Recent content by xtol121

As @Frank53 said the comfort unit attaches to the split grade controller. You can not use the comfort unit without the split grade controller. I do enjoy having the comfort unit when I am using the analyzer, having the zone system display (only available on the comfort) is really helpful if...

Foma 131 is really great for toning compared to Ilford warm tone. In selenium toner 1+9 I find 131 reaches a similar level of toning in 30-45 seconds that would take Ilford warm tone 5 minutes to reach. I haven’t had a chance to experiment with gold or brown toners but I imagine it will be much...

@MattKing i can confirm that the new kodacolor is on the same thin estar base as kodak gold and others.

@MattKing I’ll let you know tomorrow what the base is. We have a few rolls at the lab. I’m going to do some 1:1 tests comparing pro image and color plus to the new kodacolor variants.

I frequently travel with my 5x7 camera and a box of 320TXP (12 flights so far this year, not much but not nothing). I keep my holders empty so I only have to worry about the exposed/unexposed boxes. TSA in the US and Mexico hasn’t been any more complicated than asking for a hand check. I...

This thread has been really interesting for me and has me reflecting on my own relationship with film and digital photography. I’ll try to keep it short but no promises. I started photography in 2007 while graduating high school, it was the height of the digital armageddon and the internet...

@koraks I’d be excited to see results if you plan on testing it at all!

I wouldn’t be mad at that! But I’m also not mad at an even warmer toned option. I find Ilford classic too cold. Ilford’s warm tone feels neutral to me. I’m currently using Foma 131 as my everyday paper because I like the warmer base and I love how it reacts to selenium. If Freestyle ever decides...

Yup. Another example that the supplied times aren’t accurate and that user testing is required to achieve a usable density for darkroom printing. I’ve landed on 13m30s for XTOL 1+1 for 400TX negatives and 12m15s for 320TXP. Both metered at EI 250. But hey, it’s nobody’s fault anymore because...

@koraks Thank you! I have to admit that I was surprised at how well it was hidden while still maintaining the luminosity of the sky. Flashing really can be a miracle tool! And thank you, the show was a lot of work to put together but I'm really proud of the result. Here's a link if anyone would...

Finally got a chance to scan the finished print. I was able to flash the problematic area and then print with a high contrast filter to minimize the streaking. I'll try and post my print notes, but it was around 7 or 8 steps to get to the final version with everything balanced. Also attached a...

This is fantastic. The detective work on the mottling issue finally puts a conclusive result on the internet that I think many people including myself will find valuable. Thank you!

My first enlarger was an old Omega B22 condenser from a flea market. I followed the directions above to learn my exposure/development time which ended up somewhere around 5.5 mins in D76 1+1, and even that was quite contrasty to print at grade 2 with that enlarger, but I didn't know any better...

Thanks everyone for all of the suggestions, they've all been helpful, especially the ones reminding me that I'm probably the only one that will notice or even think about it. The images will be printed 16x20, so fairly large. The image is pretty high contrast as it is, and allowing the sky to go...

Thanks Chuck! That sounds pretty similar to what I was thinking re: flashing, right? Essentially printing to a higher contrast (sky brighter) and then "burning the sky in" with low contrast, or via flash, to get the tone, but hopefully without going far enough to exhibit the darker tones of the...