negatives too contrasty. Is there a Sherlock Holmes out there?

<p>In <strong>America I print </strong>BW in the darkroom. In <strong>Israel I scan</strong> BW (negative) on a Microtek 120ff or Epson V700 -I have no darkroom in Israel. In <strong>America I process </strong>Ilford Delta and TriX with Kodak D76, Kodak stop bath and Kodak fixer (non hardener -discontinued now). In <strong>Israel I process </strong>film with Kodak chemicals above or Tmax developer and Tetenal fixer <strong>or</strong> I send the film out to local labs (I've tried 2 labs) to be processed, <strong>or</strong> I send the film back to America and it is processed by (Douglas Photographic Wichita Kansas) and returned. My problem arises in Israel as follows: When I scan film processed in Israel (processed by me or 1 of 2 labs) the scans are too contrasty (and sometimes too grainy) and often unusable -whites wash out and darks go so black that there is no detail. When I scan negatives processed by Douglas Photographic in America the images are fine; they scan fine -about like a dark room print (if a scanner can ever be like a dark room print). I have sent tens and tens of rolls to Douglas Photographic at great cost and never a problem! In short; <strong>Process BW in America scans are fine. Process BW in Israel scans are too contrasty</strong>. In Israel I have used tap water, bottled water and demineralised water (like for your steam iron) and the result are the same. I've never seen distilled water in Israel. My question is: If the discrepancy is not in the water then where can it be? By the way; color film processed in an Israli lab is fine, just fine. So now I shoot color film, scan and desaturate in PS but of course can never make a BW archival darkroom print from that negative.</p>

<p>Put 2 of the negatives side by side One from American processing and one from Israeli processing. What difference do you see?</p>

<p>What developer is Douglas using? A number of pro labs use Xtol in a replenished tank system, not D76. Demineralized water should be fine, just keep your temps under control. Also how accurate is your thermometer? A couple of degrees makes a difference in density, grain and contrast.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>The most likely culprit is temperature.</p>

<p>Meir, It is a bit like comparing apples and oranges, isn't it? I am not a fan of TMax developer, in general, and with Delta films in particular. If temp is around 68/20 degrees, AND the exposure seems correct, except for contrast problems, then I would try diluting the developer and extending the development time. Check out the MDC to see if TMax developer has a more diluted recommendation.</p>

<p>You say that in Israel, "or the Kodak chemicals above," does that include D76? Because that would lead me to conclude there is something different going on with your environment in Israel. Temperature or water could be the culprits, or contamination of the developer by other chemicals. Have you tried using distilled or bottled water, or do you use tap water?</p>

<p>Meir I question also, what exact temerature you're operating at. I too don't care much for TMAX developer, honestly I haven't used it in more than 10 years. I do like HC110 a lot and I do use Ilford films and some Delta, you might want to try the HC110 and maybe adjust your dilutions to suit your situation. Again I realize it's more testing and trial, but it might be worth it to give it a go.</p>

<p> When you process yourself in Israel using the 'same' Kodak chemicals as you use in America,are those chemicals purchased in Israel? What differences are there between Kodak chemicals sold in America & those sold in Israel? Are the ones in America fresher? How long is such a low turn over item as darkroom chemicals typically stored in Israel? Israel can be a very hot place much of it bring below sea level,what are the storage conditions like? That is beyond your control. You're going to have to experiment and come up with a new time/temperature combination that will produce negatives that scan well when developed with Kodak chemicals available in Israel. I think you'll have to do it yourself. Forgot the Israeli lab.</p>

<p>First, disregard what the Israeli lab is doing - unless you know exactly what they're doing; as in following the film manufacturer's direction exactly. They could be using some other brand of chemicals or even mixing their own or their lab techs are inexperienced or ... whatever.</p>

<p>Disregard what Douglas does - you have no control over what they do and since you like the results we'll assume they are following the film manufacturer's instructions on processing.</p>

<p>So, let's concentrate on what <em>you</em> can control: your home processing and your technique.</p>

<p>So, what makes a negative have too much contrast when processing (off of the top of my head):<br /> 1. Temperature as others have mentioned.<br /> 2. Chemicals not mixed correctly.<br /> 3. Contaminated or old chemicals will give sporadic results.<br /> You're using TMax? Once you open it, the concentrate's useful (reliable) life is 6 months. It'll start turning a yellow brown.<br /> Are you using it one shot or mixing a batch and re-using it? Are you following the development times for re-use?</p>

<p>You didn't mention how large is your sample. Are you comparing dozens of rolls or just a few?<br /> Also, are you comparing shots taken at the same time of day, same location, same weather, same everything else?</p>

<p>If it's just a few rolls, did you shoot some early morning and some later? And was it the early morning shots that were precessed in Israel?</p>

<p>Let's state some obvious things that may jog your memory about capture:<br /> Did you shoot some rolls with a filter and forget which ones they were? Use different lenses?<br /> Are you comparing shots scanned with the same scanner and same settings?</p>

<p>Unless <em>all</em> the conditions during capture are <em>identical</em>, I wouldn't blame processing just yet.</p>

<p>Several folks mentioned temperature and that was my first thought when I read your post. That is a likely culprit, and I think the key in understanding the problem lies in evaluating negatives that <em>you</em> have developed, as Dave B. suggests.</p>

<p>You indicate that even the films you process in Israel are too contrasty, but what about the ones you have processed in the US? Are these too contrasty as well?</p>

<ol>

<li>If yes, then this suggests that you are probably overdeveloping (assuming variables like developer, developer concentration and scanning parameters are more or less the same)</li>

<li>If not, then this suggests that a key variable is significantly different. This could be a number of things, including temperature, but it could also be agitation.</li>

</ol>

<p>Perhaps if you could post some examples, we might be able to give further insight.</p>

<p>On the subject of temperature, are you using the same thermometer thoughout? Also, if you've got issues with contrast you should also check the temperature of the dev when it's discarded after the process.</p>

<p>Too-contrasty negatives are usually due to excessive development, either developing too long, at a temperature that's too high, or both.</p>

<p>Unfortunately that's fairly common with commercial labs. That's the main reason I returned to processing my own b&w film about 15 years ago. From around 1976-1980 and 1985-1995 I didn't shoot much b&w film and when I did I'd have a local pro lab develop and print the stuff. It was almost always too contrasty, compared with my own darkroom work.</p>

<p>The only solutions I can think of are:</p>

<ul>

<li>Do your own developing.</li>

<li>Ask the lab to give your film about 10%-25% less development than they usually do.</li>

<li>If that fails, find a more cooperative lab that will actually listen to customers.</li>

</ul>

<p>For most 35mm and medium format, I'd rather have negatives that are a little too flat or lacking in contrast rather than too contrasty. If scanning, it's easier to scan "thinner" negatives, and the contrast can be tweaked in digital post processing. If doing conventional enlargements, cranking up the magenta filter with variable contrast paper usually works well enough.</p>

<p>Also, soaking the negatives in selenium toner can boost contrast a little, and is a nearly foolproof technique with little risk. The treatment for trying to reduce excessively contrasty negatives is much trickier.</p>