not your typical c41 dev...

[wasabean]

this past weekend i developed two c41 rolls using tetenal's press kit. the kit was mixed back in April and has developed a good 14rolls already. the box says it'll yield 12 rolls (conservative). i never had good luck developing at 103deg as suggested on the directions so i found this gal's blog and decided to use her alternative temp and times: http://paulagortazar.blogspot.com/p/tetenal-c-41-rapid-negative-kit-review.html

as it turns out, i like the results of this combination way better than dev'ing @ 102-103. the water bath is A LOT easier to maintain with a simple household aquarium heater. i dev'ed a roll of ektar 100 and fujifilm pro400H in the same tank and both came out perfect. nice colors and both rolls dev'ed evenly. i have to say, ektar 100 is by far my favorite all around day color film. the colors are solid, i shot at box speeds using sunny16 (f/11), the 400H tends to be more on the cooler side.

 

[newtorf]

thanks for sharing!

 

[Pherdinand]

...so i found this guy's blog and decided to use his alternative temp and times: .

judging from the name Paula it's not a guy.🙂
anyway, nice to hear it's succesful!

 

[wasabean]

judging from the name Paula it's not a guy.🙂
anyway, nice to hear it's succesful!

fixed it 😀

 

[FrankS]

The proof is in the pictures. Let's see!

 

[charjohncarter]

Thanks, good information.

 

[VTHokiEE]

How long is the shelf life on the chemicals once mixed? I don't shoot a lot of color and was wondering how many rolls I would need to shoot in what period to make this affordable (I assume it's not possible to do a one shot like HC-110).

 

[wasabean]

How long is the shelf life on the chemicals once mixed? I don't shoot a lot of color and was wondering how many rolls I would need to shoot in what period to make this affordable (I assume it's not possible to do a one shot like HC-110).

i searched and tried to find a definte answer to that same question but was not able to. i've read the shelf life of the tetenal once mixed is good for no more than 4 weeks. i've also read a thread by a member here saying that he still got decent results with a 1+yr old tetenal (mixed) and has gone through some 20+ rolls.

i'm still looking for a 1shot chemisty and still havent found anything yet. my tetenal chemisty is almost 4 months old and 16rolls in, still with good results. i would probably increase developing times as the chemistry gets old and the more rolls i put through it.

 

[loquax ludens]

The Tetenal C41 Press KIt dry powders have a long shelf life, if the packages remain sealed. It's on the order of years. I recently used a press kit that I bought in 2004, and it worked perfectly fine. There were dark brown specs in the developer powder, and the developer mixed up fairly dark, but it processed my negatives perfectly.

Once mixed, the developer has the shortest shelf life. It's a matter of a few weeks to a few months (maybe 3), depending on how it is stored. Storing the mixed developer in full glass or PET bottles in a cool place, or with all the air squeezed out (PET) or displaced by nitrogen gas (glass or PET), is the best policy. I've heard of people storing their developers in the fridge. I'm not sure if that helps or not. Just make sure you label it. It looks like apple juice or tea.

Jobo used to make a spray called Protectan, and Beseler made one called XDL Spray (I still have some), that would displace the oxygen and help preserve your developers. They contained dichlorodifluoromethane or a similar chlorofluorocabron that reduces ozone in the upper atmosphere, and I believe those products are now long gone from the market because of that. Nitrogen is harmless, and that is the best way to go if you decide to pony up the bucks for a cylinder. It can be expensive up front, but you'll probably never have to refill the cylinder.

My understanding is that blix is good until it is exhausted. Since I don't know how to tell if it is exhausted, I store it like the developer and toss it when I toss the developer. I'm sure I could get more mileage out of it if I knew how to test it.

I'm not sure about the stabilizer shelf life. I've heard anywhere from 8 weeks to "practically forever". Again, I just toss it when I toss the rest.


I generally only use a kit for the manufacturer's specified number of rolls, or a couple more if the chemicals are fairly fresh. I've read claims of getting 25 or more rolls from the Tetenal 1L Press Kit. One problem is that you may have incorrect density or incomplete fixing on the later rolls, and it may be hard to tell that visually. Another problem is that when the chemicals go dead, it can happen suddenly. If going past the manufacturer's recommended capacity, I would suggest doing a clip test before processing.

 

[VTHokiEE]

Thanks for the information, too bad there isn't a one-shot solution. I know the answer is to shot more film but there's only so much time in a day.