Do you develop your own B&W film?

Do you develop your own B&W film?

  • Yes - I'm still addicted

    Votes: 727 89.3%

  • No - I opt for convenience

    Votes: 87 10.7%
  • Total voters
    814
HC-110 and Xtol are my favorites, although I've got some Microphen I've been meaning to try for some serious pushing.

Films: Tri-x, neopan. Tri-x because it is grainy, neopan because of its wonderfully smooth tonality.
 
Got into BW developing and printing because my now teenaged son developed a serious interest in photography fairly early on in life. We're currently rebuilding the darkroom into a more permanent set-up. We started in a bathroom at night, then moved to the utility room in the basement, again only at night. We live in the country so outside light from windows is not an issue unless the moon is shining. We are currently closing in a room in the basement that will be the "official darkroom".

Roll our own HP5, use D76, Dektol, Ilford paper, Kodak paper, Vivitar and BIG old Omega enlargers. Have done a little 120 developing and printing - need a better MF camera. (I think he wants one for Christmas!)

Roger
 
tmax...

tmax...

don't see it very often here but mainly tmax 100 and 400. souped up in tmax developer. scanned via epson 4490 and voila!!! it may take an hour or two longer than usb 2.0 but mmmm b+w film.
 
I use mostly Ilford Pan-F*, FP4* and HP5* (50, 125, 400 ASA), Fuji Neopan 1600, Ilford Delta 3200. The films with * I have in a large stock of bulk rolls.

All souped in Ilfotec LC29 in 1+19 dilution, which gives me processing times from 4 min. (Pan-F) to 14.30 min. (Delta 3200). I use one dilution 3 times with +10%, +20% prolongation for the second and third bath. The processing times are mostly around the standards as indicated by Ilford, or by PHOTOTEC Entwicklungszeitenrechner (online processing time calculator).

I use Ilford stop bath, Ilford Rapid fixer and Kodak cleaning agent as well.

Wet prints have become very seldom here since I scan the negs direc tly after they have been dried.

Didier
 
I was 16 when I developed my first film (AGFA PAN 400) and printed the negs., I NEVER stopped doing so (I am 48 now).
I am still doing this professionally ( see http://www.photoeil.be/books/megalyth/stilte.der.stenen.html ; http://www.photoeil.be/books/wrapping/wrapcover.html ; http://www.photoeil.be/books/roth/dieter-roth.html ), the last book was shot on DELTA 100 reversal developed in my Collenta AT60 (in home brewed recipes). I do my E-6 in the Collenta to (see my other (cookery-) books). Wonderful machine, very stable ( 90 lit. water jacket) and flexible (microprocessor controlled programming). The B&W negative is still done by hand.
I bought it used and built an extra darkroom for it, it took me at least two months to learn to control the E-6 processing and the B&W reversal. Here in town there are no E-6 pro labs any more, they got killed by digital...
As long as I have the clients asking for work on film, I will go on like this, I know that soon or later I will have to convert to digital, no problem to me.
But will go on on film when ever possibel.

Good luck to you all,
 
I opt for the convenience and quality of the Kodak Chromogenic B&W films (T400CN, now Portra 400CN). The films are finer grained and have more exposure lattitude and sharpness than most conventional 100 ISO silver halide film. I do want to re-set-up our B&W darkroom at work and make some nice fiber prints though. I'll even mix my own developer from scratch for that.

Snowbanks, Boston (T400CN)
 
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I've done my own B&W for over thirty years, but sometimes I've been more intense at it than at others. Lately, though, I've been doing more and more hand processing and printing. Mainly for two reasons, one, as others have mentioned, for the control and quality that only a very specialized (and costly) B&W lab could match. The other is for escape. I love to "get away from it" in my darkroom, there is something that working with my hands and mind to create a tangible result right before my eyes that I just can't seem to get from the digital workflow. Not that I don't like digital for some work, but somehow I don't find it as satisfying. I have a full wet darkroom with a 4X5 enlarger, and space to do up to 16X20 prints, I sometimes wish I could go a bit bigger though.
For film processing I use either XTOL or Rodinal, shooting with PanF, HP5, or Fuji Acros 100, and others from time to time.
A new minilab for film and digital opened up nearby recently, and I sometimes take a roll of 35mm hand processed film B&W in for prints, this saves me the time and money of making proofs myself, as I find 35mm contacts too small to judge from. This has worked successfully, as they haven't wrecked my film (yet) and the prints are not bad. From here I can make bigger and better as I wish.
I should also confess that I was a professional darkroom printer for about thirty years, before almost all pro labs went digital, so I do have the skills.
Now I fly a Mac and a Durst Lambda digital printer system, so I think that is part of my motivation also, going back to doing what I know and still love to do.
 
I've been development my own film for almost a year and a half now, both black and white and chromes. I could not see sending out my B&W to a lab ever again lol (unless it was c41 or E6 then maybe, and only if it was 35mm or such).

I like to be able to control my image from start to finish, and I like to be able to have the knowledge to do so especially if I runinto that odd film size.
 
Started this again after a long lay off 2 years ago. Favourite thing - a roll of Foma or Adox 100 and some Rodinal. Also love Delta 400 in DDX. The strangest thing of all (to me) is that I finally mastered steel developing tanks and spirals. I can now load these easier and quicker than the Paterson plastic types and it gives me immense satisfaction.
 
I started developing B+W in high school-- T-Max in Xtol
My favorite for 120 has been Tri-X or HP5 in Xtol. Having just got back into 35mm I'm excited to also start experimenting with film/developer combos.

Developing at home is so easy, and rewarding, everyone should at least give it a try.
 
I strictly shoot film, and only the colour film goes to the lab - I don't have the budget for it!. B&W though, is all my own work. I just finished mixing some Ilford ID-11 so I can develop the negs from my Kiev 88...
 
Hi, I develop my own film here are a couple of pics from last week, shot on a Olympus Mju II agfa APX400 developed in a Jessops brew similar to Acutol for 12 mins.
 

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Usually HP5 in Ilfosol, although I used to like Tetenal Neofin a lot in the past. Got some X-Tol too, but just haven't made it up yet.

Charlie
 
Done my own B/W and colour since I can remember.I remember the Ferrania colour slide process in the 60's, thirteen different stages, including holding a 100watt bulb over a bowl of water with the film in it, usually with wet hands. A good way to electrocute yourself, 240volts + water is not a good mix!!! If you got it all right (most of the time) you got a nice set of colour slides, if not , a clear piece of film with the emulsion as a slimy black goo running down the middle!!!
B/W developer is usually Rodinal, since 1956, but lately T-Max and Moersch Finol. I enjoy the processing side, its part of the whole process for getting a nice image.
An elderly photographer friend once said that getting someone else to process your film, was like finding a beautiful woman, then bringing her home for someone else to make love to!!!😱

John (who at 60+ still has enough energy to process my own!!😉 )
 
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