Black spots/drops with HC-110

Paul Ziz

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Hello everyone,

So I've just developed couple fresh rolls of Kentmere 400 in one shot HC-110 solution with dilution B. Fixer was also freshly made, poured into a clean bottle, so no contamination. But I got these crazy black smudges on the negatives, through out the whole negative. I'm pretty sure it's not my camera, because I've ran more than 30 rolls through my F3 (all different rolls, even the same Kentmere 400) and didn't have any problems (also developing in HC-110 B).

Any ideas what may have happened?

Attached a scan from the affected roll.

Thanks in advance
 

MattKing

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Black on the scan means clear on the negative.
Usually that means there was something like dirt or other obstruction on the film at time of exposure.
Can you see them on the negatives themselves?
Can we see a photograph of the negatives - backlit and the emulsion surface as well?
 
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Paul Ziz

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Yes, they are quite obvious on the negative but of course they're white. I will try to do the pictures, but at the moment I do not have any backlit surface to use.
 

koraks

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Looks like major damage to the emulsion. Check both the camera and processing equipment for places where the emulsion may have scraped over other parts.
 

Tim Stapp

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Film touching while on the reels during development so that no developer reached the emulsion? SWAG.
 
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Paul Ziz

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koraks said:
Looks like major damage to the emulsion. Check both the camera and processing equipment for places where the emulsion may have scraped over other parts.
Click to expand...
Checked the camera, seems everything is in order. Will check the development equipment tomorrow (I develop at my university)
 
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Paul Ziz

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dabsond said:
Were these bulk loaded or factory fresh rolls. The only issues I have had with Kentmere was my mistake of not opening the gate on a bulk loader. Otherwise, I have had really good luck with it.
Click to expand...
They were factory fresh rolls. I've shot Kentmere rolls before (maybe a month ago) and developed in the same batch of HC-110 syrup, also dilution B and the same development tank that I've been using for half a year (it's still brand new and works perfectly) and there were no problems at all.
 
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Paul Ziz

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I will probably try to develop a colour negative roll that I have just finished shooting with the same Nikon F3. I will develop it in a different tank just to see if any of the spots appear. Later on I might do half of roll in one and the other tanks, also maybe mix up some new fix and even try HC-110 from a different bottle (I keep the syrup divided in couple of bottles)
 

MattKing

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Are they spots - things on the negative - or are they clear areas in the negative?
 

MattKing

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Do you see them in relief - in other words do they seem to be something sitting on the surface of the negative?
And, which side are they on - emulsion or substrate?
 
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Paul Ziz

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MattKing said:
Do you see them in relief - in other words do they seem to be something sitting on the surface of the negative?
And, which side are they on - emulsion or substrate?
Click to expand...
Looking at the emulsion side, it looks like the spots (the ones that look like black spikes in the scan I posted) are just clear, like there's no information in them. Almost as they didn't get any light. We tried out the same Kentmere with other cameras like Praktica MTL 5, Pentax ME Super, Minolta X-300, Nikon FG - by just taking couple of shots and developing them. We used the same developer batch and fresh fixer. The results came back with the same problems. Maybe the developer is contaminated? I will try either to use from a different bottle which was never used or even try other developers (D-76, Ilford)
 
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Paul Ziz

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I've talked with my professor who professionally developed and printed film his whole life and looked through the negatives. Turns out it might be a defective batch of Kentmere. Because couple of months ago he ordered a roll of paper from Ilford and it had the same problem. So it just might be a poorly applied protective or emulsion layer. I've wrote an email to the shop I bought it from (macodirect.de)
 

Huub

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Send the negetives to Ilford and ask for their opion. They are happy to provide the service as it gives them information on how their products are used by customers. They have more and better equipment to look at the negatives then most of us and probably have a better understanding then us of the issues they show. When they conclude their product was defective they will send you a new rol.
 

Photo Engineer

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This looks like a coating defect called a comet due to its shape. It is caused by either bubbles or foreign matter in the coating stream while exiting the hopper onto the support.

PE
 
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