Michel Hardy-Vallée
Membership Council
Finally, stopping to try everything haphazardly has paid off substantially: I have a normal procedure for 35mm that is dependable and reliable!
For my Spotmatic F, on Tri-X in XTOL 1+1, I have done an EI test, and a development test. I have now an EI of 250, a development time of 8mins, and when I make a proper proof on grade 2, I can see which negatives are properly exposed, and which are over/under. I have settled on a simple metering technique using the camera's TTL centerweighted meter, and it's enough to give me negatives that are properly exposed.
I have now a position on my enlarger, an aperture, and an exposure time to make proof sheets that work each time.
For a negative that is properly exposed, regardless of whether it's a low contrast scene or a high contrast scene, I need about 13-15s at f5.6 for an 8x10 with my 50mm lens.
If the contrast is normal, I need a Grade 2.5, as the tone scale of a G2 print is not "normal" enough to my eyes.
If the subject is less contrasty, then from 3 to 4. I don't really need lower grades because I try to avoid extreme contrast ranges (e.g. black cats in shadows + white dog in the sun).
I develop, stop, and fix my paper according to a fixed sequence, but I know the effect of agitating more (a tad more contrast), or developing longer (midtones/shadows darkening), which I can use for further refinement.
That means I can now do a workprint in just the time it takes to put it in the easel, expose, and process. Heck, I could print my photos as fast as the minilab! If I care about a photo, now I can start from a reliable workprint, and gradually refine it. Otherwise, I have a pretty picture that I can file for later thinking.
And I thought I was so smart to have all these different cameras, films, film developers, papers, and paper developers! In a way, having them gave me an insight into other possibilities, and I'm glad that they're stashed for later. But I understand a little bit more now how useful it is to have an entire chain that works, and that you can tailor according to the circumstances: now I can finally think about something else than the technique!
For my Spotmatic F, on Tri-X in XTOL 1+1, I have done an EI test, and a development test. I have now an EI of 250, a development time of 8mins, and when I make a proper proof on grade 2, I can see which negatives are properly exposed, and which are over/under. I have settled on a simple metering technique using the camera's TTL centerweighted meter, and it's enough to give me negatives that are properly exposed.
I have now a position on my enlarger, an aperture, and an exposure time to make proof sheets that work each time.
For a negative that is properly exposed, regardless of whether it's a low contrast scene or a high contrast scene, I need about 13-15s at f5.6 for an 8x10 with my 50mm lens.
If the contrast is normal, I need a Grade 2.5, as the tone scale of a G2 print is not "normal" enough to my eyes.
If the subject is less contrasty, then from 3 to 4. I don't really need lower grades because I try to avoid extreme contrast ranges (e.g. black cats in shadows + white dog in the sun).
I develop, stop, and fix my paper according to a fixed sequence, but I know the effect of agitating more (a tad more contrast), or developing longer (midtones/shadows darkening), which I can use for further refinement.
That means I can now do a workprint in just the time it takes to put it in the easel, expose, and process. Heck, I could print my photos as fast as the minilab! If I care about a photo, now I can start from a reliable workprint, and gradually refine it. Otherwise, I have a pretty picture that I can file for later thinking.
And I thought I was so smart to have all these different cameras, films, film developers, papers, and paper developers! In a way, having them gave me an insight into other possibilities, and I'm glad that they're stashed for later. But I understand a little bit more now how useful it is to have an entire chain that works, and that you can tailor according to the circumstances: now I can finally think about something else than the technique!