New Delta 400 in PMK

[andreas_carl]

Not so much a question as a comment: I tried the new Delta 400 film

(120 format) in PMK developer and it's a "killer combination"! It's

almost as sharp and grainless as the Delta 100 processed in PMK. (In

contrast, when processed in XTOL 1:1 the Delta 400 shows "much" more

grain than the Delta 100, although still very nice!).

 

My processing times: Delta 100 (E.I.64) 7 minutes at 70F in a JOBO

rotary. Delta 400 (E.I.250) 10 minutes at 70F in a JOBO rotary.

 

Try it, and let me know what you think!

[elgenper]

OK, so what is PMK? Any relative to Pyro or something?

[andreas_carl]

PMK = Pyrogallol-Metol-Kodalk.

It's a very high acutance staining developer, you can get it from Photographer's formulary.

[elgenper]

Thank you!

I recall now that <a href="http://www.barrythornton.co.uk">Barry

Thornton </a> has a lot to say about its merits. Certainly seems

worth a try...

[--------]

*drool drool*

 

This sounds fab. As soon as my darkroom gets set up, I am SO getting some PMK!

Do I *have* to use a Jobo processor? I will barely have any $$ left over after buying my enlarger...

[adrian_vincent_twiss]

Actually whilst Barry Thornton like the developer for its sharpness he did have reservations about printing pyro stained negatives onto Variable Contrast Paper. Depending on the film the stain was yellow to yellow green. It did not act as printing density as it does with graded papers but acted as extra yellow filtration. He found that hightlights did not look as crip when he used VC papers. What he did was to develop his own two bath staining developer called Dixactol. The main difference was that he substituted the Pyro with Catechol. Catechol, like Pyro, tans and stains but the stain was a very distinct brown that helped to solve the contrast reduction problem with VC papers. I am a Dixactol user and since using it have never had to burn skys in. If you want chapter and verse on Thornton's feelings about Pyro you should read Edge of Darkness published by Argentum.

[chris_waller]

In response to one of the above respondents, Pyro (PMK) can be bought as a two-part developer from Creative Monochrome of South Croydon, Surrey, UK.

[andreas_carl]

I fine-tuned my developing times a bit, had to shorten Delta 100 to 6 min 70F in a JOBO rotary (with an E.I. 50). Delta 400 remains at 10 min 70F (E.I.250). Photos taken side by side look virtually identical. When enlarged to 20x20 inch, the Delta 400 looks just a touch more grainy and soft, but still exquisite.

 

About printing on variable contrast paper, my impression is that the filter effect due to the stain is rather subtle. I always got good tonality developing Delta films in XTOL and with PMK I get a similar tonality. Of course each has their own "character", but I am hard pressed to say which looks better (except that the XTOL ones look much more grainy, especially for the Delta 400). I am printing on my favourite fiber based paper (Ilford Gallery variable contrast) and my favourite RC paper (Ilford warmtone). May have to try Dixactol just for comparison, but up to this point, I must say that Delta films developed in PMK look great (much nicer than what I was ever able to get out of TMAX films for example).

[robin_coutts]

which film ?

[robin_coutts]

sorry ignore the above

[david_goldfarb]

New Delta 400 looks so good in Perceptol (EI 200, Perceptol stock, 12 min., 68 deg. F, agitating every minute in an inversion tank), that I've never gotten around to testing it in PMK. Have you tried it in Perceptol (or Microdol-X or D-23, which should all be similar)?