andrew_oneill

I guess I missed that notice. Thanks!

Well, I've tried and tried and I just cannot access

largeformatphotography.info forum...we had a tremendous wind storm a couple of

nights ago here in the Lower Mainland (Canada)with wide spread power outages.

I wonder if this has anything to do with it...or are there problems with the

site like a while back?...maybe it's just my computer.

Yes, pre-exposure is very useful to control contrast when using transparency film. I employed this method years ago (I only shoot B/W film now). I used a sheet of translucent plexi attached to the lens. I metred through it first and then placed it in front of the lens. You'll have to experiment, but about 3 to 3.5 stops down from metre reading worked well for me. You can even control the colour temp by adding a light CC filter at the time of pre-exposure.

Lens focal length can be a factor as well as the distance from the light source to the negative. It is best to have the light source as close as possible to the negative.

If the shutter is consistently open for 0.85 seconds, then there is no problem. Just remember when shooting that you are not getting a second. Compensate by opening apeture a wee bit. Spend the $150-$250 on film, paper.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, eh!

Why don't you try it and see what happens? People will tell you this and that but inevitably, you will have to do it yourself. Let us know what happened.

HP5+ for very fine grain...Microdol X stock. Fine grain with a bit of edge? Xtol 1+1. The best ever though are pyro developers. PMK or Pyrocat-HD. Don't even THINK about HC-110. Lousy tonality...but hey, that's just my opionion.

Here's the formula:

 

Stock Solution A

Distilled Water 75ml

Sodium Bisulfite 1.0g

Pyrocatechin (Catechol) 5.0g

Phenidone .2g

Potassium Bromide .2g

Water to 100ml

 

Stock Solution B

Distilled Water 100ml

Potassium Carbonate 100g

Solution A, 6 months and that's pushing it. Solution B indefinite. Have you tried mixing smaller portions? Instead of 1000ml, try 100ml.

Russ, how can you burn film with a #15 filter?? Wouldn't a match be more productive...faster too.

I have a Holga. They are notorius for light leaks. Your stripes are from light leaks. Tape up door seals with black tape and you should be okay.

The dark spots could be due to either bubbles on the film as previously mentioned, or pin holes in the emulsion due to acid stop bath. Try a mild stop bath. I found that if I used expired film, pin holes would form in the emulsion. Make sure you have fairly fresh film on hand.

 

To reduce contrast expose film at EI 50 and develop in dilute developer such as xtol 1+3. You'll have to test to find the correct time. This EI is with a wratten #25 filter, and reduced agitation. 5 seconds/2 minutes. I always got nice negatives with this procedure.

Ilford is not folding.

What EI did you use with xtol 1+1? You probably need to give a bit more exposure and a bit more development time. Xtol 1+1 can give beautiful results. I like 1+1 rather than full strength. Slightly nicer tones and crisper grain. You will have to run tests.

For me, 4x5 in tubes, EI 80. 8x10 in trays with intermitant agitation, EI 64. Xtol 1+3 is weeeeeeeak but beautiful results. Run a test.

Much better...now get rid of that distraction on the right edge.

Sounds like an alignment problem. Also, remove the extra diffusion material and make sure the light head is as close to the negative as possible. Mine sits right on the anti-newton ring glass. Once I started printing with the head right on the glass I had no problems.

As I answered over at the LF site, develop the film as you intended, plot the curves and shift them to the left one zone.

Have you actually printed the negatives yet or are you just impressed with stained negatives? Stained negatives print way differently than conventionally developed negatives. Waaaaay differently. PMK's yellowish stain didn't work for me. HP5+ on Forte Polygrade V. I have better luck with pyrocat-HD.

The Palasades by the Thompson River, Kamloops, BC Canada. Stunning light in winter.

xtol 1+1, 1+3.

I used PMK for a little over a year. I gave up on it and went back to xtol. PMK produced a greenish stain on my film, HP5+ that looked terrible on VC paper. I have been using Pyrocat-HD for a year and it works better for me. The stain is closer to brown.

Efke 25 in Pyrocat-HD @ EI 16. 5ml A + 5ml B + 500ml water. Partial stand development in tray (this is for sheet film).

I use 4x5 holders in my 8x10 camera with the aid of a reducing back. You would need the same on an 18x24 camera to hold 8x10 holders. There is no way that 8x10 and 18x24 holders have the same outside dimensions.