Shooting Eastman (Double-X) 5222 in the Leica

[maclaine]

I tried D76 1:1 as well. From my limited observation, the difference with stock D76 is 1:1 seems to give a bit more grain.

With D76 stock, the grain is smoother. But it all depends on your preference.

My suggestion is to try your second roll with stock D76, and see the difference.

Thanks for the tip. I tend to go for acutance over fine grain, as before I began using D76 I was using HC110. I still have some HC110 lying around, and now I'm wondering if it would be a good idea to develop the second roll with that to see what the difference is.

 

[tagheuer]

Thanks for the tip. I tend to go for acutance over fine grain, as before I began using D76 I was using HC110. I still have some HC110 lying around, and now I'm wondering if it would be a good idea to develop the second roll with that to see what the difference is.

From what i've seen in flickr, HC-110 should be fine too.

One interesting discussion in page 31 or 32 of this thread is to add 1% of rodinal to HC-110 dilution B.

It adds the vintage look to the negative when it is scanned/print.

 

[Nokton48]

One of the developers that I have alot of fond memories of (regarding the tonality and "look" of the images), is Kodak Microdol-X. I have been reinvestigating that developer and I absolutely love the results with Fuji Neopan "Presto" 1600, Tri-X bulk, Ilford Pan F+, and I can't wait to try it with XX. It's finally starting to warm up around here, so it's time to XX load up M2 and get back out there!

I had a gallon of Microdol-X mixed up, but I lost most of it, when the rubber piston in my Unicolor Film Drum loosened up, and dumped all the developer (from the bottom), luckily I was over the sink, and nothing was light-fogged. I need to order another packet of this stuff (Freestyle still sells it under their brandname "Legacy"). I have Microdol-X Replenisher mixed up, so I need to get going with this stuff! I'd say I have 32+ ounces left in a 2-liter soda bottle. Well worth saving, this stuff lasts forever, and only gets better with age, as it is "seasoned". The cool thing about Microdol-X is that development times are looooooongggg, even with quick imaging emulsions, like Fuji Prestos. That is a huge advantage for me, when I run my eight-reel Nikor tank. Development times for Pan F+ at 20C are fifteen minutes. Yahoo for Microdol-X!

 

[Nokton48]

Here is the Microdol-X :

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/749710-LegacyPro-Mic-X-Film-Developer-to-Make-1-Gallon?cat_id=301

 

[Tom A]

At the moment I am on a D76 1:1 kick. I generally shoot 4 rolls of triX and 1 of XX, both rated at around 320 (sunny f16) and run them together. The XX looks good - slightly "over" - but with good shadow details and still good details in the highlights.
Another difference is that XX dries flat - and TriX does not!!!!!
My time is 10 min, D76 1:1 - agitation every 60 sec (3 inversions). Some shots are up on the Flickr XX site.

 

[ChrisLivsey]

One interesting discussion in page 31 or 32 of this thread is to add 1% of rodinal to HC-110 dilution B.

Anyone know a source for this and how adding 1% is going to make significant difference ?
Not knocking, just the facts, just the facts

 

[K14]

Another difference is that XX dries flat - and TriX does not!!!!!

Tom, I thought I was the only one experiencing this. TriX gives me fits with the curl, even after days under piles of books makes it hard to scan. I can scan XX the next morning with no trouble as it is flat as a board!

Cheers
Gary

 

[dfoo]

Ha! I just cut & sleeved a bunch of XP2 which was stored in 35mm cans for 3 years. If you want to see curl, try that I've had it under books for 3 weeks now and its still as curly as a pigs tail.

 

[sepiareverb]

Well I've run my first two rolls of XX, and have to say I love it in HC-110. I went with Rodinal at 1:50 first, but will give it a try at 1:25 next time. Beautiful grain in HC-110.

 

[haempe]

Anyone know a source for this and how adding 1% is going to make significant difference ?
Not knocking, just the facts, just the facts

No facts, but 1% Rodinal is the half of my usualy 2% (1+50) dillution for Rodinal developing.
Easy to imagine, it makes a difference...

 

[maddoc]

Well I've run my first two rolls of XX, and have to say I love it in HC-110. I went with Rodinal at 1:50 first, but will give it a try at 1:25 next time. Beautiful grain in HC-110.

HC-110 / XX worked very well for me, when E.I. of 250 or 320 was used. Unfortunately, HC-110 became special order item in Japan and I had to switch to a different developer.

 

[maclaine]

I developed my first roll of this yesterday. I shot it at EI 200 and developed it in D76 1:1 for 10 minutes. The negatives are quite dense, although the indoor shots look slightly better than the outdoor shots. They are both scannable and printable, but it took some work in PS to bring them back from the stratosphere. Also, as a result, they are a bit grainier than I had anticipated, although not outrageously so, roughly on par with Tri-X at 400.

Still, I like the look very much. Neither the highlights nor the shadows are blocked up, which is remarkable considering how dense the negs are. Any recommendations from the experts here about whether I should a) shorten my dev time, b) expose them at a higher EI of c) both? I only have one roll left, and while I think I will be buying a 400' roll when I've run through the remainder of the black and white film in my fridge, I'd like to get a better handle on this film before then.

I will post images tonight when I'm home.

 

[tagheuer]

Another difference is that XX dries flat - and TriX does not!!!!!

This is another reason why I only shoot XX and +X exclusively for black and white...

 

[maclaine]

I developed my first roll of this yesterday. I shot it at EI 200 and developed it in D76 1:1 for 10 minutes. The negatives are quite dense, although the indoor shots look slightly better than the outdoor shots. They are both scannable and printable, but it took some work in PS to bring them back from the stratosphere. Also, as a result, they are a bit grainier than I had anticipated, although not outrageously so, roughly on par with Tri-X at 400.

Still, I like the look very much. Neither the highlights nor the shadows are blocked up, which is remarkable considering how dense the negs are. Any recommendations from the experts here about whether I should a) shorten my dev time, b) expose them at a higher EI of c) both? I only have one roll left, and while I think I will be buying a 400' roll when I've run through the remainder of the black and white film in my fridge, I'd like to get a better handle on this film before then.

I will post images tonight when I'm home.

Alright, here are my first batch of photos. As you can see, even at web resolution, they are a bit grainier than I would have expected.

In addition to serving as a test for my first roll of Double-X, it allowed me to test a couple of lenses I haven't shot with that much: my "Sweeney'd" 1957 ZOMZ Jupiter-3 and my uncoated nickel Leitz 50mm Elmar f/3.5 with the 11 o' clock infinity lock (what a mouthful). The camera for all shots was a Leica M6.

The Mecca of awful beer, the Anheuser-Busch brewery in Newark, NJ. Taken with the 50mm Zeiss Planar ZM.

This woman runs the sandwich/burrito place in the office park I work in, and her cheerfulness can really break up a dull day. Taken with the Jupiter-3. I think I missed the focus a little on the first shot, as I didn't change the aperture between the first and second shots, and the second one is much sharper.

My coworker Jason, who just purchased a Nikon F100, his first film camera. We were taking a short walk talking about film and how to use his camera. Taken with the uncoated 50mm Elmar (which I must say is VERY sharp for a 70+ year old lens).

The view from my seat on a flight from Newark back to Seattle somewhere over rural New York state. Taken with the Nikkor 35mm f/2.5.

I figured I should do some classic Brian Sweeney-style shots with the Jupiter-3. The streaks are rain, not defects or scratches in the film. The first shot is "close up and wide open," which is what Brian optimized it for, and the second one is stopped down to somewhere around f/8-11. The beauty of the stopless aperture of the Jupiter-3 on the M6 is that you can make sure the meter LEDs center perfectly in between proper stops if necessary.

 

[xwhatsit]

maclaine: Oh come on now, that's just lovely. Great tones. I've been staring at stupid bloody C41 scans all day trying to make them work and seeing the delicate gradations in that 5222 you've shot makes me want to pour all my colour chemistry down the drain. Still really want to try this 5222!

 

[Nokton48]

After a fairly long hiatus away from shooting film (as I discovered digital with my Nex3's) I am ready to run some more XX. Have seven rolls "in the can" as they say out in Hollywood. All three of my new Canon RFs (7, 7S, VT) are loaded with XX for initial testing, one more roll is all I need to make a film run, in my eight-reel Nikor metal tank.

I just mixed up a fresh 2-litre bottle of ADOX Borax MQ, that has been my favorite developer with XX, see the beginning of this thread for the formulation. Also I bought a bottle of HC-110 concentrate, and still have some of the Dr. Blood Developer, although it's been around for awhile, and is getting a little dark in color. When the ADOX has cooled down to working temperature, I think I'll go with that, for now, as I like using developers that utilize replenishers. TD-201 and PMK+ have also worked well for me. Microdol-X is also one that I want to try at some point with XX.

And I still have 400' of the 5231 Plus-X EI 80 movie film, will be spooling up some of that soon. It's pleasurable to spend Father's Day in the darkroom

 

[K14]

The deep end

The deep end

I had my eye on that new $1,100 Fuji digital camera. I couldn’t see spending that kind of money yet. To satisfy the urge I went to the thrift store and picked up 4 point & shoot film cameras for a buck each.

Lately I'm finding ISO 400 pretty good. I'm souping D76 stock at 9 minutes. My cartridges are DX coded for ISO 400 with these P&S cameras so I have no choice.

I gave one camera to my daughter Yuuki to take to school, she out shoots the old man by a mile.

Pictures posted are up on the Flickr XX site under "East Man"

http://www.flickr.com/groups/656147@N20/

Cheers,
Gary

 

[ipu]

reading this thread really makes me want to try this xx film.
Do you guys have any idea where i could get this?
I am located in finland, so maybe ordering from europe would be easier, but US is not out of the question...
I have no idea where to look for this Kodak XX 5222...
Thanks!!

 

[Nokton48]

From The ProjectXX Website, Sources for XX. Just click on the links:


http://www.project-double-x.org/suppliers.html

reading this thread really makes me want to try this xx film.
Do you guys have any idea where i could get this?
I am located in finland, so maybe ordering from europe would be easier, but US is not out of the question...
I have no idea where to look for this Kodak XX 5222...
Thanks!!

 

[Mablo]

reading this thread really makes me want to try this xx film.
Do you guys have any idea where i could get this?
I am located in finland, so maybe ordering from europe would be easier, but US is not out of the question...
I have no idea where to look for this Kodak XX 5222...
Thanks!!

Hi ipu, I've been wanting to get a 5222 bulk roll for a long time but haven't been able to track down a seller in EU. If you can find one please let me know. I'm located in Helsinki so we might even share postage charges for a couple of bulk rolls.