First time Developer Arista films and D-76

[kbrede]

A few weeks ago I got a couple older film cameras and have shot about six rolls. Now I'd like to take the next step and start developing the negatives. I thought I'd start working with 'Arista EDU Ultra B&W 100 ISO' and 'Arista Premium B&W 400 ISO' from FreeStyle, since that film is so inexpensive. I'm using D-76 for developer. I looked up development times for the two films. The Arista Premium 400 documentation on FreeStyle gives one time for full strength and 1:1. OTOH Arista EDU 100 lists a range of times:

Kodak D-76 Stock 6 - 7 (min)
Kodak D-76 1:1 8 - 10 (min)

I could just start at 6 minutes, using stock, and try 7 minutes the next time, and so on. But I thought maybe someone would have some thoughts on a good place to start for 'time in developer' for this film. Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Kent

 

[tkamiya]

Welcome to APUG!

Slightly under-developed film are easier to print than over-developed one. My suggestion would be start with low end of the time and evaluate. If they come up thin, increase it by 30 seconds at a time.

Arista Premium 400 is a great film. The common belief here is that it's really a Kodak Tri-X 400 in private label.

 

[kbrede]

Thanks for the welcome and the response Tkamiya. I don't have a darkroom yet. I'll be using a scanner and working the images into my digital workflow. Not too analog of me but I'm doing this a step at a time. Anyway, does what you suggest still hold true, if I'm going to digitize the photos?
Thanks,
Kent

 

[tkamiya]

I'll PM you shortly.

 

[Newt_on_Swings]

Yes for the arista premium you can use tri x times. At 400-800 6:45 sec @68f. Good luck! And have fun!

 

[BrendanCarlson]

D76 works great for Arista films. I would slightly under develop for scans because its easier to push exposure up rather than pull highlights down. Also make sure you dry your negatives sufficiently. Have fun, and welcome to the world of developing your own film.

 

[Railfan]

Arista.EDU Ultra 100 is made in the Czech Republic. The instructions in the box give a D-76 developing time of 6-7 min @ 68 degrees F, with continuous agitation for the first 30 seconds and thereafter 5 seconds agitation every 30 seconds. The film reminds me of Plus-X in the 1970s (the base even has a bluish tint). The attached photo (6x7 cm negative) was processed according to these directions, with a 6 1/2 minute development time.

Gary