B&W developing help

[ravid905]

I've been thinking lately alot about developing my own neg's. I am having the most trouble trying to figure out exactly everything that I will need in order to do it. If anyone ( I'm guessing quite a few here will be able to actually, which is why I ask here ) can put a complete list of tools needed to do this. Do I need timers, beakers, tanks ( what kind? ), fixers, stoppers, blah blah blah. Another thing I am wondering is film manufacturer recommended times for agitation, etc. the most reliable way of getting decent results with their specified film? I've taken the time to download as many pdf's as I can find for the films that I use. Last question I have, is there anywhere where I would be able to find the same info for films not native to North America, i.e. Lucky and other Chinese/Russian/whatever films? I know quite a few people who travel back to their native lands, India and Vietnam being two, if that helps narrow down film types that anyone knows about, and they said they would grab some if I asked.

 

[kaiyen]

First off, my page might help: http://photos.kaiyen.com/pages/chemicals.html

Do I need timers, beakers, tanks ( what kind? ), fixers, stoppers, blah blah blah.

Yes. 🙂

You will need at least a timer. I prefer digital kitchen ones - the cheapest ones I can find. You'll need at least a couple of beakers (1 for dev, 1 for everything else), and a developing tank. Other chemicals are listed on my site.

Another thing I am wondering is film manufacturer recommended times for agitation, etc. the most reliable way of getting decent results with their specified film

No time from anyone is the most reliable way. They are merely starting points. You need to adjust from there. You need to always adjust to get the right time for yourself.

A good place to start for a lot of times for film and dev combinations is the massive dev chart at http://www.digitaltruth.com

allan

 

[derevaun]

To reinforce KY's post, i use a Paterson tank, a thermometer, a kitchen timer (counts up or down), a couple 500ml measuring cups, and a bunch of 17oz water bottles. A developer and fixer are all you have to have; I like using a fixer clearing agent but haven't missed having a stop bath. I stopped using photo-flo (wetting agent).

You'll need a totally dark room or changing bag to load the film in the tank.

The important thing to know about all the times & temperatures is that they're mainly about producing an ideal negative for printing with an enlarger. The fact is that you can be off by a minute or two in either direction and the image will not turn to steaming mush; it'll just be harder to wet print and scanning will be harder too but less so. You really have to skip or mix up steps completely to ruin a negative.