How many film developers?

[grahamp]

These days I mix my own film developers. Thornton's Two bath has been a standby for many years. That's a metol/sodium sulphite part A, and (usually) a sodium metaborate part B.

For the past year I have been trying Karl Mattias' PC-512 Borax (phenidone and vitamin C in propylene glycol, mixed with an aqueous borax solution just before development.

Both do what I want with roll and sheet film.

 

[Radost]

Only well seasoned Xtol replenished. All my films, even mixed types and batches, go through this developer for the same developing time. Negative density are matched in advance by well calibrated exposure. Differences in contrast are accommodated by printing on variable contrast paper. All very simple and convenient, I think.

Jobo or hand inversions?

 

[Sirius Glass]

Jobo or hand inversions?

Both with replenished XTOL. Maris' comments go to my comment about XTOL is very forgiving.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Ones that I can mix from scratch, with the exception of XTol and Adotech IV.
Pyrocat-HD, 510-Pyro, Obsidian Aqua, PC-TEA, PC-512, D-23, FX-55, Caffenol, POTA (for CMS 20)...

 

[JerseyDoug]

Just two developers: Rodinal for films slower than ISO 400 and for Tri-X, which I shoot at ISO 320. Ilfosol 3 for all other ISO 400 films. I only use 35mm film and don't use films faster than ISO 400.

 

[chuckroast]

Ones that I can mix from scratch, with the exception of XTol and Adotech IV.
Pyrocat-HD, 510-Pyro, Obsidian Aqua, PC-TEA, PC-512, D-23, FX-55, Caffenol, POTA (for CMS 20)...

Have you ever mixed your own PMK?

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Have you ever mixed your own PMK?

I did, yes. Back in the late 90's. I also used the modified version, Rollo Pyro, for rotary. It was my intro into the world of staining developers (along with Hutching's Book of Pyro). I used it for a couple of years, then switched to Pyrocat-HD. I preferred the look of Pyrocat-HD it was giving me on silver gel. VC over PMK/Rollo, at the time.

 

[albireo]

Fomadon Excel
Fomadon LQN
Fomadon R09/Adox Rodinal (depending on what I find)
Ingredients for D23

I have had a brief clandestine relationship with Adox D76 and Adox XT-3, but the Foma chemicals above do all I need and are cheaper.

For the rest there is the peerless D23, which I prefer 1+1 one shot.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Fomadon Excel
Fomadon LQN
Fomadon R09/Adox Rodinal (depending on what I find)
Ingredients for D23

I have had a brief clandestine relationship with Adox D76 and Adox XT-3, but the Foma chemicals above do all I need and are cheaper.

For the rest there is the peerless D23, which I prefer 1+1 one shot.

It is pretty hard to beat D23! I think Pan F and D23 1+3 is a heavenly match.

 

[albireo]

It is pretty hard to beat D23! I think Pan F and D23 1+3 is a heavenly match.

Nice. Never tried Pan F. Thanks for the D23 tip.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Nice. Never tried Pan F. Thanks for the D23 tip.

EI 25

 

[chuckroast]

Nice. Never tried Pan F. Thanks for the D23 tip.

If I didn't have Pyrocat-HD at my disposal, D-23 would probably be my daily driver. It's incredibly versatile.

In ordinary use, it's a compensating developer.

You can comfortably dilute it out to 1+4 or so and use it for extended semistand/EMA development.

You can super dilute it at 1+9 by adding a small amount of lye to it, do extended development and get very high acuity negatives - very nice for larger formats.

You can use divided techniques with it.

Plus, it's dirt cheap to make. 2 chemicals, distilled water, and an old glass beer growler and you're in business.

 

[albireo]

If I didn't have Pyrocat-HD at my disposal, D-23 would probably be my daily driver. It's incredibly versatile.

In ordinary use, it's a compensating developer.

You can comfortably dilute it out to 1+4 or so and use it for extended semistand/EMA development.

You can super dilute it at 1+9 by adding a small amount of lye to it, do extended development and get very high acuity negatives - very nice for larger formats.

Ah yes I had noted down this advice of yours a while ago. Keen to try it. I haven't managed yet. So far I've tried the usual (stock, 1:1, 1:2, 1:3) and with the 120 film I use (mostly 400 ISO stuff) I thought 1:1 ticked all the boxes but you never know.

 

[chuckroast]

Ah yes I had noted down this advice of yours a while ago. Keen to try it. I haven't managed yet. So far I've tried the usual (stock, 1:1, 1:2, 1:3) and with the 120 film I use (mostly 400 ISO stuff) I thought 1:1 ticked all the boxes but you never know.

I would not recommend it for 35mm (unless you like a kind of gritty look) but in 9x12 or 4x5 it's pretty amazing.

Even at 1+4 in semistand/EMA it's pretty great as is.

 

[Maris]

Jobo or hand inversions?

Paterson Super System 4 tanks and reels. Five inversions per minute with development time adjusted for whatever the ambient temperature happens to be. Sub-tropical climate here means I never get 20C or below.

 

[dalahorse]

I [re]use stock Perceptol for PanF+, FP4+, and Delta 3200, and ID-11 for HP5+. I find both work great for 8+ 120 or 135 rolls, and last at least six months in full glass bottles with polyseal caps.

 

[JensH]

Hi,

how many? Four:

Moersch MZB, a 2-bath dev., great with 120/135 PanF Plus, TriX, TMY2 and Delta 3200.
Not for rotation, so 4x5" sheets get D76 (should test Pyrocat here...)

Pyrocat, the classic Windisch formula (in german "Brenzkatechin-Ausgleich-Entwickler nach Windisch", I call it Pyrocat-W, a pure Pyrocat without Metol etc.), very nice for FP4 Plus, HP5 Plus, TriX in 120.

Kodak D76 for TMX, TMY2, Acros 100, HSIR in 4x5", rotated in a Jobo drum.

Rodinal (Adox) for PanF Plus when more contrast is needed. And for vintage glass plates...

 

[Radost]

Both with replenished XTOL. Maris' comments go to my comment about XTOL is very forgiving.

I had issues with Jobo and Xtol R

 

[Steven Lee]

Just two developers: Rodinal for films slower than ISO 400 and for Tri-X, which I shoot at ISO 320. Ilfosol 3 for all other ISO 400 films. I only use 35mm film and don't use films faster than ISO 400.

Interesting! How do you compare Ilfosol 3 and Rodinal? I have gotten into Ilfosol only maybe a year ago, and after two bottles I concluded that it's basically a modern Rodinal, sans keeping properties. Why not Ilfosol 3 for everything?

 

[RalphLambrecht]

How many film developers do you have on your shelf and why?
I'm currently using ID11 and have a bottle of , long lasting, Rodinal on the shelf that I seldom use.
When available XTOL is on my return to use list but 5 ltrs will tie me to it for too long.
Others include Ilfosol and Michrophen.
Again I will finish up with some wasted !

I use amost exlusively Kodak D-76 1+!

 

[JerseyDoug]

Interesting! How do you compare Ilfosol 3 and Rodinal? I have gotten into Ilfosol only maybe a year ago, and after two bottles I concluded that it's basically a modern Rodinal, sans keeping properties. Why not Ilfosol 3 for everything.

In my experience, Ilfosol 3 and Rodinal both produce sharper looking prints than the other developers I have used, but the representation of the grain in my prints is different with some films. For example, I prefer the look of Tri-X in Rodinal and the look of HP5 Plus in Ilfosol 3. There are differences in the middle tones too but I can easily deal with them in post processing of the scans.

 

[Marcelo Paniagua]

Currently Clayton F76+ (general developer) and either POTA ot Phenidone/Vitamin C developer for Aviphot 40 and 200.

Really like F76+ on most of the films I use. Great developer.

 

[uranylcation]

HC-110 and Rodinal for the shelf life and convenience. I don't shoot often enough to keep anything else.

 

[mrosenlof]

In the last year: E-76 100% I have a bottle each of HC-110 and Rodinal on the shelf also. In the five years before 2023: Mostly HC-110 1+49, Rodinal for Pan-F, occasional use of PC-glycol variants.

Since I'm mixing E-76 fresh for each use, I have developer components on hand which I also use for E-72 paper developer.

 

[abruzzi]

PyrocatHD - for most things
HC-110 - for fast tests (has to be the fastest developer I've used)
Rodinal - I've found it best for Fuji HR-U X-Ray film

I actually really like X-tol and have a half dozen pre-sinopromise packs, but work is killing me so my photography is taking a back seat. I shoot a 120 roll or a couple sheets a month, so I don't want to mix up the Xtol just to have half of it expire on me.