Problem with C41 developing

Hi there,

 

I recently bought a Tetenal colourtec c41 kit, and developed my first rolls of c41 with great success. I can keep temperature stable with some diy solutions and using my usual tank.

However on this last roll I got some bars on top and on bottom of frame like can be seen here:

 

Untitled by Sérgio Moura, on Flickr

 

Can someone please help me identify what got wrong here? Do not want to repeat this error/problem..

 

Many thanks!

Sergio

Presoak you film before you develop. It softens the gel so it gets more evenly absorbable for the developer. I get it now and then and it is the cure for me.

Presoak you film before you develop. It softens the gel so it gets more evenly absorbable for the developer. I get it now and then and it is the cure for me.

This 'presoak' thing has been puzzling me for a while now. How does one do it? Pour water in dev tank with loaded film and then pour it out? Or is it something more elaborate?

Thats basicly it. I leave it soaking for 30s to a minute. It allows the gel to swell and be able to absorb the developers better. Some people use a drop of photoflo in addition, but I find just the water to suffice.

hmmm so If I presoak in water I wont get these nasty marks? :)

I don't think pre-soak is the problem or the solution.

 

The marks look to me like the film was not fully or properly in contact with chemistry. Possibly from improper chemical volume in the tank (low probability) or that the film was touching the tank, or the reel, or the film was doubled on itself somehow. Or a light leak in the camera or developing equipment.

 

It seems as if the marks are in the direction of film travel. Is this correct? Was a focal plane shutter used? If so, are the marks in the direction of the focal plane shutter?

 

Which camera was used? What was the equipment used to process the film?

Orange bars would look blue on the film, and that sounds like damp, under-dried film to me.

 

Did you scan the film quickly after processing by any chance? If so, then letting it thoroughly dry should cure the problem.

 

If there was a lighter density difference, then I'd have suspected insufficient bleach-fixing.

 

If it's not damp film, or loading into a damp reel, then insufficient agitation is my next suspect in line.

Oh well, I used a Graflex with 6x6 back, but this doesnt look light leak to me. If I had to guess, I would say too little agitation, because this only shows on top and bottom of the frames, maybe the contact with the plastic reel has a negative effect on the developing process?

The thing is, I am developing very fast at 38C so, there's a limit to agitation when doing this by hand, but I might have relaxed a bit too much doing only one inversion each 30 secs.

Could this be the problem? About pre-soaking, I didnt count the time, but I did "wash" film with warm water before developing.

Orange bars would look blue on the film, and that sounds like damp, under-dried film to me.

 

Did you scan the film quickly after processing by any chance? If so, then letting it thoroughly dry should cure the problem.

 

If there was a lighter density difference, then I'd have suspected insufficient bleach-fixing.

 

If it's not damp film, or loading into a damp reel, then insufficient agitation is my next suspect in line.

 

 

Oh, no I scanned 3 days after developing...

C-41 is supposed to have continuous agitation. I used a Jobo CPE-2 rotary processor and never had an issue.

 

My advice would be to buy a rotary base for your tank - motorised or manual. Strict time and temperature control, well maintained chemistry and absolute consistency is the key to good colour processing.

1 inversion every 30 seconds is fine.

 

What reel and tank were used?

 

Was a leaf shutter or focal plane shutter used?

I think the developing stage went OK however, I think the fixer stage went array. Re-fix and re-wash the film and I think all be OK. Fix time is twice the clear time. Swish a piece of undeveloped film in the fixer solution. In room light, watch it change from opaque to transparent. Fix time is twice the time it takes to clear. I think the rims of developing reel shielded the film from complete fixation. You can safely re-fix in the C-41 fixer or you can use any black & white fixer tor this task. After the re-fix, wash and if you can, re-stabilize. If no stabilizer, that's OK, modern films will be OK. The stabilizer is a common rinse agent like PhotoFlow with an added biocide. The biocide reduces the odds that bacteria and fungus will lunch on the image.

I think the developing stage went OK however, I think the fixer stage went array. Re-fix and re-wash the film and I think all be OK. Fix time is twice the clear time. Swish a piece of undeveloped film in the fixer solution. In room light, watch it change from opaque to transparent. Fix time is twice the time it takes to clear. I think the rims of developing reel shielded the film from complete fixation. You can safely re-fix in the C-41 fixer or you can use any black & white fixer tor this task. After the re-fix, wash and if you can, re-stabilize. If no stabilizer, that's OK, modern films will be OK. The stabilizer is a common rinse agent like PhotoFlow with an added biocide. The biocide reduces the odds that bacteria and fungus will lunch on the image.

 

Great piece of advice. I will try later today to fix some more time a see how it goes :)

C-41 is supposed to have continuous agitation. I used a Jobo CPE-2 rotary processor and never had an issue.

 

My advice would be to buy a rotary base for your tank - motorised or manual. Strict time and temperature control, well maintained chemistry and absolute consistency is the key to good colour processing.

 

a JOBO would be great, but they are quite expensive... :(

1 inversion every 30 seconds is fine.

 

What reel and tank were used?

 

Was a leaf shutter or focal plane shutter used?

 

Leaf shutter, I do not think the problem might be on the exposure...

C-41 is supposed to have continuous agitation.

 

Actually, no. The overall rate is what counts. The speed of rotary machines is adjusted to give proper overall agitation continuously but the same result can be accomplished with intermittent agitation. I use small tanks and invert once every 10 seconds and get in-spec results as measured with my densitometer. One should run tests with his/her particular developing technique for best results.

Hi - sorry to add onto this thread but I too am having issues with my C41, I seem to be getting these streaks and I am wondering having read the responses above of this is a development or a fixing issue? I have developed this film at 30 degrees for 7:40 with a couple of inversions every 30 seconds.

 

Any suggestions welcome..

 

I tried to fix some more the negative with no success, so I guess the problem was before fixing.

Meanwhile yesterday I developed 2 more rolls with great success. I just kept more frequent agitation. Maybe that was it, maybe not.