What caused this flaw in a Tri-X neg? (scans included)

Hello All--

 

I have just started playing with Tri-X and developed a couple of

rolls the other night (HC-110, 1:35, 80 degrees F, 4.5 minutes),

which came out very nice but one frame has a flaw. Links to the full

frame and a detail scan are below.

 

full frame:

 

http://www.photo.net/photo/2567661

 

detail scan showing flaw in negative:

 

http://www.photo.net/photo/2567666

 

Could this be temperature related? In the summer, I can't get cold

faucet water, so to get colder would have to bring down jugs from

the fridge. Any other theories?

It looks to me like nothing more than a water-mark. I occasionally get something like that due to lime in the water. Is it on the base or the emulsion side? It certainly isn't temperature related. What wetting agent do you use?

Agree with Chris, not water related. See if the negative is bent at that point and that the emulsion is intact.

You might have creased the film when loading onto the reel.

 

jmp

Hmm, Chris seems to says it's a water mark, and Oskar says he

agrees that it's not water related. I must be misunderstanding someone.

<p>

Anyway, it sure looks like a water mark to me. Look carefully

at both sides of the negative in bright light. I'm guessing

you'll see the light colored mineral deposit where the water

drop dried. The fix is to re-wash the negative.

<p>

To avoid water marks, always do your final wash step in distilled

water with a tiny bit of photo-flo.

Firstly, I apologise for the unrelated question, but I wonder why you have used HC110 at such a high temperature. I use HC110 at 24C, which gives a development time for Tri-X of 5.5 minutes. And even that seems short to me...as far as the risk of uneven development goes.

 

Just curious.

Good call folks. I rewashed in distilled water and the mark is gone.

 

David, as I said in the original post, my home will not give me cold water in the summer. I will get down to 77F some nights, but often 80F is as cold as I get. It has been suggested that I use refrigerated distilled water, but I only very rarely have problems. I just dillute until I get a workable time.

 

Someone also asked what drying agent I used; it is photoflo.

 

Thanks all!

If you want to get your developer down to a more manageable temperature you can use the ice method. Put three average size ice cubes into a small zip-loc bag and add some water. Zip up the bag and dip one corner into the developer. In a short time you will get down to the temperature you need. When you do, rinse off the outside of the bag, empty it and throw it away. Distilled water is most helpful when mixing up the dilution you need for the developer and, as mentioned above, when you do the final rinse with wetting agent.

 

Jeff Adler

The streak is one thing, but I think I see fine reticulation in other areas. I don't know why the pattern should be there. It is possibly caused by rapid changes in temperature of wet film. Even though your water is probably not the cause of that, during drying the temperature at the surface of the film can drop due to evaporative cooling. Squeegee as much water off (gently) as you can and use warm air to dry the film. I use a small hair dryer summer an winter.

 

Fine reticulation often looks like grain in a print.

When the mineral content and sediment in our rural well water exceeded the ability of a water softener and filter to handle, and I grew tired of wrestling with temperature variations, I switched to bottled distilled water for all of my film processing steps, from mixing chemistry to rinsing (I use the Ilford archival method to save on water).

 

No more problems with water marks and even when the temperature in the house approaches 80F at least I'm not at the mercy of fluctuating tap water temperatures.

 

If I couldn't routinely get the temperature in my darkroom below 80F (which was indeed a problem in past summers before I found a competent a/c repairman), I'd consider looking for a small cooler that could be adjusted just enough to get my chemistry within the desired range. I find the ice water method too inconsistent - I'm constantly measuring the water, adding or removing ice cubes. It's a PITA.

 

Instead I'd get a cooler large enough to accomodate all my chemistry and water for a single session. Put reusable cooling packs (the kind that can be frozen or chilled and used either for injuries or in place of ice for a beer cooler) in the bottom. Cover that with some kind of grate to keep the chemistry and water bottles from direct contact with the frozen or chilled packs. Let the coolth circulate around the container without direct contact, sort of like a makeshift open cooler still seen in some grocery stores.

I have my old dorm fridge in the garage; maybe I should bring it out.