OP
OP
David William White
Allowing Ads
Well, if you can spare three short rolls, and you've got a free hour, then you should run a little test. Set up a scene with some contrast range, set ISO to 400, and shoot it, bracketing exposure in half stops from +2 to -2. Exactly repeat for two other rolls. Develop one for say 7 minutes, another for 9, and another for 11.
Then the important part: make one contact sheet of all three strips, at filter #2, and find the 'minimum time for maximum black' as they say, doing test strips at fixed intervals like when you print. What you want is the enlarger time so the film rebate (edge & clear areas between frames) is only just indistinguishable from the paper around the film. You want maximum black through clear film. The contact images should be exciting. Record head height, aperture, time and use this always with that film for your contacts. Contacts become diagnostics telling you with each roll if there was something wrong with the exposure (too dark, too light) or if there was something wrong with the development (too flat, too contrasty).
With one properly made contact sheet of the three strips, you will have frames that are dead on with exposure & development. You will have frames that are over and under exposed, and you will have ones that are over and under developed. If you lay the three strips in order of development, you should find nice diagonals, telling you how to adjust development for uprating or downrating the film.
Obviously, you can repeat this test with more test strips, but with three at three different development times, you should be able to get the general sense of rating and development for the film.
So in a nutshell, that is the general method used to determine your development time with your water, your developer, for that film, with the goal of making easy prints on your paper with your enlarger.
Sorry if that was way more method than you were looking for. Here is a shortcut for you. One roll. Shoot the same scene with a typical contrast range, but bracket exposure in half stops from 400. Write down what you did. Then just pick a convenient development time, like 10 minutes. Develop & do the proper contact sheet thing - minimum time for maximum black. There will be one frame better than all the others. Examine and you will find the exposure rating for 10 minutes. Might be 400, might be 250, but then always rate the film there and develop for 10 minutes.
Believe me, it takes longer to describe the method than it takes to do it, actually!
Best,
David.
Then the important part: make one contact sheet of all three strips, at filter #2, and find the 'minimum time for maximum black' as they say, doing test strips at fixed intervals like when you print. What you want is the enlarger time so the film rebate (edge & clear areas between frames) is only just indistinguishable from the paper around the film. You want maximum black through clear film. The contact images should be exciting. Record head height, aperture, time and use this always with that film for your contacts. Contacts become diagnostics telling you with each roll if there was something wrong with the exposure (too dark, too light) or if there was something wrong with the development (too flat, too contrasty).
With one properly made contact sheet of the three strips, you will have frames that are dead on with exposure & development. You will have frames that are over and under exposed, and you will have ones that are over and under developed. If you lay the three strips in order of development, you should find nice diagonals, telling you how to adjust development for uprating or downrating the film.
Obviously, you can repeat this test with more test strips, but with three at three different development times, you should be able to get the general sense of rating and development for the film.
So in a nutshell, that is the general method used to determine your development time with your water, your developer, for that film, with the goal of making easy prints on your paper with your enlarger.
Sorry if that was way more method than you were looking for. Here is a shortcut for you. One roll. Shoot the same scene with a typical contrast range, but bracket exposure in half stops from 400. Write down what you did. Then just pick a convenient development time, like 10 minutes. Develop & do the proper contact sheet thing - minimum time for maximum black. There will be one frame better than all the others. Examine and you will find the exposure rating for 10 minutes. Might be 400, might be 250, but then always rate the film there and develop for 10 minutes.
Believe me, it takes longer to describe the method than it takes to do it, actually!
Best,
David.
