Recent content by Scott J.

Ditto both points. Nat Geo in the 1980s (when I was a kid) was a major reason why I ended up pursuing science as a career and photography as a hobby. Awe-inspiring stuff. The quality of the printed images (IMO) seemed to begin to drop off in the mid-to-late 2000s, and I think Drew is onto...

That's interesting to hear, and makes sense. If we're allowed to really dream, I'd love to see someone (Kodak, whoever) create a new film that has the deep IR sensitivity that HIE had (out to 900 nm) but with the fine grain and sharpness of Agfa Aviphot Pan 80 or Pan 200. Agfa no longer...

In similar, previous threads I've cast my vote for E100VS, as that was my favorite film circa 2000-2010. It had the saturation of Velvia 50 and 100 but with better white and midtone neutrality (at least for my workflow). I'll occasionally pull out some old examples shot on a Mamiya 7ii or an...

I usually agitate for the first full minute in Pyrocat-MC (basically the same developer activity as the HD variant), so you might try that. That should add some noticeable density and also help to alleviate any streaking in continuous-tone areas (e.g., skies). Otherwise, you have a solid...

Have you actually measured the densities of the individual steps? I've done a lot of these types of step wedge tests using pretty much the same setup as you (4x5 step wedge, Pyrocat developers, photographing a large piece of white foam board, metering for +5 stops above Zone V, etc.) and your...

I wanted report back with a little data that addresses the question in my original post. I found a CPA2 in basically unused condition for what I considered to be a good price. It's an earlier serial number (first upgrade only) but my research on the issue of serial numbers and Expert drums seems...

Regarding syringes: 1) If it's a syringe with a black rubber plunger, you read the liquid volume from the bottom of the plunger (the side toward the Luer tip). The convex shape of the plunger bottom is designed to mate to concave bottom of the syringe. Everything in between is your measured...

Thanks, that's exactly what I was looking to find out. And thanks to the others for sharing their positive experiences with the CPA2. That's a big help knowing that, at least with regard to that one characteristic, the two machines can be treated as performing the same.

I agree that hysteresis isn't the only source of temperature instability in these processors, but it is still a source. Used, similar-condition CPA2s and CPP2s seem to sell for around the same price these days, so if I'm going to invest in one, I'd rather invest in the model that performs better...

I've been in a similar search since I started shooting 5x7 last fall. I love the SP-445 for 4x5 but have had heaps of trouble with developing 5x7 and 8x10 film in the SP-810 (uneven development along the edges), which I'm assuming just comes down to not having found the right agitation technique...

I'm planning to upgrade from my CPE2+ to either a CPA2 or CPP2 so I can use the Expert drums, but as I primarily use the Jobo for E6 and C41 processing, temperature stability is something I'd like to maximize, where possible. My CPE2+, to which I've added an aquarium pump for water circulation...

I don't think so -- at least, not at the retailer level. For example, Fotoimpex currently sells the same Jobo kit for 83.19 EUR (without VAT and before shipping), which works out to about 99 USD. So, if you factor in shipping and US tariffs, 130 USD in the US seems on-par with pricing in...

Regarding the color, I downloaded the image of the grassy park/city skyline and did a basic curves adjustment to correct the color (slightly increase green, slightly decrease blue). I also added a curves adjustment to give more overall contrast, as well as a vibrancy adjustment to give a little...

I've been keeping an eye on a few online retailers (primarily Cinestill and Freestyle) to see when Kodak's new 5-liter E6 kits will finally be available. The release date of these kits has been getting delayed -- and then delayed some more -- for the last several months, with the most recent...

The current Aztek software for running Howtek and Aztek drum scanners -- i.e., Digital Photo Lab 8 -- works on modern 64-bit Windows 10 machines (and I would presume Windows 11, as well, though I've not personally confirmed this).