Newbie wrestling with Acros 100 , D-76 and kodafix

rince · Jul 25, 2011

Hi there,
I have not developed a roll of film in 20 years since last night. And looking at the result I kind of get an idea why I did not
So I hope some of you may help me out a little and be patient with my stupid questions.

Film Acros 100 (120)
System 4 tank
D-76 1:1 , kodafix, HCA

Looking at the results I would say the negs are a little overcooked in the developer, The contrast is much, much to high. Grain is great and sharpens is fine.

I used the agitation pattern given on the kodak page and kept a close eye on time and temperature. Still I seem to do something essentially wrong.

If you have some advice for me, I would be really excited to hear it and learn from you. Also if you have an opinion about the developer fixer I use, I would be really happy, since I do not really know what I am doing and would like to hear your advice.

Thx in advance
Dennis

trexx · Jul 25, 2011

Welcome to the group and welcome back to developing.
Some more information could help. Time and temperature of your development.

From what you describe too long or too hot in the developer.

Rick A · Jul 25, 2011

You didn't by any chance use the time for D-76 1+3 (17 min) instead of for 1+1(10.5 min). Also, temp for that time is 20c or 68f. One other point, you may be overexposed, you need to run a personal iso test for your camera.

tomalophicon · Jul 25, 2011

I can tell you one thing that may help you at least to get closer to what you want.

I'm developing Acros in ID11, which I've heard is close to, if not exactly the same as D76. I'm also using it 1:1.

I've found a time of 8 mins, with 10 seconds twirly agitation at the start, and 10 seconds agitation at the start of each minute after that, is giving me a tiny bit too much contarast in normal conditions for my liking. at 7:30 or even 7:45 I reckon it will be great.

However, I am metering my film at 64, not 100. Have a look at that too.

Maybe that will help you.

How long are you developing for? Your developer choice is a good one!

markbarendt · Jul 25, 2011

Well first things first. When in doubt follow the instructions. By that I mean as exactly as you can for dilution, temp, time, and agitation.

Second, shoot a test roll with your meter set at box speed of a very average consistently lit scene. Use an incident meter if possible, if not use a gray card. Start 5 or 6-stops underexposed, then open up one stop per frame until you run the roll to the end.

Develop and print normally, no corrections. Adjust your metering to match the negative that works best.

rince · Jul 25, 2011

Wow, thank you all so much. So many great answers in a few minutes. Thank you for all the great tips and I will do my best to follow your instructions. Also thank you for being patient with me and my obviously incomplete posting.

So I run the process at 22C and my development time was 8min45sec.
The whole process was:
- presoak in water for 1 min
- Develop 8min 45s at 22C
(initial agitation and then every 30 secs)
- 1 min water for stopping development
- fixing time 4min
- 3 min HCA
- 15 min wash

Thank you also for pointing at the camera and the exposures.

Thank you very much for such great advice.

Dennis

MattKing · Jul 25, 2011

Thermometers can also be wrong.

tomalophicon · Jul 25, 2011

Eliminate 1 variable at a time too. If you change 2 things in the process you may not know which one helps.

Monito · Jul 25, 2011

Development can continue in a water stop bath for longer than the nominal development time. Try an acid stop bath.

sewarion · Jul 26, 2011

Monito said:
Development can continue in a water stop bath for longer than the nominal development time. Try an acid stop bath.

i second that. and the higher the temperature, the more severe this issue may become. if possible, you should try to switch over to 20°C/68°F. sure, there are conversion tables and the like, but most instructions refer to 20/68, and 90+% of all users are developing at this temperature, so it is much easier to directly apply instructions/advice.

what agitation scheme are you using? and why do you presoak? the times you find in most instructions are without presoak (dunno to what extent this might be relevant, but it's just another little variable).

cheers,
sewarion

rince · Jul 26, 2011

sewarion said:
what agitation scheme are you using? and why do you presoak? the times you find in most instructions are without presoak (dunno to what extent this might be relevant, but it's just another little variable).

cheers,
sewarion

Hi,
when it comes to agitation I do :
- 10 inversions to begin
- 7 inversions every 30 seconds

I read that pre-soaking helps the film, container and reel to come to temperature before the developer comes in. It will also dissolve the halation layer.

Again, I have no clue and I am just repeating what I read elsewhere.

I will go and get a stop today and try another roll tonight.

Thank you everyone again!
Dennis

trexx · Jul 26, 2011

10 inversions to start seems Low to me, and
7 inversions every 30 seems high to me

20 to start, 3 every 30. In the end it does not matter, you have to adjust something; Time, Temp, Agitation. What matters is once you have something that works stay consistent. and until you get there change only one thing at a time.

Just think of all the rolls of film you get to shoot seeking perfection. that reminds me, I've got to get out and shoot more, cause I got a lot more learning to do.

Rick A · Jul 26, 2011

Thats a bit much on the agitation. I agitate first 30 seconds then four inversions on the minute. Sometimes it looks like too much contrast with that, depending on lighting film was shot in. I also presoak for three minutes. Try keeping temp down to 20c for this, even if chem temps rise during development it will not increase contrast as much as if you started at the higher temp(IMHO).

rince · Jul 26, 2011

trexx said:
10 inversions to start seems Low to me, and
7 inversions every 30 seems high to me

20 to start, 3 every 30. In the end it does not matter, you have to adjust something; Time, Temp, Agitation.

Thank you so much. I will definitely try this. I will get a stop bath today and will run one roll as before and then I will try your agitation pattern with a second roll.

rince · Jul 26, 2011

Rick A said:
Thats a bit much on the agitation. I agitate first 30 seconds then four inversions on the minute. Sometimes it looks like too much contrast with that, depending on lighting film was shot in. I also presoak for three minutes. Try keeping temp down to 20c for this, even if chem temps rise during development it will not increase contrast as much as if you started at the higher temp(IMHO).

Thank you Rick. I am really glad for all the advice I am getting here and it seems the common things are, that my agitation pattern is off,temperature to high and that I might want to try using a stop bath other than water.

I will work on those three parameters.

John Wiegerink · Jul 26, 2011

MattKing said:
Thermometers can also be wrong.

Tell me about it! I had an Omega digital thermometer that I mounted on the wall by my darkroom sink and the coiled probe would reach all areas of the sink. It was a slick set-up until the thermometer decided it wanted to play games. I started having some problems with one of my tried & true film/developer combos and couldn't figure out why. In the film processing game there are so many variable or things that can go wrong that it makes it difficult to pin-point the problem. I mixed up a new batch of developer and that didn't help solve he problem. I stood there scratching my head and looking straight at the thermometer. I said, "what the heck" and filled a beaker with tap water, stuck the probe in and took a reading. Then I dug out my Kodak lab thermometer Class I and took a reading. You guessed it, way off was the Omega. I then recalibrated the Omega, but it wouldn't hold calibration so now it's history andf long gone. If you are using a liquid filled one odds are it's pretty darn close, but digital and dial types can be miles off without one knowing it. JohnW

Ronald Moravec · Jul 27, 2011

Kodak says 5 to 7 inversions with a stainless tank. Plastic Patterson ones have a lot of empty space in the top making inversion much more efficient. Two inversions is sufficient.

Use the twisty stick for initial 30 sec upon immersion. Cap and invert from then on. PER PATERSON INSTRUCTIONS if you have them.

No presoak is required. No film manufacture says to do it. Ilford says say NOT to do it.

Temper the tank with film 5 min in water bathe with a weight on it.

Keep photoflow away from plastic reels unless you want them to get sticky and hard to load.

rince · Jul 27, 2011

Ronald Moravec said:
Kodak says 5 to 7 inversions with a stainless tank. Plastic Patterson ones have a lot of empty space in the top making inversion much more efficient. Two inversions is sufficient.

Use the twisty stick for initial 30 sec upon immersion. Cap and invert from then on. PER PATERSON INSTRUCTIONS if you have them.

No presoak is required. No film manufacture says to do it. Ilford says say NOT to do it.

Temper the tank with film 5 min in water bathe with a weight on it.

Keep photoflow away from plastic reels unless you want them to get sticky and hard to load.

Thank you! I learned a lot thanks to this thread. I developed a new roll of film tonight and even though it is not completely dry yet, I can already see a big difference. Thank all of you! I guess the reduced agitation and the stop bath really made a big impact. I am so happy I found this forum and thank you so much for helping an absolute beginner out!

2F/2F · Jul 27, 2011

Can you show us a pic of the negs? Then we could see whether they are overdeveloped or overexposed...or maybe both.

Newbie wrestling with Acros 100 , D-76 and kodafix

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