Legacy Pro 400 + TMAX = More Grain?

[wakarimasen]

Hello Folks,

I recently bought 10 rolls of Legacy Pro 400 and have set about using it and developing with TMax liguid concentrate, diluted 1+4. To say that I was disappointed with the grain - after scanning with my Scan Dual II - is an understatement. I was beginning to think that either my scanner was on it's last legs and should be replaced, or that I'd simply made a bad choice in film.

After exhausting my stock of TMax, I bought a pack of D76 and just developed my first roll. The results are totally different: much softer and less obvious grain, again after scanning.

My questions:

1. is Legacy Pro a pernickety film, with regards to developer?
2. is D76 just a better match than TMax?
3. could it be that the developer was just a little 'old' having been used - as a one-shot method - over a period of 9 months?
4. could the fixer and stop also have had an effect, as this was also re-used over the same period

Best regards,
RoyM

 

[Freakscene]

1. No. It seems to work fine in a very wide range of developers for me, including Xtol, D76, Rodinal, Pyrocat-MC and TMax.
2. Maybe. If you shot at box speed your film may be overexposed and overdeveloped. I found the speed of Neopan 400 (=Legacy Pro 400) in TMax to be EI500-650. I also got better results with the developer diluted at 1+7 than at 1+4. But I still find Xtol to give the best combination of sharpness, grain and tonality.
3. Unlikely. The solvent in TMax is a glycol and thus the shelf life of the product is very long, certainly years even in an open bottle.
4. Maybe. Stop is mostly irrelevant unless you give the film a huge pH shock. Legacy Pro can reticulate when developed in Rodinal and stopped in acetic acid stop. TMax isn't as alkaline as Rodinal and reticulation doesn't really look like grain. Fixer shouldn't make any difference as long as the film is properly fixed.

Post some photos - that might help show the problem and provide some better answers.

Marty

 

[wakarimasen]

Hello Marty,

Thanks for the response.

I've re-visited some of the 'problem' negatives, with a view to posting some examples as you suggested. However, I can't reproduce the results that caused me concern before. I can only imagine that I 'played' with Vuescan a little too enthusiastically, and resetting to the default values has fixed whatever was wrong.

I am very happy with D76 though....

Best regards,
RoyM