Developed my first C-41 tonight...

[35mmdelux]

I have been waiting a long time to do C-41. Your work looks great.

 

[gdi]

Now, if I can find some kits or formulas for E-6, then I'm all set! 😀

Kodak still has a 5 liter E-6 kit available - here is a sample of a Velvia slide...

 

[maddoc]

Both self-developed with the Naniwa Colorkit N (available in Japan) with a developer bath and BLIX (combined bleach / fix). I usually process at 30 degrees (except for pushing) and use a normal stainless-steel tank and the sink as water-bath. Temperture should be within +/- 1 degree. I don't use a stop bath and the whole developing process is actually quite fast and simple.

 

[AzzA]

Thanks for posting these examples guys.
I got a Jobo C41 press kit the other week and just getting ready to do my first few rolls. Keeping the temperature correct was my biggest worry, but it seems like it doesnt need the extreme accuracy i was originally led to beleive.
cheers 🙂

 

[sienarot]

Keeping the temperature correct was my biggest worry, but it seems like it doesnt need the extreme accuracy i was originally led to beleive.

Well, you probably should have some degree of temperature accuracy when doing the developing step, however given that it's only for a few minutes, it really isn't that difficult to maintain it especially if you are using some sort of water bath or insulation.

 

[jan normandale]

A friend who shoots any film any age any condition has started C41 home processing. I'm about to embark so this is a timely thread.

Here's a LINK to the page for her chemicals which I believe came from Freestyle
There are charts for the C41 on the page of the Freestyle product link

 

[Henrik]

I do it myself too, mainly because the labs here charge a lot for processing. I'm thinking of trying E6 too some day.

 

[gdi]

Both self-developed with the Naniwa Colorkit N (available in Japan) with a developer bath and BLIX (combined bleach / fix). I usually process at 30 degrees (except for pushing) and use a normal stainless-steel tank and the sink as water-bath. Temperture should be within +/- 1 degree. I don't use a stop bath and the whole developing process is actually quite fast and simple.

Nice Gabor - using a blix must really pare the process down. My machine is programmed for separate bleach and fix.

BTW, I strongly recommend ICE when scanning - it takes care of most of the pesky dust bits!

 

[maddoc]

ICE !!! Good tip !! The dust specks are annoying ... :bang:

From what I have heard, using separate bleach / fix bath gives more stable negatives (archiving). BTW, do you add some % of formalin solution to the final rinsing bath ? It is recommended by Naniwa but I haven't tried it yet.

 

[sienarot]

A friend who shoots any film any age any condition has started C41 home processing. I'm about to embark so this is a timely thread.

Here's a LINK to the page for her chemicals which I believe came from Freestyle
There are charts for the C41 on the page of the Freestyle product link

That is the same kit I am using, except I purchased the 2L kit and split the mix in half. I actually purchased five 2L kits, since shipping was about the same as five 1L kits.

For those who are feeling adventurous, here's an interesting article on extending the shelf life of your C41 chemicals:
http://alspix.blog.co.uk/2007/04/21/title~2135363

 

[shadowfox]

Kodak still has a 5 liter E-6 kit available - here is a sample of a Velvia slide...

This is just gorgeous! no color cast on this one, look at that pure chrome.

I think I'd skip C41 and try E6 if I had the time. But first I need to fix the leak on my Unicolor drum 🙂

 

[gdi]

This is just gorgeous! no color cast on this one, look at that pure chrome.

I think I'd skip C41 and try E6 if I had the time. But first I need to fix the leak on my Unicolor drum 🙂

Thanks! C-41 is nice but there's nothing like pulling the slides out of the drum and immediately seeing your images!

 

[0bli0]

i process both e6 and c41 at home now. i use the tetenal 3 bath e6 kit and the nova powder c41. i have tried the speedibrew powder (which seems to be exactly the same as the nova) and recently the tetenal colortec c41. personally i find the e6 processes to give finer results, and is a little more tolerant on the developing time. the pre-developer needs to be spot on with the temperature. i think i will go for a separate bleach and fix process with the c41, so i'll order individual components when my supply of nova bags runs out.

if you can control your temps of all of your chems, then it's a piece of cake. one easy way to do this is to get a big tub with water heated to 38. if you can find a darkroom heater or a aquarium heater that will go that high, you're all set to keep the water at temp. otherwise you need to keep adding hot water. then just keep your bottles in the big tub, including your wash water. it also makes it easy to pre-heat your tank.

btw developing at home means you can cross process or substitute standard fixer for blix (bypass the bleach to leave in the silver for very muted colours) or even partial blix and partial standard fix to lessen the effect.