HP5 Plus & Perceptol

[ed_hurst]

I have recently been using a lot of HP5 Plus, having previously been

a devotee of Delta 400. Although the grain is slightly bigger on the

HP5 Plus, I am liking the tones and greater latitude.

 

Quick question: I have been using HP5 Plus with ID-11 (1+1), and

been getting good results. My thoughts now move towards the

possibility of using Perceptol - in the hope of getting finer grain.

I have always thought that Perceptol is good for fine grain - at the

cost of losing a little film speed. With Delta 400, I would often go

down to EI 250 or EI 320 with Perceptol. However, the slowest EI for

HP5 Plus and Perceptol for which I can find dev times is 400. Is

this because the film is at its best with Perceptol at that speed (in

other words, there is no speed loss)? Or would I be better off using

this combination at less than EI 400 - in which case, does anyone

have any suggested times & dilutions?

 

It just struck me as strange for Ilford not to quote times for under

EI 400 for an ISO 400 film with a developer that supposedly loses

some film speed!

 

Many thanks,

 

Ed Hurst

[m0002a]

When you use a developer that produces very fine grain, it is because developer causes some dissolving and/or re-plating of the grains. This creates an effect that many think is a little "mushy" which decreases sharpness (acutance).

 

If you want somewhat finer grain, you could use ID-11 undiluted and the more concentrated solution of sodium sulfite that is in ID-11 will have more of a solvent effect on the grains. But if 1+1 looks good, I would stick with that.

[chris_waller]

I rate HP5 at 160 ASA and dev in Perceptol, 1+3, 20 C, 13 minutes. I like the subtle rendering of the highlights. I find it particularly good for portraits and landscapes. By the way, I use condenser head enlargers so for diffuser heads a time of 15-16 minutes would be advised.

[gonzalo_echeverria]

I thought i'd share my journey with panf 50 and perceptol to encourage you persist with perceptol.

i'm currently shooting panf at ei100 and push processing with perceptol with success. i'm using 90ml of stock mixed with water to make 260 ml of diluted solution (1:2.5ish??) 20deg cent. for 25 min. 1 minute of agitation then half inversions for 10 sec/per minute. results are pretty sharp ( definetely up there with apx 100 / rodinal 1:100!)

[alessandro serrao]

Just yesterday I've souped a roll of Hp5+ rated variably at 250-320 and 400, just to see the differences.

My developer is Ilford Perceptol used full strenght @ 20°C for 11 minutes (as per Ilford instructions, including agitation), stop for 30 seconds (acetic acid solution), fix for twice the clearing time (happens to be 4 minutes), h.c.a. for 4 minutes, wash (as Ilford recommends) and w.a. for 1 minute (1:200 diluition).

The negatives came out fine, as the first impression.

Hopefully today I'll make some prints and even a proof one.

[ellis_jordan]

Mark: When you use a developer that produces very fine grain, it is because developer causes some dissolving and/or re-plating of the grains.

 

Where does this come from?