“Sakura” was the brand name used by Konishiroku (小西六) for their photographic films and papers. Konishiroku was one of Japan’s oldest photo companies, founded in the 1870s. Products included Sakura films, papers, and developers.
“Konica” became the company name after Konishiroku Photographic Industries rebranded. In 1987, the company formally changed its name to Konica Corporation. After the brand change, Sakura film became Konica film.
Konidol Fine Developer
Film / Dry-Plate Super Fine-Grain Developer
Konidol Fine
Working Solution: 650 cc
Konidol Fine is a new-generation fine-grain developer created by Konishi.
This liquid fine-grain developer chemically supplements the mixed developing agents used in conventional fine-grain developers, producing a superior fine-grain effect on film without sacrificing practical density or gradation.
With Konidol Fine, even films with normally coarse grain are rendered with remarkably finer grain, and the tonal gradation becomes uniform and smooth.
Compared to ordinary fine-grain developers, its sensitivity loss is very small, making it ideal for 35mm film, where fine grain is especially important.
Konidol Fine, being a liquid concentrate, dissolves easily and, due to the addition of stabilizers, the working solution retains its developing power for a long period.
Another advantage is that it has very little staining, giving clean negatives.
Preparation Method
Konidol Fine is supplied as two solutions, A and B, to make 650 cc of working solution. Warm about 450 cc of water to 50–60°C, Add solution A, mix thoroughly, Add solution B, mix again, Then add cold water to reach a total of 650 cc.
If the water is too cold, chemicals may precipitate. If used while turbid or not fully dissolved, the developer’s performance will suffer. When the developer is ready, use it immediately, and after development, discard it—it is a one-shot developer, not reusable.
Film Speed When Using Konidol Fine
When developing film in Konidol Fine, the following exposure indices (ASA values) should be used: (note, this corresponds to 1/2 box speed)
Film Type ASA
Konipan SSS 100
Konipan SS 50
Konipan S 25
(note the S, SS, and SSS naming were also used by Fujifilm for their B&W line which was initially 50, 100, and 200 speed)
Development Times (20°C)
Konipan SSS Film …… 10 min
Konipan SS Film …… 8 min
Konipan S Film …… 7 min
Infrared 750 Film …… 7 min
Films developed in Konidol Fine show excellent stability, reduced risk of softening or damage, and very clean negatives.
Konidol Fine gives extremely fine grain, beautiful gradation, and is especially recommended for 35mm film.
Konitone Developer
Photographic Printing Paper Developer
Working Solution: 1000 cc
Konitone is a new type of developer designed for all Sakura-brand papers and all other photographic printing papers.
It provides excellent tone, clean whites, rich blacks, and strong image permanence.
This developer uses phenidone as the main developing agent.
This eliminates several drawbacks found in conventional MQ (Metol–Hydroquinone) developers and provides numerous advantages.
Konitone reproduces five tonal regions (from deep shadows to bright highlights) with exceptional clarity.
It also preserves delicate tonal differences and faithfully renders subtle textures.
Because it does not use metol as the primary agent, it has very little tendency to cause skin irritation, even with prolonged use.
In addition, the developer’s highly effective agents exhibit strong developing action, allowing development times to be cut nearly in half compared to typical MQ developers—making Konitone extremely economical.
An example of Tri-X @800 ASA in Konidol:
