Developing troubles

[Jorri]

Hello!

I had a film come out bad after developing, and I'm wondering of the great community hear can shed some light on what might have happened.

it's medium format Ilford Delta 100. I developed it in Amaloco AM74, my first time using this developer. I followed the instructions of the developer, including agitating once ever 15 seconds after an initial 30 seconds of agitating. I pushed one stop.
I didn't use a stop bath. I fixed it for 10 minutes with Ilford Rapidfix, an old batch that I've had mixed up for a few months.

I washed it with tap water and did a final rinse with a few drops of Adoflo. I usually don't have any trouble with that method, apart from the odd drying stain.

By this point, I'm thinking it's a problem with the fixer. However, Right after I developed two more 35mm rolls with the same batch of Amaloco (you can re-use it) and the same batch of fixer, and they came out fine.

I also tried to re-fix it afterwards by putting the Now cut strips of film it in a new batch of Ilford Rapidfix for 8 minutes and re-washing it, but it came out exactly the same.
the photo was taken with a Mamiya C220. Every photo on the roll is affected.

 

[philm5d]

If that's unfixed film on the elbow you'll see it as a milky opaque area on the neg. I've had no experience of the film and processing solutions you mention (don't you hate replies that start like that...) BUT I have devd and printed black and white film for almost 50 years - as a schoolboy and then as an apprentice photographer at the local newspaper.

What strikes me is that film is GRAINY into the bargain unless we are looking at a very small area.

On the 'paper we used TRI-X 95% of the time - iso 400) most of the time devd in Kodak D76 (same as Ilford ID11) in Paterson tanks. D76 is made up very easily from two sachets of powder and keeps a long time in a stoppered dark glass bottle - we used to get them from a pharmacy who threw away these empties in those days. You can use it full strength and return to the bottle or dilute 1:1 with water and discard it after developing.

We always returned it to the bottle and gradually the dev would turn from almost clear to soupy pea-green, sometimes over weeks. The odd thing is that the dev seemed to IMPROVE for being used and kept producing lovely low grain negs. Obviously there's IS a limit to how many times it can be used but we tried to keep track of films going through but having three photographers and always in a rush we mostly forgot to keep a log.

The leaflet with the dev powder gave an idea of the theoretical number of films based on area of emulsion but no-one took any notce merely adding a minute or so when the dev got "soupy" after some weeks.

SO from memory 6 mins in D76 full strength at 68-70 deg f. (8 mins 1:1). Tepid water wash for 30 seconds followed by at least 2 mins in the acid fixer. I think the fixer was an Ilford concentrate with built-in hardener that you could use for prints - 1:3 for films 1:7 for prints. If you're interested, print dev was Bromphen by Ilford - another powder to be made up with water and stored in an opaque bottle.

On the rare occasions I used slower film in a Rolleiflex or Yashicamat (both 120 film) it would have been Ilford FP4 and faster film Kodak Recording film (35mm only) which is probably unobtainable now - devd in Kodak DK-50. Re. Slower film. The results were so good from Tri-X I rarely felt the need to go slower, iso- wise.

Try it and be happy!

 

[Jorri]

Thanks, Philm5d!



I definitely want to try more developing solutions, and this Is likely to be my next after I get through this new bottle of Amaloco. I do like the result it gave me on the 35mm films I used it for.



As for this film, it's not grainy at all but what you can see is a pattern of white splotches that make it appear as such. I also had someone suggest it might be an issue with the backing paper.

 

[Gesture]

Were all the solutions at the same temperature?

 

[Jorri]

Were all the solutions at the same temperature?

I didn't gauge them, but we're in that magical time of year when all water from the cold tap comes out at 20 Celsius

 

[Gesture]

Sounds good. Just try again with fresh developer and fresh fixer.

 

[DenWil]

Hello!

I had a film come out bad after developing, and I'm wondering of the great community hear can shed some light on what might have happened.

it's medium format Ilford Delta 100. I developed it in Amaloco AM74, my first time using this developer. I followed the instructions of the developer, including agitating once ever 15 seconds after an initial 30 seconds of agitating. I pushed one stop.
I didn't use a stop bath. I fixed it for 10 minutes with Ilford Rapidfix, an old batch that I've had mixed up for a few months.

I washed it with tap water and did a final rinse with a few drops of Adoflo. I usually don't have any trouble with that method, apart from the odd drying stain.

By this point, I'm thinking it's a problem with the fixer. However, Right after I developed two more 35mm rolls with the same batch of Amaloco (you can re-use it) and the same batch of fixer, and they came out fine.

I also tried to re-fix it afterwards by putting the Now cut strips of film it in a new batch of Ilford Rapidfix for 8 minutes and re-washing it, but it came out exactly the same.
the photo was taken with a Mamiya C220. Every photo on the roll is affected.

I have never been a big fan of Ilford film- I feel it lacks punch compared to AGFAPAN (discontinued) or ACROS (which I still use) but there is no logical reason for a properly lit and exposed image to come out this way. Light source behind you (sunshine) metered off a grey card would probably suggest an exposure approx. ASA100 f5.6 at 1/500th of a second- just a basic shot. Normal processing across the board. Delta 100 pro is designed to be very fine grain film.

I invert the first 60 seconds and once every 30 seconds after that with a double tap. I never re-use developer. Compard R09 Oneshot (Rodinal clone). I mix fix Ilford rapid fix to make a gallon and it lasts conservatively six tanks / three 120 rolls to a tank- over a two week period. Refridgerated. Kodak Photo-flo.

--
dw

 

[mamallama]

You said you did not use a stop bath for the problem roll. Does that mean you went directly from developer to fixer without any wash between? I have never done that, but it could be a source of your problem.

 

[Jorri]

You said you did not use a stop bath for the problem roll. Does that mean you went directly from developer to fixer without any wash between? I have never done that, but it could be a source of your problem.

Oh, I forgot to mention that! I do wash in between.

 

[Jorri]

Hi DenWil,

I kept my fixer way longer than that, and I think it might be the problem...although it worked fine in the two films I developed right afterwards.

usually I also use a Rodinal clone (adonal), and stand develop it for an hour at 1/100. This has turned into my preferred method with Delta 100, although the shop didn't have adonal this time so I got the Amaloco. And since it's my first time using that I followed the book.

Here's a (poor scan of an) older half-frame using that stand development method on Delta 100.

 

[mamallama]

You said you did not use a stop bath for the problem roll. Does that mean you went directly from developer to fixer without any wash between? I have never done that, but it could be a source of your problem.

Oh, I forgot to mention that! I do wash in between.

If you later developed two rolls of film successfully and without problem using the same batch of chemicals in exactly the same way (except stop bath between developer and fixer for the bad roll) then the problem can only have two causes:

1. Defective first roll or

2. The lack of stop bath for the first roll.

 

[Tomm111]

You said you did not use a stop bath for the problem roll. Does that mean you went directly from developer to fixer without any wash between? I have never done that, but it could be a source of your problem.

Oh, I forgot to mention that! I do wash in between.

From what I am seeing, the developer and film aren't a good match. You seem to have excess grain for an ISO 100 film. Also check your lens for fungus, that could cause ambiguous abnormalities, would have to be serious, but take a look. Have had this happen recently.

Not using a stop bath kills your fixer very quickly even with a rinse. The stop ends the development as soon as it hits the film, so your processing is more precise. The stop also maintains the acidity of the fixer which helps the fixer work longer and takes longer to exhaust.

 

[EmmaNems]

Were all the solutions at the same temperature?

Were you hinting at a possible reticulation problem?

It's a valid guess. I'm aware of reticulation, but was always careful in regard to consistent temperatures in my own work, so I've never seen it. Hence, I'm not an authority on what it looks like.