Powder or liquid developer for newbie

So after reading all your comments I've decided to go liquid way, probably Ilfosol HC/LC29 for Tri-X, I've read lots of good stuff about that film and I think I will like it. I would try Rodial too, though I'm not sure if it is available in my country, I need to find it out.

As for what charateristics of BW I'm looking for - frankly, I'm not so sure yet, because I haven't seen enough original BW prints to say for sure. Though I think I would prefer them rather sharp, but with fine shadows detail, grain doesn't bother me, it's even welcomed to certain extent.
 
Interestingly, one way to reduce the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water used for mixing powders is to boil it first, then let it cool before use obviously. That 'should' increase the life expectancy a bit. Your ID11 still won't last like Rodinal though, but a litre of ID11 will only do about nine or ten rolls of 35mm at 1+1 (or re-using it), so I must admit I don't bother to boil the water.

It is a good idea to filter the powder-dev liquid, just when pouring it gently in to the measuring cylinder, with a cotton-wool plug in a funnel. That helps get any last bits out of it for sure.

I don't have any complaints about DD-X as a liquid dev, so that would be my tip for keeping things simple.
 
Ah just noticed that Silverprint have a 100 quid minimum order.
Hopefully you can get some in Slovakia.
But if not, and it's Rodinal you want, just make your own.

Here's Silverprints recipe http://www.silverprint.co.uk/PDF/Rodinal-4.pdf

Yes most of the time I use a stop bath.

However if I'm pushing a film, I'll reduce the agitation a bit, then sometimes use a water bath instead of a stop bath for a couple of minutes. It acts like a very dillute developer, allowing the shadows to develope a touch more. I pour the developer out, then fill with water at the same temperature, leave to stand for one or two minutes (do not agitate), pour out, rinse, then onto the fix.

Also remember the stop bath is there to not just stop the development but to protect your fix. This is important to remember if you are going to move onto darkroom printing.
 
blacklight said:
As for what charateristics of BW I'm looking for - frankly, I'm not so sure yet, because I haven't seen enough original BW prints to say for sure.
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The best way to figure this out is to start yourself, evaluate your results after a while, and then try to articulate whether you like your results or not, and why. Then various opinions can be stated and suggestions made as to modifications.

Though I think I would prefer them rather sharp, but with fine shadows detail, grain doesn't bother me, it's even welcomed to certain extent.
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shadow detail means you need a developer that at least maintains shadow detail, OR you need to overexpose TXT. So, if you're shooting TXT because you need the 400, the HC-110 at higher dilutions, longer dev times and less agitation can give you almost 2/3 of a stop increase in speed. Donald Qualls on PN has written quite a bit on this. I have at least one thread on my blog.

It's a good thing that grain doesn't bother you, as you will get more grain as you get more sharpness. The best compromise between these, though, is the most modern of developers - Xtol, PC-TEA, and FX-39. PC-TEA is home-brea, FX-39 is all but discontinued, and Xtol is powder, so perhaps you need to wait a bit on it. But an ascorbic acid-based developer is the best of all worlds.

Otherwise, if you're willing to lose a bit of speed (250? at least 320) with TXT, Rodinal would be a good choice, probably at 1+50 (grain is a bit high without much tonal benefit, IMO, at 1+25). I use a lot of powder developers so most of my experience is there.

DDX is another good candidate if you don't want to deal with the long development times required to get good speed out of TXT with HC-110 (or Ilford's equivalent). The downside is that it's more fine-grain oriented than sharpness oriented.

allan
 
I normally use a Paterson developer like Aculux but after problems I had over Christmas I bought a packet of ID11 and mixed it 1:1.
My negatives weren't any better than using Aculux and using diluted will work out more expensive.
My recommendation is use concentrate. ID11 can be used stock but an allowance has to be made each film used.
 
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