Ways to increase contrast in negative?

get_me_a_gun · Mar 30, 2007

Im shooting a fashion project with 4x5 film, and I want to increase contrast in the development of the negatives. Im sure there are lots of ways to do this, Id appreciate some tips.
Thanks!

David A. Goldfarb · Mar 30, 2007

The easiest, if you haven't exposed the film yet, is to extend the development time. Run some tests under the lighting conditions you will be using to see how much you need for the effect you want--10%, 20%, 40%. Once you figure out about how much is right, run another test to see if you might get better results by reducing exposure slightly--on the order of 1/3 to 1 stop.

chrisofwlp · Mar 30, 2007

You can increase contrast several ways. The easiest is to increase development time. Increase by how much is the big question. The best thing to do is test. Take several (4-5) exposures under the same lighting conditions that you will be working. Now you need to develope each sheet for a different amount of time, start with an increase of about 25-50% from your standard time (this should give you about twice as much contrast). Use the rest of your test exposures to determine how much you need to increase development to achieve the required contrast.

One of the most important things in photography is discovering the exposure & development combination that works for you.

If you are serious about LF, and you tray process, look into development by inspection. It is an indispensable tool.

http://www.michaelandpaula.com/mp/devinsp.html

TheFlyingCamera · Mar 30, 2007

Another thing you can do to boost contrast is to increase agitation frequency/duration. If you're rotary processing, you can just increase the speed of the rotation. In a hand-tank, double the length of each agitation cycle to start with. If tray processing, process fewer sheets at a time so the shuffle occurs more often. I would not recommend this method for deep-tank because of developer surge marks that can form where the drain holes in the racks create additional turbulence. For the same reason, in hand-tanks it is suspect as well.

Roger Hicks · Mar 30, 2007

get_me_a_gun said:
Im shooting a fashion project with 4x5 film, and I want to increase contrast in the development of the negatives. Im sure there are lots of ways to do this, Id appreciate some tips.
Thanks!

More development = more contrast. Ways to achieve more development:

1 Develop longer

2 Use warmer developer

3 Use more concentrated developer

4 Increase agitation

Any increase in development will also increase sensity. If this is a problem:

5 Cut exposure

Cheers,

R.

Akki14 · Mar 30, 2007

unhelpful to original poster but this has just made me realise why all my negatives from when I was learning were higher contrast to what I do now. I was doing agitations every 30seconds, not every minute because that's how my photography teacher taught us. Might try doing that again if that's how to get contrasty results.

fhovie · Mar 30, 2007

one thing to keep in mind is that making the developer stronger will also likely reduce film speed and will give you a dense negative with lost shadows. - I am not sure that is the best solution (he he) anyway. Another way is make the developer weaker and develop longer (like 30 min to 50 min) and only aggitate every 7 minutes or so. This will not only give you more contrast - it will also increase your film speed and add accutance (the benefit that goes well with increased contrast) I would not cut film speed though. It is usually a recipe for disaster. You will be breaking out the hydrogen permanganate to regain your shadows.

Vaughn · Mar 31, 2007

Post development, one can selenium tone the neg...Kodak Selenium toner perhaps 1:3. Good for a half a grade, perhaps one grade more of contrast.

With a neg with heafty shadows, I have lightly bleached the neg to thin the shadows a little, then selenium toned to boost contrast. Sort of a double whammy!

Vaughn

Ways to increase contrast in negative?

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