Developed first C41 film - got bubbles

ITD · Oct 10, 2011

Hi, at long last I've got round to developing my first roll of colour neg - I'm pretty pleased with the results, except for what looks like a lot of bubbles on the neg. I can't see them with a lupe but they turn up on scans when I zoom to print size.

I've attached a 100% scan. Where do you think these bubbles have come from, what can I do next time to avoid them and is there anything I can do now to remove them from this neg?

Thanks

hpulley · Oct 10, 2011

Is it just gunk from the stabilizer? Which kit are you using? How are you processing it?

Photo Engineer · Oct 10, 2011

The image is very red, assuming this was scanned to yield a positive image. That means a color balance problem somewhere.

But, also assuming this is a positive, the bubbles have black centers to give a white center in the positive. This is highly unusual and I cannot diagnose it yet. I need more information as noted in the last post.

PE

ITD · Oct 10, 2011

I don't think that's colour balance, it's red skin! Subject was possibly out in the sun for too long.

I'm using a DIgibase kit, in a plastic tank. The stabilizer did foam up quite a bit...

Edit - when I look at them they look three-dimensional, so the white bits are possibly just reflections from the scanner light source? They do look like they've got a dark side to them too.

Photo Engineer · Oct 10, 2011

It could be that these are small particles embedded in your film with dark spots appearing as light spots. The 3D effect clues me to that being the problem. Can you see suspended particles in your processing solutions? If so, that is the problem.

PE

ITD · Oct 10, 2011

Just held my storage bottles up to the light and found that the colour dev, bleach and stabilizer all have what looks like wispy sediment in the bottom of the bottle - I don't know whether that was there before I developed the roll.

The fixed does look like it has some tiny particles in it. No idea where they've came from, I mixed the chems with the same water I use for B&W and I never see that problem with B&W negs.

Is there something about C41 chems which make it more advisable to use distilled/deionized water?

hpulley · Oct 10, 2011

What temperature did you mix them at?

ITD · Oct 10, 2011

As per instructions: 49C for dev, about 40C or a few deg under for the rest.

Photo Engineer · Oct 10, 2011

If you used a liquid kit, then the sediment was either in your water or in the kit itself. If you used a solid kit, then there is a higher chance that you either did not dissolve everything or that the kit had particles. But, a C41 kit is nominally just as sensitive (or insensitive) to water supply as any other kit. The ingredients are pretty much similar except for the bleach. I use filtered tap water due to a similar problem about 10 years ago. Our water had a lot of sediment which ended up being iron (rust) in the lines.

Filtration through a paper coffee filter should fix this problem, but remember that the particles may also be in your tap water.

PE

ITD · Oct 10, 2011

Thanks PE, it was a liquid kit, and I'm more inclined to believe that I've introduced any particles than that they were in the concentrates.

I'll filter my solutions before using them again, and ensure I at least use filtered water for mixing in the future. All my bottles and graduates are getting a damn good clean too, just in case. Hopefully the next roll will be clear.

Photo Engineer · Oct 10, 2011

Check the liquid kit before you mix to see if there is any suspended material. This can happen.

PE

Pupfish · Oct 11, 2011

Used distilled H2O at least until you eliminate the water source as the problem.

Developed first C41 film - got bubbles

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