Preferable film developers?

[Rhad the Man]

Evening,

I've been dropping off a roll of film off and on for awhile now.. but as the rolls increase I've decided that perhaps a bit community knowledge would be helpful in getting a better/cheater/faster film developing experience.

I'm aware that most developers have some sort of 1hr developing-- don't really care for it or need it. I'm more concerned about B&W film. The straw that broke the camels back was discovering that I would have to wait anywhere between 10-15 days for a roll of t-Max (at a cost of $15.. I think they just upped it) to get back from the out-of-state developer for Ritz.

Hm.. so.. the question is presented-- Who is your prefered developer? Or who would you recommend? And.. if your have time-- Why?

(10-15 days! Seems long.. but perhaps its normal and I need to learn some patience)

 

[Stephanie Brim]

I have half hour black and white developing...in my basement.

I use Diafine and D76. Next weekend I'll be trying Rodinal for the first time.

To tell you the truth, it's much simpler to do your own if you live somewhere that does not have good B&W film lab access. All you need are your chemicals, a tank and reels, a can opener, a pair of scissors, and a room that you can make completely dark. And trust me...we'll be happy to help you through your first few rolls.

 

[FPjohn]

Hello:

Ms Brim sets a good example. Film development takes 45min-two hours max and can be done while sitting at your computer (the top right timer is especially convenient)

yours
Frank Johnston

 

[Nick R.]

You don't even need a darkened room. A changing bag will do for 35mm.

 

[varjag]

I agree that developing yourself would be cheaper and in general produce more consistent results.

 

[kvanderlaag]

D-76 is my preference, mostly because I have lots of it.

I don't think it really matter which you prefer, in the long run. It's fun, though! You should pick it up fairly quickly, and it's a very rewarding process.

 

[Rhad the Man]

Hm. Interesting.. Its been recommended to me a couple of times to start developing my own B&Ws.. the process always seemed a bit intimidating but...

You don't even need a darkened room. A changing bag will do for 35mm.

...makes it sound easy. Hm.. well I got another roll of T-max in the camera. I'll start up the research and ask the questions as they come along. Lets hope the others in this house don't notice the smell of chemicals emanating from the darkened bathroom.

..hm, thats assuming the chemicals have an aroma-- perhaps they don't. I've worked with celluloid and negatives.. but don't think I've ever watched the actual developing process. I have a vague recollection of an enlarger in my uncle garage when I was 7.

 

[nrb]

I use both D76 and Rodinal, both give good results in TMAX and APX. For Ilford film I find D76 to be better. Rodinal gives more grainy pictures. You'll have to figure out what developers suits your needs best by trial and error.

 

[RayPA]

Are you asking about 'developers' (chemical) or 'processors' (companies that process/develop your film)?



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[kaiyen]

You can get oderless fixer, which is pretty much the only thing that smells (unless you use stop rather than a water stop...in which case you can also get oderless stop).

This might help: http://www.kaiyen.com/photos/pages/chemicals.html

allan

 

[Rhad the Man]

Are you asking about 'developers' (chemical) or 'processors' (companies that process/develop your film)?

Well... I was originally talking about 'processors.' First few posts seemed to understand that and the conversation quickly turned to developing instead of processing.

It seems I did make a mistake with the Technical terms. Thanks for the clarification.. I've always thought developer and processor were synonymous. Didn't know they had different implications.

 

[Rhad the Man]

Wait.. I noticed that majority of comments refer to film developing but not so much towards the printing part. (Not sure if that is the technical term, but I'm refering to the process of enlarging onto photo paper).

In anycase, brings up an interesting question in my mind since I don't have money for an enlarger... can you develop B&W film and take them to a local place to get them printed? or do you run into the same problems/expense of $15 and 10 day waiting periods?

 

[GeneW]

Back when I was first beginning to develop my own film, the old-timers would say "shoot Tri-X and develop in D-76". Now I'm an old-timer and the advice still seems sound. It's a forgiving combo with a great, classic look. From there you can branch out in many directions, of course, but Tri-X/D-76 is an excellent starting point.

Gene

 

[oftheherd]

I would expect you would run into the same problem on getting photos printed.

Two things come to mind for your consideration. Do you own b/w developing and purchase a scanner, either a dedicated film scanner or a flatbed that also does film. While that does entail an initial outlay of cash and perhaps some learning curve, at $15 dollars a roll, you will soon pay for that if you do much picture taking.

Another thought would be to use one of the chromogenic films. Those are b/w films that that are processed in c41 chemicals. That means you can take it to Ritz or Walmart or wherever you trust, and they can develop it in their color machines and print it as well, although on a different paper. But the good places will know that and have that paper.

 

[RayPA]

Wait.. I noticed that majority of comments refer to film developing but not so much towards the printing part. (Not sure if that is the technical term, but I'm refering to the process of enlarging onto photo paper).

In anycase, brings up an interesting question in my mind since I don't have money for an enlarger... can you develop B&W film and take them to a local place to get them printed? or do you run into the same problems/expense of $15 and 10 day waiting periods?

You could develop your own film and take them to a local lab that prints b&w, and have them do it. A one-hour lab might do it for you, but the results may not be to your liking, or be very consistent.

I'm an advocate for the hybrid method myself: develop your own, scan, use an image manipulation software program, and print on an inkjet, or just post to the web. I'd eventually like to have a wet darkroom, but right now this works pretty good for me.




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[allthumbs]

In anycase, brings up an interesting question in my mind since I don't have money for an enlarger... can you develop B&W film and take them to a local place to get them printed? or do you run into the same problems/expense of $15 and 10 day waiting periods?

First of all, you don't need money for an adequate enlarger. These days people are just happy to get rid of them. Try your local flea markets and classifieds, or put in an ad yourself. On ebay you will likely pay more for shipping (hefty) than for the enlarger.

Second, many people have adopted the hybrid DIY approach, where they develop their own film, scan it and print it themselves or via an online service. It's a nice compromise that gives you control and speed with a minimum of chemistry, equipment and space.

 

[Rhad the Man]

Hm, thanks. I got a Dimage 5400 II for negatives so the hybrid approach sounds interesting. Once I have a bit more room I may go the enlarger path.

 

[peter_n]

Think about using a liquid film developer first - easier to use for a newbie (which I am). If your favorite film is T-Max I would do a bit of research through the search engines here and over at photo.net and apug.org about suitable developers for that film.

 

[RayPA]

Kodak has a liquid (syrup!) developer for TMAX films.





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[peter_n]

Would that be Kodak T-Max developer by any chance? 😉