Film Came Out with Purple Tint?

[Joshua02230]

Hello fellow photographers,

I recently developed a roll of panF 50 that I got from a film shop a couple weeks ago. The chemicals I'm using is listed below. The film came out with a purple tint (very slightly but noticeable in the image attached.

Not sure what caused this, I've used the same bottle of developer for a while now (about 4-6 months in the fridge), may it be caused by bad film developer? Please fill me in.

The writing on the bottom and top of the film also seems almost faded, is this related to the purple tint?

Chemicals and Specifications
Film: Ilford Panf
Film speed: 50 ISO

Developer: Ilford DDX (1+3) (8min @ 20 degrees)
Stop Bath: Water
Fixer: Ilford Rapid Fix (1+3) (3min @ 20 degrees)

Attached image of film header :

 

[Don_ih]

Looks fine to me.

Edge numbers on PanF tend to fade as the unexposed film ages. I have a bulk roll of PanF that you need to overdevelop heavily to even see the edge numbers.

 

[Joshua02230]

Looks fine to me.

Edge numbers on PanF tend to fade as the unexposed film ages. I have a bulk roll of PanF that you need to overdevelop heavily to evens see the edge numbers.

I think the purple tint is a lot more visible in person, but it's interesting to know that the edge numbers fade, I've kept this roll for a while without shooting it.

 

[Don_ih]

You can always try refixing and rewashing the film to see if the tint comes out. Or just soaking it in water with some sodium sulfite in it (then washing). It really looks insignificant in your photo.

And by "as the unexposed film ages", I mean years - decades, even. PanF doesn't lose speed over a very long time but those numbers disappear.

 

[hgernhardt]

Not sure what caused this, I've used the same bottle of developer for a while now (about 4-6 months in the fridge), may it be caused by bad film developer? Please fill me in.

That looks like a normal roll of B&W to me. I've had film bases that are near-colorless, purplish, and even bluish, and they've all kept well for varying lengths of 5 to 18 years in negative sleeve pages.

 

[Joshua02230]

That looks like a normal roll of B&W to me. I've had film bases that are near-colorless, purplish, and even bluish, and they've all kept well for varying lengths of 5 to 18 years in negative sleeve pages

that's good to know, I'm just curious as to what happened here, since I never experienced this before. Combined with the lighter edge markings, I'm thought something might have gone wrong in the process.

 

[Nicholas Lindan]

The interesting question to answer isn't why the film looked purple this time around but why hasn't it looked purple in the past.

A purple tint is perfectly normal. It tends to be denser and harder to wash out with T-Grain films like Kodak's TMax.

You can get rid of a lot of it by soaking in Hypo Clearing Agent and washing in ~75-80F water. Washing in cold water won't get the dye out. Kodak's HCA is pH buffered to gelatine's 'isoelectric' point (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isoelectric_point).

There are many formulas for HCA. The one I use (and ascribe to Richard Knoppow (who ascribes it to Kodak)) is:

For 1 liter stock solution:

100 gm S. Sulfite
20 gm S. Bisulfite
10 gm S. Citrate

Use 1:4

 

[BMbikerider]

Hello fellow photographers,

I recently developed a roll of panF 50 that I got from a film shop a couple weeks ago. The chemicals I'm using is listed below. The film came out with a purple tint (very slightly but noticeable in the image attached.

Not sure what caused this, I've used the same bottle of developer for a while now (about 4-6 months in the fridge), may it be caused by bad film developer? Please fill me in.

The writing on the bottom and top of the film also seems almost faded, is this related to the purple tint?

Chemicals and Specifications
Film: Ilford Panf
Film speed: 50 ISO

Developer: Ilford DDX (1+3) (8min @ 20 degrees)
Stop Bath: Water
Fixer: Ilford Rapid Fix (1+3) (3min @ 20 degrees)

Attached image of film header :

It is a few years (Well a lot of years) since I used Pan f A after checking my negative sheets these look quite normal to me. What was the expiry date on the film box?

 

[Sundowner]

Looks normal to me as well; PanF is definitely one of the purple-ier options out there. Anecdotally, I think the color of it varies a bit here and there, but I've never noticed a difference in the look and feel...at least not unless I did something bad to it.

 

[retina_restoration]

If you find that there is residual dye left in the film after washing and drying, then consider 1) fixing a bit longer and/or 2) washing the film a bit longer. There can be dyes left in the film if one or both of those steps isn't sufficient. Fixer takes longer to clear a film as it ages and you've run more film through it, so if it takes 60 seconds to clear a film when the fixer is new, it may take twice that time as it approaches exhaustion.

And as Mr. Linden points out, some films have dyes that are far more resistant to fixing and washing out. Often a 2 minute soak in a solution of Sodium sulfite* for two minutes before the final wash will resolve the issue.

A half teaspoon in 500ml of water, mixed when needed is sufficient. I prefer just making it as needed, rather than keeping a stock solution.

 

[reddesert]

Purple tint on film is mostly said to be due to a sensitizing dye. It washes out easier if you use a wash aid like hypo clearing agent or Perma Wash. It may have shown up more on this roll if your wash water was a little different. It almost certainly does not have to do with your developer, and if the exposed film leader is nice and black and your images are ok, there is nothing wrong with your developer.

Pan F film is known for having less latent image retention than most modern films. This is likely why the frame numbers are faint. If it sits around for years the pre-exposed edge printing will disappear entirely.

 

[MattKing]

Way more than you thought you needed to know - a Sticky thread from the late Ron Mowrey/Photo Engineer: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/pink-magenta-stain-not-blue-which-is-a-different-issue.69462/

 

[cmacd123]

Pan - f is known for keeping well in storage, BUT for having a tendency for latent Images to fade. and what are the edge printing, but Laten Images applied at the time of Manufacture.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Refix and rewash, more than once if necessary.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Hello fellow photographers,

I recently developed a roll of panF 50 that I got from a film shop a couple weeks ago. The chemicals I'm using is listed below. The film came out with a purple tint (very slightly but noticeable in the image attached.

Not sure what caused this, I've used the same bottle of developer for a while now (about 4-6 months in the fridge), may it be caused by bad film developer? Please fill me in.

The writing on the bottom and top of the film also seems almost faded, is this related to the purple tint?

Chemicals and Specifications
Film: Ilford Panf
Film speed: 50 ISO

Developer: Ilford DDX (1+3) (8min @ 20 degrees)
Stop Bath: Water
Fixer: Ilford Rapid Fix (1+3) (3min @ 20 degrees)

Attached image of film header :

Not to worry; the tint is caused by the film's anti-halation layer, which hasn't been washed out yet. A prewash, an extra wash cycle before fixing, or an extended final wash will take care of it. In any event, it does not harm and can be ignored.