Help needed for a beginner

350D_user

B+W film devotee
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Having seen a number of b+w films on sale, a mass of darkroom chemicals available, along with countless "mix your own" recipes, I'm after guidelines as to what's a good b+w film/developer combination. So far, I've read about Neopan 100 (Acros) and Ilford LC-29. Also, having never spent more than five minutes in a darkroom, I'm a complete beginner to this aspect of photography.

Obviously it'll end up with personal preference.

Thanks for any information given.
 
I hate to say search the archives but you will find a great deal of useful stuff in there. LC29 is a fine general purpose developer (similar to Kodak HC-110 but the concentrate is more dilute). Neopan Acros is a film I've never used. Ilford FP4 is good as a "starter" 100 speed film as it's very forgiving of exposure and processing variations and I've yet to find a developer that makes it look bad.
 
Yea I'd say from my own experiences to grab some Ilford film and possibly Rodinal.

Both are very easy to use. Ilford film has great tone and grain, and Rodinal is a very popular developer. I'm a recent Rodinal convert having previously used generic cheapo developer. You can dilute the Rodinal and its ready to go, no mixing, no fuss....well, as long as you don't drink it. Don't worry it smells awful so you won't be tempted :D

Good luck :)
 
I like me some Rodinal and experiment with it non-stop because I find it to be one of the most versatile developers out there. I use it with Plus-X, Tri-X, and HP5 with great success, and I really love it with Pan-F. I'm also a Diafine user. Searching the archives will give you tons of information on both of these developers plus tons more.
 
jamiewakeham said:
See left :D

Go look at (and speak to) Nova Darkroom - best supplier I've found of chemistry.

Jamie
I've added their website to a growing list of darkroom bookmarks. Thanks.
 
As a recent beginner in the darkroom stuff, I would say definitely get a pack of Diafine along with whatever other developer you end up getting. It lasts forever and is very hard to mess up, which takes a bit of the pressure off.

I started off with D-76 which is fine, but I wish I had gotten a liquid developer instead of powder - easier to mix and store.
 
Tim Gray said:
... but I wish I had gotten a liquid developer instead of powder - easier to mix and store.

I also learned how to develop b&w while taking a Photography 1 class at a local college, and we used D76. The only problem I ever had was the time spent with mixing the stuff up. So when I started developing film in my bathroom I used Ilford's liquid developers. It was much easier for me to just mix a quart, and do a couple of rolls of film a night.

My advice (if available where you live) is to take a course at a local college to learn the basics of b&w developing and printing. You will also learn a great deal from the mistakes of classmates.

Take care,
Michael
 
Using liquid developer (instead of mixing water with some pulver) is really convenient. I'd suggest Rodinal because it lasts forever (doesn't oxidize and stop working suddenly) and the results are very nice.
 
mwooten said:
My advice (if available where you live) is to take a course at a local college to learn the basics of b&w developing and printing. You will also learn a great deal from the mistakes of classmates.

Take care,
Michael
I have considered doing a nightschool course on the subject, but I'll have to wait until I find out what courses are available. Knowing my luck, film won't be listed anymore... with digital being more "popular" now. :(
 
As you can see, you'll get about as many answers as there are people here, so I'll add mine too: pick one film, one developer and keep it that way in the beginning. I started out with Tmax 100 and Tmax developer, using basically the instructions on the box and being given the instruction to be very careful with temperature and agitation, I hit the right spot after a few films.

The general advice is: keep it simple, be careful, don't expect miracles first time around and you'll be doing really fine by the 10th roll you develop. There are very few combinations of films and developers that don't work.

If you ask me today what I use in 35 mm, it's Tri-X in Rodinal, diluted 1:50 (but I like grain).
 
Jerevan said:
As you can see, you'll get about as many answers as there are people here, so I'll add mine too: pick one film, one developer and keep it that way in the beginning.
Yup. I know about the "learn to walk before learning to run" thing.
Jerevan said:
The general advice is: keep it simple, be careful, don't expect miracles first time around and you'll be doing really fine by the 10th roll you develop.
True, but having a few combinations that others have known to work can ease the learning period, knowing that someone's got film-X and developer-Y to get good results can act as a guideline sometimes.
Jerevan said:
There are very few combinations of films and developers that don't work.
That is good to know, thanks. :)
 
markinlondon said:
I knew there was something like this recently. Have a look in this thread, there's a ton of good stuff about equipment and chemistry.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30905
Thanks. I'll give that a good read later on.
So far, I have a Paterson Universal tank (Model 2... complete and bought for £1). All I'm missing are the required chemicals, film, and a lens for the Leica.
 
By the way, please keep us updated on the progress. Always nice to know how people get on with things after asking advices. :)
 
Jerevan said:
By the way, please keep us updated on the progress. Always nice to know how people get on with things after asking advices. :)

Yeah, we want samples from your first roll. Well OK then, we'll settle for the first one you're happy with ;)
 
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