Delta 400 in Rodinal???

joeyk49 · Aug 21, 2005

Never shot or developed D400.

First let me say: I LIKE Rodinal! If I can use it, I will...BUT, I'm not blind to the fact that other developers may work better with different emulsions...

Second: I'm not averse to grain...like it in most bw work except for portraiture.

With that said:

I've got a couple of rolls of Delta 400 waiting for a dip/plunge/bath so to speak. Images and scenes vary, so I'm looking for middle ground here. So, what does D400 like best? My other (inhome stock) choices are: a package of Perceptol waiting to be mixed, D-76 in the same state and a bit of Ilfosol S leftover. If there's a strong argument for another, I'll run and get it, but...let's face it, I'm cheap! and would prefer to use what I have.

Any suggestions? Experiences?

André E.C. · Aug 21, 2005

Well Joey, with D 76 you can`t go wrong obviously, I have used it with very nice results.
For me, Delta 400 looks great in TMax or DD-X, Ilfosol S "likes" slower and conventional films (FP4+;Pan F+) but it can be used with tabular ones also, a matter of taste for sure.
Give it a try with TMax or DD-X, I think you`re going to like it.

Cheers

André

fschifano · Aug 21, 2005

I'm not a Delta user, but the stuff is fairly similar to Kodak's T-Max films, which I do use on occassion. My experience with TMax 400 and Rodinal left a lot to be desired. I didn't like the grain pattern and felt that I wasn't getting the speed I should have gotten from the film. Obviously, Delta 400 is not Tmax 400, so I'm generalizing here.

You really can't go wrong with D-76, or its Ilford counterpart ID-11. It is the de facto standard by which films are measured and other developers compared. The developer has been around, in slightly different formulae, since the 1920's and most films are built to respond well in it.

gnashings · Aug 22, 2005

I found that even thogh Delta is technically similiar to Tmax, the two give different results by quite a margin. But it may be just my personal perception of it - I have no scientific data to back my view. I also find that Delta 400 is just about the only 400 film that has given me decent results with Rodinal in 35mm grain wise. I too am not against grain - I like it, but I do understand that sometimes enough is enough. I have souped Delta 400 in two developers (for similar reasons as you - it was what I had on hand) Rodinal and Microphen, and I liked the Rodinal results better - sharper, more characterful negatives with a better range of tones in my opinion. I think you should try it - I suspect that its one of these things where you will have to look for yourself to see if its "up your alley". Good luck and keep us posted!

modafoto · Aug 22, 2005

It works OK in Rodinal although I like using regular B/W ISO 400 films (HP5 and Tri-X). I have used it three times and the grains is visible yet subtle. The contrast seems to be a bit on the low side for me, though.

bon-jip · Aug 22, 2005

Ive tried about 6 rolls of Delta 400 in Rodinal and I still have no idea where I have gone wrong. I think my biggest problem was that the first roll looked OK, but things only got worse from there. Flat negatives were the defining characteristic.
Unfortunately the rest of the film I had I didnt want to use for experimentation so I switched to Xtol (only because my local shop was out of DD-X)
I dont want to warn you off this combo I like Rodinal as well, but you may need more than a couple of rolls to nail the process.

df cardwell · Aug 22, 2005

Rodinal + Delta 400.

WITH ANY NEW FILM AND DEVELOPER, test a roll first.

REGARDLESS.

Try 1+50, 18', agitate 5 secs per minute. Use distilled water.

It ought to be a long straight line with normal contrast.

dr bob · Aug 22, 2005

df cardwell said:
Rodinal + Delta 400.

WITH ANY NEW FILM AND DEVELOPER, test a roll first.

REGARDLESS.

Try 1+50, 18', agitate 5 secs per minute. Use distilled water.

It ought to be a long straight line with normal contrast.

Amen! Only don't get carried away with testing (unless that's your "thing"). I find it easy to become distracted with some of the newer products. Then I take a deep breath and just go for it....

argus · Aug 22, 2005

I never got satisfying results with any Delta film in Rodinal. FP4 and HP5 work way better!

G

clay · Aug 22, 2005

I finally had time to look through some old negative files. I got a really nice result with Delta 400 shot at EI250, developed in Rodinal 1:50 for 8.5 minutes @ 78 degrees (Yes, the water is hot here in the summer! I would recommend using a standard time/temp compensation chart to adjust the time to a more normal temperature). These negs show nice sharp grain and good clean tonality. They were shot outdoors in the SoCal sun with probably an SBR around 8-9. That said, I still prefer FX-39 for this film. The grain is a little tighter and sharper, and it has a little more shadow detail.

lawrenceimpey · Aug 22, 2005

I haven't processed Delta 400 in Rodinal but I have processed Delta 100 in it and I didn't like the results. Same with TMX. Both films seem to loose their special fine-grain smooth-tonality characteristics when processed in Rodinal. With TMX there is also a kind of flare around strong highlights (as if the grain is spreading into surrounding areas). My guess is that Rodinal works best with conventional emulsions where you want maximum impact. I used to get specatacular results with HP5 under studio lighting conditions (using a single flash reflected from a silver umberella).

Max Power · Aug 22, 2005

If you have both on hand, why not try it for kicks?

A few months back, someone posted a comment to the effect that if you want to know what X film and Y developer will do, give it a go, 'cause it can't hurt to try.

I took this advice and tried D-400 and Rodinal 1+50 for fun. Well, if you like big, really evident grain, it's your combo!

So try it and have fun!

Kent

modafoto · Aug 22, 2005

lawrenceimpey said:
I have processed Delta 100 in it and I didn't like the results. Same with TMX.

I like Delta 100 in Rodinal 1+50, but not TMX.

joeyk49 · Aug 23, 2005

Well, after standing there for about 5 minutes, looking back and forth between the two developers, I chickened out (or relied on the advise I received) and used the D-76. First glance at the drying negs tell me that all's well.

Naturally the PanF rolls that were waiting, went into the Rodinal.

And just to keep things confusing/interesting, I added a roll of PlusX 125...

...if I can just get the hang of winding the film onto the stainless spools, life would be so much better. I must lose two frames per roll because of contact issues. If I don't get the hang of it soon, I'm jumping ship to a paterson or jobo auto feeder/winder thingee...

Thanks for all of your help. I've already printed this thread and have it hanging in the darkroom, for future reference.

modafoto · Aug 23, 2005

joeyk49 said:
Naturally the PanF rolls that were waiting, went into the Rodinal.

Gooooood boy!

P C Headland · Aug 23, 2005

argus said:
I never got satisfying results with any Delta film in Rodinal. FP4 and HP5 work way better!

G

I got lovely results with Delta 100 Prof & Rodinal 1+50 for 14 minutes. Sharp, grainless and good tonal range (120 film)

Ronald Moravec · Aug 23, 2005

D400 likes Xtol, DDx and UNDILUTED D76. If you dilute even 1:1 it looks nasty. Original D400 worked of 1:1.

titrisol · Aug 23, 2005

D400 exposed as 200 and developed in Rodinal 1+50+C for 7 minutes (20C/68F) (agitating once a minute) looks good to me.

Grain is there (looks like HP5 in D76) but that has never bugged me, quite sharp and nice tonality

joeyk49 · Aug 23, 2005

Ronald Moravec said:
D400 likes Xtol, DDx and UNDILUTED D76. If you dilute even 1:1 it looks nasty. Original D400 worked of 1:1.

It went in full stock strength. When I saw the options on the massive dev chart, I figured that I would start from home base (stock) and, if I felt favorable about the chemical, I would try other dilutions. So far, so good...

And, (tipping hat to Morton) until my supply of PanF runs out (about 75 feet left) Rodinal will have plenty to do in my darkroom...

Thanks for all the advise and discussion...

Delta 400 in Rodinal???

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