help me choose my next developer

[chris91387]

i've been using rodinal and diafine for quite some time with higher speed films and am very happy with the results. however, i really want to try a more "fine grain" developer with slower speed films like acros, efke 50 and fp4.

i'm really leaning towards fg7, id11 or ddx. i've used hc-110 and d-76 in the past but was never really happy with the results.

developer should adhere to the following criteria:
- mid to long shelf life (i only shoot a couple rolls/month)
- powder or concentrate is fine, 2-part developers are fine
- nothing too obscure. should be easy to find and get times for
- i tend to shoot mostly my kids (skin tone important)
- should scan well as i really dont have traditional prints made
- i skew towards liking contrasty images rather than flat

your advice is appreciated.

thanks,
chris

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

ID-11 is the same as D-76. Honestly, fine grain developers don't look as good on slow film as Rodinal does. I have tried FP-4, Pan-F, and Efke 100 in both D76 and Rodinal and preferred the Rodinal version each time. I regularly use Rodinal for Acros too but have not tried D-76 on Acros.

 

[mfogiel]

You could try Pyrocat HD ( I use Prescysol EF which is apparently the same). The tonality and sharpness of slow to medium film in this kind of developer can be remarkable, and it scans wonderfully. Here's an Acros shot in Prescysol EF:

Fomapan 200, same developer:

 

[MartinP]

If you are looking towards smooth results with a slower speed of film, rather than Tri-X or something, then you could certainly try ID-11 at 1+1 or 1+3 (dilution affects the sharpness), or perhaps Perceptol. DDX seems to be good for everything, and you can use it in various more economical ways if you look around the ilford website. Have fun.

 

[venchka]

Our own Todd.Hanz swears by Fuji Neopan 100 Acros in Xtol.

I am quite fond of Xtol 1:3 and any film I drop in it.
I am equally fond of Xtol 1:3 + Rodinal 1:100 and HP5+. I will try Xtol 1:4 + Rodinal 1:100 for the next batch of HP5+.

Stay tuned. I will be developing a roll of PanF tonight. Rodinal 1:100. Extreme Mininal Agitation. 1 hour.

Since returning to Do It Myself processing, I haven't seen a bad developer.

 

[mr_phillip]

Perceptol is a great choice with both Acros and FP4+, especially at higher dilutions. You'll loose up to a stop in speed though. You might also want to consider Beutler or Tetenal Neofin Blue (their tweaked version of the Beutler formula). I've not tried it with Acros that I can recall, but it produces fine results with Delta 100:

 

[kaiyen]

I agree that you're perhaps taking this from too many angles. A slower film will generally have less grain already. So perhaps stay with your developer and use that slower film. Or, go with a faster film but with a finer grain developer. If you use a fine grain film and a fine grain developer you lose a lot of sharpness.

I am liking TXT @ 200 in Perceptol 1+3 by the way. I develop at 75 degrees to keep dev times manageable.

 

[venchka]

As promised...

As promised...

Our own Todd.Hanz swears by Fuji Neopan 100 Acros in Xtol.

I am quite fond of Xtol 1:3 and any film I drop in it.
I am equally fond of Xtol 1:3 + Rodinal 1:100 and HP5+. I will try Xtol 1:4 + Rodinal 1:100 for the next batch of HP5+.

Stay tuned. I will be developing a roll of PanF tonight. Rodinal 1:100. Extreme Mininal Agitation. 1 hour.

Since returning to Do It Myself processing, I haven't seen a bad developer.

Early reports indicate that my experiment with Pan F and Rodinal 1:100 for an hour works. So far I have only looked at the negatives hanging wet in my bathroom. I exposed half the roll at EI 50 and the other half at EI 25. I obviously missed the exposure on the half @ E.I. 50. They are dense. Not ruined dense. Just denser than I've seen lately with Xtol. The half at E.I. 25 in flat light (late afternoon shade) are less dense and look very nice. I'll know more when I have a chance to scan them.

I followed the "agitate every minute for the first 5 minutes, let stand for 25 minutes, agitate, wait 30 minutes, dump" routine. I think I will see what happens when I agitate even less in the beginning. I'm think 30 seconds intially and 3 gentle inversions after 3 to 5 minutes and again at the halfway point.