film denisity and agitation

[mitch brown]

hi all
sorry for another not so smart question.
I have changed from tray processing to using a slosh tray for developing my 4 x 5 film and checking my zone nine density ( that what I calibrate on) I found that my neg's developed in xtol 1;1 for 10:30 @ 68 agitate for the 1st min then 5 sec every 30 sec are not as dense as the when I was tray processing for the same length of time . is this due to the change in processing?
thanks
Mitch

 

[Richard T Ritter]

Yes.

 

[Bruce Watson]

Is this due to the change in processing?

Yes it is.

 

[edtbjon]

A little bit more elaborate answer would be that in tray processing the developer often heats up a bit due to dipping the fingers in the dev. during the whole process. Also, the agitation pattern is (obviously) different with the slosher. All of these factors matter.

//Björn

 

[nworth]

Even in a tank, increased agitation causes more development and more contrast in a given time. Development recommendations often list different times (and different dilutions) for tray and tank processing. For a given dilution, tank processing times, with intermittent agitation) are generally about 20 percent longer than tray (with continuous agitation).