 instead of 100, but if you do, and develop in Rodinal 1+50 or so, you can get some really nice results.</p>

 

<p>Thanks Dave, in that case Rodinal is no good for me. When shooting to get the utmost quality I'll be using my 5D2. I know it sounds stupid but I will be shooting film mostly for pleasure, not for the results. I imagine Tri-X shot at 400 will be my main film although Delta 3200 shot at 3200 is also one of my vices.</p>

<p>The only film that did not work well for me in Rodinal was the old TMY. I have not tried TMY-2 in Rodinal.<br>

HP5 shot at e.i. 800 and developed in Rodinal 1+25 is just great.<br>

Another urban legend is that Rodinal does not work well with "modern" films. I have found it to work well with TMY and Delta 100. I shoot these at e.i. 160.</p>

<p>If you want to shoot Tri-X and Delta 3200, for your own pleasure, then the developer to use is is DD-X. It is one of the few developers that makes sense for Delta 3200 at 3200, and it also produces (IMO) beautiful results with Tri-X. It lasts reasonably long (never had a failure, but never kept a bottle around for years, and wouldn't expect it to last quite as well as Rodinal or the HC-110 syrup). The only downside is price, but if you shoot a moderate amount for pleasure, that shouldn't be a huge concern.</p>

 

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<p>When shooting to get the utmost quality I'll be using my 5D2. I know it sounds stupid but I will be shooting film mostly for pleasure, not for the results.</p>

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<p>Well, since you put it that way...why not just shoot C-41 B&W and process at the local drugstore? You can get some excellent results using that combination. <br>

Rodinal is an incredibly versatile developer; don't let people tell you that it cannot deliver fine grain. Grain is primarily a property of the film emulsion, NOT the developer. Rodinal has NO silver solvents like D-76, DD-X, etc. So you get whatever unique grain is part of the film. Plus you can dilute this stuff 1;100 or more for stand development which gives amazing tones. Ilford DD-X is wonderful stuff, but expensive and only gives you enough developer for maybe 8-10 rolls of film. I have developed two 100' bulk rolls of film using about 2/3 a bottle of Rodinal. You simply won't find a better developer for economy and preserving the unique grain structure of film. If that's not what you want then shoot the monochrome C-41 emulsions which are very fine grained and scan beautifully.</p>

<p>Thanks Russ,</p>

<p>I know this also sounds stupid but I enjoy the actual process of developing a film. That will also be part of the pleasure. But I have also had excellent results shooting XP2 and getting Ilford to develop and print it. I've just found a place selling pre-paid Ilford mailers for £8.99 each (USD 14.40). That includes postage paid both ways and a set of 36 beautiful 6x4 prints on REAL black and white paper with a lovely white border. Hmm, decisions, decisions...</p>

<p>DD-X isn't for me. I'll probably only develop a couple of rolls and then end up having to throw the rest away. Still looking at HC-110 as my main option.</p>

<p>IMO,Tri-X and other films will lose shadow detail in the long lasting developers Rodinal and HC-110 compared to D-76.<br>

In DD-X or Xtol there will be more shadow detail than with D-76,but unless you take special precautions like keeping them in full sealed bottles or topping up with inert gas they will oxidize.<br>

That is the compromise with long lasting developers.</p>