Long shot - anyone used Fotospeed developer FD10? Other budget options?

[mrtoml]

I am going to shoot some film now that I have set up a decent fast scanning rig. I just dug out my Hexar AF, Canon EOS 5, and Nikon F90. Unfortunately the F90 is dead after a battery leak.

I am sticking to FP4 and HP5 for the time being.

However, I have now become aware of the significant increase in prices for films and chemistry (in the UK at least) since I last did this. I just bought some Pyro developer and was hunting for another more 'normal' developer and the cheapest seems to be Fotospeed FD10. So I ordered a small bottle to give it a try.

Not much information available about it. Has anyone used it? Are there any other budget chemistry options available I should be aware of in the UK?

 

[Kevin Allan]

I used FD10 early on in my developing history. Had no problems with it; I'm sure it will work just fine for you.

I have attached a few examples of photos developed with FD10

The first is medium format TMax 100; the other two are 35mm Rollei RPX 100

 

[mrtoml]

I used FD10 early on in my developing history. Had no problems with it; I'm sure it will work just fine for you.

I have attached a few examples of photos developed with FD10

The first is medium format TMax 100; the other two are 35mm Rollei RPX 100

View attachment 4890981View attachment 4890982View attachment 4890983

Thanks. Those are really nice.

 

[Freakscene]

I am going to shoot some film now that I have set up a decent fast scanning rig. I just dug out my Hexar AF, Canon EOS 5, and Nikon F90. Unfortunately the F90 is dead after a battery leak.

I am sticking to FP4 and HP5 for the time being.

However, I have now become aware of the significant increase in prices for films and chemistry (in the UK at least) since I last did this. I just bought some Pyro developer and was hunting for another more 'normal' developer and the cheapest seems to be Fotospeed FD10. So I ordered a small bottle to give it a try.

Not much information available about it. Has anyone used it? Are there any other budget chemistry options available I should be aware of in the UK?

I used pretty much all the Fotospeed stuff in the 1990s. I won a competition that they sponsored and the prize was a giant crate of products.

FD10 is a standard liquid hydroquinone-phenidone developer. It will work fine with any film, but you might have to come up with your own times if you are using films that don’t appear on the data sheet. It is quite alkaline, and might be a little grainier than some choices, but probably not so much you’d worry about it. In 2026 seeing the grain just reminds you that it’s a film photo.