Incidentally I found their description of their rapid fix funny: “It contains no Hypo so does not require a Hypo Clearing Agent prior to washing.”
The MSDS - WHMIS sheet says that their fixer containsBut it is probably a very bad interpretation of an Ammonium Thiosulfate fixer, which under some circumstances doesn't benefit much from KHCA.
Based on the MSDS this developer appears to be a commercialized version of PC-TEA so people who have used that might be able to comment on working characteristics.
What I quoted seemed so astounding to me that I wanted to be sure I had interpreted correctly what the site had said. It looks as if I have. It indicates that the site has at best just plucked 2 developers out of thin air and attributed the claim to them arbitrarily and at worst has made such a claim to deliberately cast its own new developer in a shining light as a "breakthrough" developer by consciously attributing false claims on other makers' developers.
have fun with the developer! im excited to hear how it you like it.Ha, it seems there is no one more skeptical than a film shooter. I think once I finish setting up my darkroom, I will do a side by side test on how it works against another developer. As always thanks for evreyones input. Missed cruising an interacting in the forums.
I will do a review once I get it. Also ordering Rodinal because I haven't developed anything in over thirty years.have fun with the developer! im excited to hear how it you like it.
I hope Flic does well with it! its great to hear of new products that are released or ones that have been around forever and people seem to just get discover/
John
I will do a review once I get it. Also ordering Rodinal because I haven't developed anything in over thirty years.
I just ordered a bottle. Look forward to hearing your thoughts.
- this is a rather odd article as it includes HC-110 in a category of "speed" developers before making a strange comment about "pushed" film:
The three developers widely known for their incredible speed-boosting abilities are Ilfotec DD-X, and Microphen, and HC-110. Of the two, Microphen is the best developer created for pushing film, having been created for that exact purpose. This developer is also cheaper, and comes in 1L boxes, making it the perfect choice for photographers who only have a small amount of film that they want to push.
But Microphen is a powdered developer, which can be more difficult to use than a liquid developer. If powdered developers aren’t your thing, the next best developer for pushing film is also one of the most popular developers available.
HC-110 is another honorable mention on this list. It doesn’t provide a speed boost, but it does reduce the graininess of pushed negatives compared to other developers.
Ha. Full disclosure — I didn’t read the entire article; was focused more on the photo comparisons.
OK, received the bottle of Black, White, and Green film developer and have developed a roll of Tri-X with it. Here are my thoughts;
1. THIS STUFF IS VISCOUS. When it arrived, it looked much like a bottle of mostly crystallized honey, with a very little still oozy. In fact, I had to resist an urge to put some in my tea, but I digress. I assumed the crystallization was due to cold temps during transit, and I reckoned a day at room temperature (-ish, I left it in my basement which can dip into the lower 60s F) would return it to liquid form. Nothing doing! A day later, and it was still mostly crystallized. So, I ended up putting the bottle in a water bath -- 110F for twenty minutes, and this returned it to its liquid (thought still very viscous) state. On that note:
2. In order to get it properly diluted for development, I used 25C water which seemed to be about right to get it quickly incorporated; anything lower and I was stirring madly, and, looking for a way to get the remnants of the 10ml pour out of my graduated cylinder. Once incorporated, I poured cooler water in to reach 20C (well, to be very, very clear, I actually develop at 22C, so all numbers below were converted to 22, but I'll state them at 20 as that seems to be the standard).
3. Side-by-side comparison with HC-110 was interesting. Even though the website and reviews talk about the restrainers used in this developer, my negs developed with BWG were noticeably denser than the same shots developed with HC-110. Particulars:
A. Shot the same scene on two rolls of Tri-X 120. Same camera, same lens, same lighting.
B. Developed one roll with HC-110, Dilution H at 8 mins 20C [6:30 for 22C] (8 mins is a compromise between Tri-X spec sheet recommended time of 3.75 minutes with Dilution B, and Massive Dev recommendation of 4.5 minutes Dilution B)
C. Developed second roll with BWG at the recommended 13 mins, 20C [10:30 for 22C].
D. Same agitation both rolls: 1 minute (first minute), then ten seconds each following minute.
I swapped a few emails with the company to ask them about the crystallization. They stated that the freezing point of the concoction is 7C, and that it is a "poor conductor" which likely explains why it took so long to re-incorporate the crystals. Big kudos for Flic for being so responsive to my emails.
So...not sure yet how I ended up with denser negatives despite my expectation of thinner ones; I'll have to shoot another roll. I use a sous-vide to maintain a stable water temperature, so I am fairly confident I did not over-cook temperature wise. Perhaps too much agitation? There are no agitation instructions on the bottle, just time/temp, so I cannot comment on that.
Here’s an interesting visual comparison of negs developed in Black, White, and Green and several other developers:
https://www.learnfilm.photography/does-the-bw-film-developer-matter-and-which-one-is-right-for-you/
Great write up. I might give it a try after once I get my darkroom knowledge back. Do you see it replacing your other developers? I am pretty sure I am going to start off with good ol Rodinal. but we will see. I am looking forward to experimenting with different developers.
Thanks for sharing.
Well, difficult to say. I haven’t shot film yet this year, and need to develop another few rolls before answering. One thing is for certain, I LOVE the simplicity of HC-110. No temperature hassles, no mess, no worries. B, W, & G is going to really have to demonstrate extraordinary shadow detail improvement over HC-110 to prompt me to change.
On that note - I notice that my bottle of B, W, & G has re-crystallized.
Did you do any more experimentation with B,W &G? Just come across it, and it would fit my needs well for developing on the road, but not willing to compromise on what I'm used to with D76/ID11.
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