B&W film / Developer Combo.

[sajjad]

please help me......

i live in the middle east, my problem is the HARSH SUN LIGHT which i

can not over come this problem. also i have Film/Developer

combination lited to Kodak T-max 400 and T-max,D76 developer only.

i use 4x5 size.

am i doing something wrong, because all my negatives come out dark ,

grainy, and need more enlarger light .

Please help me in this.

Regards

[discpad]

Sajjad,

 

Is your light meter working properly? Also, inspect the lens aperture (f/stop), and if possible, the shutter speed.

[rob_.2]

Not much info to go on, but it sounds like the problem is underexposure. T-grain films have a bit less latitude than traditional emulsions. I would try some exposure/metering tests, while keeping the development process the same. Change one thing at a time. Good luck.

[john_shriver]

Umm, if the negatives are dark, the problem is overexposure. Or overdevelopment. The T-Max films are capabable of much control of contrast (and speed) by adjusting developing time. But, that also means that they are very sensitive to small changes in developing time, temperature, or agitation technique. They also have sharp toe and shoulder (in the exposure/density curve), so that they are unforgiving if exposure/developing is off.

 

You need to find a developing time that is suitable for the harsh contrasty light you have there. Probably shorter than Kodak's given times. Then you have to determine the right exposures to go with that developing time.

 

Shoot 9 sheets of film, 3 each at: your current speed, 1 stop shorter, and 2 stops shorter. Develop one at each speed at your current time, one at 10% less, one at 20% less. (Be sure you know which is which!) See what one prints best. A small investment of time and money, should pay off.

[david_mark]

Sajjad,

 

We know from your post that you are using TMax 400 developed in D-76, and that you are limited to these materials. (This film/developer combination should work fine, but I would guess that some forum participants would suggest that there are better films for the high contrast light in which you work). I think it would be helpful if you gave us some more information:

 

1. Are you attempting to apply the zone system in your photography?

2. At what speed are you rating the film? (Most large format B & W shooters will down-rate the film speed from its nominal rating by anything up to one stop.)

3. Are you using a spot meter? (The readings of wide-area meters can sometimes be tricky to interpret.)

4. How are you developing the film? Trays? Hangers? Daylight tanks? Or some other method?

5. Are you diluting the stock D-76 solution or using it full strength? (Dilute developer is usually easier to work with, as it gives you longer developing times.

6. What are your developing times and temperatures?

 

It sounds like you may be new to large format. Hang in there. Once you have got your film figured out it rapidly becomes easier.

 

David

[jay_de_fehr]

Sajjad,

 

It would seem to me that your negatives are overexposed and possibly overdeveloped as well. I would highly recommend going through the film speed/developer calibrations to determine your exposure and development. There are several descriptions of the process in print and on the web. As for your materials, I think they are very high quality, and well suited to your environment given proper handling. The Platinum printer Jorge Gasteazoro uses TMY in LF and ULF in central Mexico, and although he uses a pyro developer, D-76 is capable of excellent results as well. Calibrate your system, and I predict that your problems will fade away with practice. Good luck, and don't forget your sunscreen.

[conrad_hoffman]

Fast film in bright sunlight means fast shutter speeds and small apertures. It's common for the highest shutter speeds to be running slow, and the small aperture makes the problem a bit worse as the shutter is fully open as soon as the blades start to move. It isn't even starting to close until they get all the way back down to the small aperture. Thus, you might be following your light meter, but getting overexposure. Try bracketing by two stops (don't waste time bracketing by one stop until you get close), and cut your development somewhat, maybe 20%. Best plan is the ring around suggested above.

[rob_.2]

Ooops. I misread that as his prints were dark, not his negatives. Obviously, yes, the problem is likely due (at least in part) to overexposure.

[discpad]

Conrad wrote:<br><i>Fast film in bright sunlight means fast shutter speeds and small apertures... </i><br><br>

If you're running small apertures with your shutter set pretty high, then I would try a 2 stop neutral density filter. This will allow you to slow down the shutter (into a more accurate range) and/or open up the aperture for depth of field control. <br><br>

When I shoot digital with my Fuji S1 Pro with it's minimum ISO 320 sensitivity AND I need depth control, I use a circular polarizing filter, which has a 2 stop loss through it... And I get the benefit of polarizing.<br><br>

Cheers!<br>

Dan

[kevin_jones4]

Sajjad wrote "..i use 4x5 size"

 

conrad wrote "It's common for the highest shutter speeds to be running slow, and the small aperture makes the problem a bit worse as the shutter is fully open as soon as the blades start to move. It isn't even starting to close until they get all the way back down to the small aperture."

 

All my lenses on my 4x5 camera require me to manually stop down the lens before taking the photo. Conrads statements would be true for some older leaf shutter cameras which only get stopped down during the actual exposure. Since you manually move the aperture to the desired setting before closing the shutter and putting in the film holder. The aperture never moves during exposure.

 

However, I use mainly older 4x5 lenses and the shutters do leave alot to be desired with in shutter consistency. Conrad is absolutely right in that they may be overexposing your film. Combined with TMYs exposure latitude, and your settings you do have a difficult situation.

 

Sajjad, Can you buy Plus-X or any slower films at your location. Even Tmax 100 would be a big improvement as it would allow you to shoot slower shutter speeds and my personal experience is that it has much better tonal properties than Tmax 400. But, Tmax 100 is also a contrasty film so I wouldn't choose it to photograph a high contrast scene unless I wanted to emphasize contrast and loose lots of mid-tones. If you have any other films available I would start there, and also try and test your lenses and make sure the shutters are acurate or consistent.