robert_kerwin

Sorry to hear this and hope all works out for you. Thanks for helping make the B&W forums the most informative, enjoyable and noise-free forums on photo.net!

- Robert

Like others have said, I can only get EI 25-32 with PanF Plus. I use XTOL 1:3 also. I don't have the times in front of me, but my dev time is around 9 min. for EI 25 and 10:30 for EI 32.

- Robert

Andy,

Your experiment with removing the batteries during an exposure pretty much reflects what happened to me once when the batteries died during a long exposure. Also, I seem to recall a problem with the film advance after putting in a fresh set of batteries; I think I had to release the shutter again to advance to the next frame. You might want to experiment to see what actually happens.

I agree with the recommendations to use a mechanical body for long exposures. There are some great deals to be had on used equipment.

- Robert

PanF's contrast can be tamed with reduced development. I usually rate it at 25 instead of the stated 50 and develop for around nine minutes in 1:3 Xtol. The exact time escapes me, but I have it written down somewhere. I develop for a flatter negative since I'm printing on a condenser enlarger.

PanF has a look that in my opinion at least is very different from anything else. Can't put my finger on it, but it just looks different. I have most of a 100' bulk roll left and I'm trying to decide if the film is a good fit for me.

Since you're going to be doing some night scenes as well, I'd probably stick with Delta. It's faster and has better reciprocity performance. The fact that you already have experience with it is a big plus as well.

Good luck, sounds like a great project!<div></div>

There are negative pages that are top-loading, for example, <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=347328&is=REG">these</a>.<br/><br/>

I've never had any dust problems with negatives <i>in</i> archival pages, <i>inside</i> a storage box, even after several years. My problems always start when I take them out and handle them. I use plastic archival storage boxes that have a "lip" around the edge, so they seal pretty well. I also store my boxes in a cabinet, which gives another layer of protection against dust. <br/><br/>

You might also want to check your negative carrier for burrs that might cause scratches and make sure there's no dust on it before each printing session. In theory, sandwiching a negative between two pieces of metal shouldn't be a problem--as long as the metal is completely clean and smooth. <br/><br/>

Unfortunately, you'll never eliminate dust and scratches and Murphy's law (as it applies to the darkroom) guarantees that it will happen to that one priceless, once-in-a-lifetime, irreplaceable, perfectly exposed and composed shot.<br/><br/>

- Robert

Marc,

Reducing development is often recommended for long exposures because reciprocity failure has the effect of increasing contrast on the negative. This is because dimmer parts of the scene require more reciprocity correction than brighter parts. As we increase exposure to pull out more detail from the shadows, we run the risk of blowing out the highlights which are not as affected by reciprocity.

Opening up the lens has the effect of shortening both the highlight and shadow exposures so they are not as affected by reciprocity. In this case, your contrast probably won't be affected too much and you can leave the development time alone.

If you're doing rainy street photos, you may have a contrast problem built into the scene already, if there are streetlamps reflecting off of wet asphalt. I hesitate to make any recommendations since I don't know your printing setup or the type of negatives you normally get from your development process. Try it and if it's too contrasty, reduce development by 10-15% and try again.

- Robert<div></div>

You might also want to list the films they produce and what formats are available. Why not also include sheet film sizes as well as 120/35mm? Sort of a master B&W film list...

A few weeks ago, I put together a quick list of films, manufacturers and formats (120/35mm only) that I would willing to send to you. It's by no means exhaustive, but it's a start. Let me know if you're interested.

- Robert

I don't personally use tabular grain films for pinhole photography (or regular photography for that matter), typically I use FP4+ or HP5+. You'll get less reciprocity failure and shorter exposure times with new technology films, but in pinhole photography longer exposure times are par for the course anyway. There was an interesting thread about reciprocity of Ilford films a little while back. Check out Patrick Gainer's posts near the end for some good information:<br/><br/>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0086YW">Reciprocity formulae for Ilford films</a><br/><br/>

Hopefully this will give you the info you need if you want to give T-grain films a try.<br/><br/>

- Robert<div></div>

The finished print is just the last link in a chain of events that started when you looked at something and said to yourself, "That would make a great photo." Unfortunately, there's a plethora of things that could go wrong in between. I recommend that you start with the negatives. Look at them using a good loupe or magnifier. Are the negatives sharp? Do they have good shadow detail? Do they have reasonable contrast? If you can determine where in the process things start to break down, you can fix the problem.

Personally, I think your photos demonstrate good vision and hope you invest the time and effort it takes to overcome the technical problems.

- Robert

Christian,<br/><br/>

Take a look at <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0086YW">this</a> thread. It should help answer your question.<br/><br/>

- Robert

According to Kodak's instructions, you should completely dissolve part A before mixing in part B. I haven't tried it any other way and I don't know the rationale, I'm just parroting what's on the Kodak website:

1. Start with an amount of water that is approximately 75 percent of the total volume indicated on the package. See the table above. The water should be at normal room temperature, about 65 to 85?F (18 to 30?C).

2. With stirring, slowly add Part A. Stir until the powder is completely dissolved. At this point, the solution may appear somewhat tawny or copper-colored. This is normal.

3. Continue stirring, and slowly add Part B. Stir until the powder is completely dissolved. The coppery tint will clear from the solution as you add Part B.

4. Add water to bring the final solution to 1, 5, or 50 litres.

Stir until the solution is uniform.

Besides, it's kinda fun to watch the solution clear as you add part B...

I've heard that some people have mixed XTOL in half the recommended volume (e.g. 2.5 liters vs. 5) with no problems. Just be sure you take this into account when diluting to working strength.

- Robert

Patrick,

<br/><br/>

Thanks for the detailed info, it's very helpful. One question, you said:

<br/><br/>

<i>A coefficients were consistently lower for the T-grain films: 0.166 for 400TX, 0.69 for 100Tmax and almost the same for 400Tmax, 0.106 for HP5+ and 0.046 for 100Delta.</i>

<br/><br/>

Did you mean 0.<b>0</b>69 for 100Tmax and 400Tmax? 0.69 is very much <i>higher</i> than the values for the non-T-grain films. Do you have any data for 400 Delta? I recently abandoned the T-grain films in favor of the older films (I just prefer the look of the classics I suppose), but I'm wondering now if I should give T-grain another try for my night shooting.

<br/><br/>

- Robert

Try this:

=A1^1.4865

You would of course change A1 to the address of the cell in your spreadsheet containing the original exposure time. The results track pretty closely to Ilford's chart. No magic here, I simply took Ilford's chart and found a formula that fits the numbers. Like you, I found the chart difficult to read accurately.

The charts for PanF, FP4+ and HP5+ are the same and Ilford states that you do not need to correct for reciprocity if your exposure time is between 1/10,000 and 1/2 second. In fact, the same chart is used for their Delta films as well. The formula above will only work for 1 second and above (which I assume is what you're interested in).

Hope this helps...

- Robert