Color Negative Film Processing Questions

[gwendolyn_white]

I'm going to head to the store sometime soon and I want a bit more information before going in about

what chemicals I should be looking at/should ask about etc.

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I want to learn how to develop color film at home (for many reasons) and from what I've read I'm fairly

confident I have what it takes (equipment wise) to do it fairly easily -- but what confuses me are all the

chemicals. I develop B&W film easily but there are obviously more chemicals involved in color film. I've

searched and searched and I think I get more confused the more I search so I thought I'd ask here.

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I keep coming across D-76 and E6 which, from what I read, are Kodak's black and white film developer

and color slide film developer; am I correct? What is the big difference between color slide film developer

and negative film developer?

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What <i>exactly</i> should I be looking for if I want to develop color negatives? I know I'll need

developer and fixer, but most of the things I see online are developer/replenisher (which I'm not sure what

that is), or fixer/stabilizer (again, not sure what that is or what it does). I also know that I'll need bleach

but is there a specific kind I need? I've also heard of "blix" which is apparently a combination of bleach and

fixer? Is that correct?

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Basically, if someone could give me a simple list of the chemicals I'll need to properly develop color

negatives, I'd greatly, greatly appreciate it. Any extra explanations of the chemicals would also be greatly

welcomed because I'm always open to more information. :-)

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Thank you in advance.

[gene_e._mccluney]

The Kodak offical C-41 process is:

 

C-41 Developer 3.25 minutes @ 100f,

C-41 Bleach 6 min.,

Water Wash 3 min.,

C-41 Fix 6 min.,

Water Wash 3 min.,

C-41 Final Rinse/Stabilizer 30 sec.

 

These are all specific C-41 process chemicals and you cannot substitute "generic" ones.

 

There are various modifications of this regimen primarily for automatic machines which

may speed up the processing time (as in 1 hour labs), or combine the bleach/fix into one

step.

 

In Kodak chemistry, it may be difficult to find the "kits" to process small quantity, and

many medium-sized Kodak chemicals are only available now in "replenisher" concentrates,

which to make working solutions have to be diluted and a "starter" added.

 

For your first attempts, it probably would be best for you to try and find an "amateur" kit

made by a vendor such as Tetenal or Patterson or such, if they are still available.

 

McCluney Photo

[neil_grant]

D-76 is ONE of Kodak's b/w film developers -it's NO use to you for developing colour negs.

E6 is the name for Kodak's entire process for slide film. It can be bought as a kit or the

individual chemicals can be bought seperately. It has nothing to do with processing colour

negs.

 

You need to buy a kit to process colour negs - it will contain colour dev,bleach,fix etc ie

everything in one box to do the job. If you buy the chemicals individually the usually come

in large volumes (like 5 litres) which you may find excessive.

[richard_cochran]

Yep, you need to get a kit of compatible C-41 chemicals made to work together. You typically don't "mix 'n match" color chemistry the way you do B&W, where you can use any developer with any (or no) stop, any fixer, and any (or no) wash aids.

<p>

One convenient way to start is a Tetenal Press kit. It's got three chemicals (Color developer, Blix, and Stabilizer) in powdered form, and in 1 liter quantities. It's good for low volume work. It comes with instructions. It's as easy as B&W, except that you run it at 100 degrees F, and the development is less forgiving of sloppy tolerances for times and temperatures.

[gwendolyn_white]

Ok, thanks guys. I think I'll just go and buy that Tetenal kit online and give it a go since most

websites don't sell the Kodak kit.

 

I appreciate all the replies!

[robert_martin5]

Temperature control is very critical when processing color film.

[jaime_kopchinski]

I can recommend the Tetenal C-41 kits as well. I started using it with limited experience processing film and even had good results then! I get the 5 liter kit, as its in liquid form and quite easy to mix just what you need. I got a jobo processor used locally and find it quite easy to maintain temp and timing.

 

I've been using it for over a year now and shoot alot more film now that I can process it myself, when I what. Cost it about $2-3/roll if I remember correctly.

 

Good Luck!

 

Jaime

[gene_e._mccluney]

Robert Martin , oct 26, 2006; 07:35 p.m. said:

"Temperature control is very critical when processing color film."

 

Yes it is. However, over the years there have been some brands of chemistry for C-41 that

have allowed you to process at lower temperature than the Kodak standard of 100f. I am

not knowledgeable about the Tetenal kit, but it may be one of those.

 

McCluney Photo

[terence_spross1]

It isn't that difficult to maintain 100 degrees F.

 

1. Make sure you have an accurate thermometer. Fortunatly, fever thermometers are inexpensive, accurate and cover this narrow temperature range. You may choose to use those to check the accuracy of a darkroom thermometer. I found that 3 digital fever thermometers of different brands all agree that when my old dial Patterson thermometer says 101.5 it is actually 100.0 degrees. So I just regulate the temp so my patterson lies at 101.5

 

2. You can spend $$$ on a regulated processor. but to get started all you need is a plastic dishpan into which you can run water that you have adjusted to 100 degrees. And some way to cover this so that you can stabilise the tank temperature.

 

3. Practice with plain water in the same type of cantainers you will hold your chemicals in. Keep your processing tank reasonably submersed.

 

4. After loading your film, stabilize the temperature of the tank, and the air in it. I used to pre-soak the film in water that was at temperature; but this is not recommended for a number of reasons. Just keep the tank mostly submerged without risking pan water from entering into it. Some tanks have watertight caps and then you don't have to be that careful.

 

5. Use a tank that can empty and refill rapidly. I used to have a have a 1950s plastic tank that wasn't suitable for color as it took almost 20 seconds to empty and refill!

 

6. The developer and Blix should be at 100 degrees F before you start.

 

7. Once the Blix is in the tank you can then allow the temperature to drift a little with no affect.

 

8. Don't switch your thermometer from the Blix back to the developer container without completely washing it first!