marc_schmidtmayer Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Hi all,Some time ago, I did buy a lot film rolls (35mm). But almost all of a different brand/type/iso. This to try them out ...So, you all said it was better to stick to one type of film and 'get to know' it ... and 'get control over' it ...Now, I decided to go for the DELTA 100 and DELTA 400. My question ... can the people who have experience with these films help me out ? Can you tell me which developer and ISO works best with these films ? Please don't answer that the ISO depends on the equipment, etc ... That's something I've read a lot of times and I'm 'aware' of ... What I need is some information from where I can 'start' ... Thanks !Marc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pascal_miele Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Try the Microphen with the nominal ISO and look at the ilford.com website for times. datasheet for films and dev are very good ont the ilford website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_goldfarb Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 They are really different films. I quite like Delta 400, but when I want a slower fine grained modern film, I use T-Max 100. Delta 400 looks great at EI 200 in Perceptol stock, 12 min., 68 deg. F., agitating for about 5 sec. every minute. If you want more speed with only a little more grain and contrast, try it at EI 400 in D-76 (1+1), 14 min., same temp. and agitation scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_cook1 Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Excellent choices. I think you will enjoy working with these films. The definitive answers to your two questions can be read on pages two and three of this Ilford pdf: http://www.ilford.com/html/us_english/pdf/100_Delta.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerald_widen Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 I've been using Delta 400 rated @400 with D-76 1+1 as recommended above with excellent results. Same 14 minutes at 68f. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bleck Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Personally, I think it's criminal to process 35mm Delta 400 in anything other than XTOL... but that's just my preference :)<br> Everyone has there own ideas as to what looks good, but like I said, Delta 400 in XTOL is just very smooth and grainless (for a 400 film), and I find it to be a great combo. All of this work that I did at Eastern State Penitentiary was shot on 35mm Delta 400, processed in XTOL 1:1.<br> <br> <a href="http://www.grantheffernan.com/pics/photoessays/esp/index.html">Eastern State Pen</a> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
achilles Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Great images Grant. After admiring your images I have to try XTOL, but I've been quite happy with DDX so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry_kenstler Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 Marc, I've had good luck with all of the Delta films in Xtol, diluted either 1:1 or 1:2. Some developers will give you a greater accutance effect and others smoother grain. I have yet to find a developer that does a better job overall (speed, gradation, fineness of grain, and sharpness) than Xtol. Some may prefer DD-X--certainly Ilford does-- but it is considerably more expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth_harper Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 As stated before go to www.Ilford.com As for ISO, I tend to set it to the rating the film manufacturer recommends, and then adjust my dev time to suit. I'd use Ilfosol S with the two films you mention, particulary the 400. Whenever I use a new film or deveolper I always bracket the first few rolls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m0002a Posted October 27, 2003 Share Posted October 27, 2003 I have also used XTOL 1:1 and 1:2 on Delta 100 with excellent results. Check out the Kodak XTOL tech pub on their web site for starting development times. If you use a condenser enlarger, you might need to cut development time some, but your own testing will determine that. I always write down the developer, dilution, development time, and temp on the negative sleeves for future reference. That way I can figure out which works best under certain types of lighting conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_waller Posted October 28, 2003 Share Posted October 28, 2003 Delta 100 at 50 ASA, Rodinal, 1:50, 20 C, 7 minutes. That's for a condenser head. For diffuser try 8-8.5 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc_schmidtmayer Posted October 29, 2003 Author Share Posted October 29, 2003 Thank you for your answers ! Short summary of the answers : For Delta 100 : Microphen and Rodinal and XTOL.Is there nothing else that works good with Delta 100 ?What about the 'older' developers like Calbe A49, Atomal (FF), ... ? For Delta 400 : Microphen, Perceptol, D76, DDX and XTOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tobias_mennle Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 I shot Delta 400 rated 800 and developped in XTol 1:1 massive development chart times. Not much grain, but tonality is poor compared to Neopan 1600 rated 800. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_rifkind Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 I consider Delta 400 in straight Microdol-X to be pretty much unbeatable. Perceptol should be similar. My style does not call for extreme sharpness and edge effects, and the combination of softened grain and excellent shadow separation works very well for me. I use EI 320, normally shooting in fairly low light. In brighter light there's not so much difference from other developers. I've never had much luck with Delta 100 so can't make a recommendation there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth_harper Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 "Is there nothing else that works good with Delta 100 ? " There is loads of information available at www.ilford.com Ilford will point you towards which of it's own developers are most suitable and will also give recommended times for many of the other developers that people commonly use with their films, including those made by other companies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc_schmidtmayer Posted November 2, 2003 Author Share Posted November 2, 2003 Thanks all for the input.I'll give it a try ! ;-) And yes Gareth ... there's a lot of info on the Ilford site and indeed, many times for developers. But when I need to try them all out ... pffff ...That's why asked you people 'in the field' which developer you use ...Thanks !Marc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_scarpitti Posted November 2, 2003 Share Posted November 2, 2003 Marc: I have not used much of the Delta 100, but I have used lots of all three generations of the 400. Lots of developers are good for it. I prefer Paterson developers as they are generally the sharpest available. I have not had good luck with Kodak Xtol, though others have. Start with Ilford's recommendations or Paterson's, but bear in mind you may find the recommended times too long in some cases. I usually expose Delta 400 at about 250, and HP5+ at 320. http://www.patersonphotographic.com/chemistry/data.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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