My sharpest ever negs

[Koolzakukumba]

I've just posted a review of the German-made developer Spur Acurol-N on my blog, The Online Darkroom. Using Ilford Delta 100, Zeiss lenses and the 35 Hexanon on my Konica Hexar AF, I've had what I'm sure are my sharpest results from 35mm negatives other than by using the likes of Technical Pan and Technidol. They're certainly the sharpest medium speed negatives I've had.

The Spur developer is excellent and well worth trying, especially since its high dilution capabilities and longevity make it economical in use.

Here's a scan from a darkroom print:

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I looked at the examples on your site and honestly couldn't see a real sharpness difference between the Acurol and D-76 photos (looking at the close crops you presented) and to me the D-76 shots had nicer tonality...a little more shadow detail.

I have to say that you do have some absolutely incredible photos on your blog! I had never looked at your work before. I especially loved the two pics at the top of your Digital Hangover post.

 

[rodt16s]

I've used HRX3 with HP5 and found it to be excellent... also had contact with Herr Schain of SPUR when the new A+B HRX3 was relased.. good product and an enthusiastic company

 

[matt_mcg2]

I agree with Chris re: the D-76/Spur comparison. I think I'd have chosen the D-76 shots for personal preference. Like rodt16s,I have used HRX3 and liked it a lot. Other Spur developers (such as SD2525) not so much.

 

[Koolzakukumba]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I know what you mean about the difficulty in recognising the differences. They're quite apparent in the prints but not so much in the scans. I can easily tell which print came from Acurol and which from D76 when I'm holding them. I prefer the Acurol results - they're sharper and snappier in 35mm. Those qualities might not be so important in medium format.

Please bear in mind that these are scans from prints. It's easy enough producing largely identical scans from negs but it's quite tricky producing comparable prints from different negs and then scanning the prints. But enough of my excuses!

It's probably better to get my impressions from the text rather than from the photographs. I'll try to do the photographic side of things in a better/clearer way next time when I review Spur's HRX-3.

Thanks for the nice words re my pics Chris.