starting self-developing b&w / which film to use?

T

Thomas78

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Hello,

since I want to start developing b&w film myself, I wonder which film I should use to get my first experience with film developing.

I would like to use a film which is a bit forgiving in the development process.
 
Kodak Tri-x developed in D-76 or one of that type. Very forgiving, and a great combo. It's a classic!
 
I second the recommendation to start with Kodak Tri-X. Not that I've been doing it all that long myself--I'm certainly no expert--but it's an excellent film that's relatively easily to get good results from. My guess is most on here will suggest Tri-X too. As far as which developers to use, however, you will find varying opinions of that, but it's hard to go wrong with D-76. Welcome to the club!
 
Or HP5. Both all but idiot-proof. Try both and see which you like better. It's intensely personal. I prefer HP5 and my wife prefers Tri-X.

Cheers,

R.
 
Definitely Tri-X to start with

Definitely Tri-X to start with

I'd say Tri-X as well, it is very forgiving. As Roger said, it's a deeply personal choice. Tri-Xisa personal favourite, but try out HP5 as well. I would also recommend HC-110 as a developer, since it's cheap and it keeps very well.

Experiment and you'll find something that works for you :)
 
I just started developing my own film a few months back, I use Ilford 400 delta super easy to develop, pretty hard to screw it up.
 
Plus-X and FP4 are as easy to develop and have better image quality than HP5 or Tri-X, but they do need more light. The only B&W film I have consistent trouble developing is Pan-F.
 
Thank you for your suggestions!

I already have some HP5 at home but I will also try the Tri-X.


Is

Ilford ILFOTEC DD-X
Ilford ILFOSTOP
Iford RAPID FIXER
Ilford ILFOTOL

a good set of chemicals to start with ?
 
My first experience was with Shanghai GP3. It's cheap as hell (roughly $1 per roll) so if you mess it up it's not such a huge loss. Even though it doesn't archive well I still love shooting with the stuff.
 
Thomas78 said:
Thank you for your suggestions!

I already have some HP5 at home but I will also try the Tri-X.


Is

Ilford ILFOTEC DD-X
Ilford ILFOSTOP
Iford RAPID FIXER
Ilford ILFOTOL

a good set of chemicals to start with ?
Click to expand...

They're fine, but you don't need stop for film, just fill the can with water and dump it out between the developer and fixer.

And Ilfotec is quite spendy. ID-11 or D-76 are much cheaper and will work just as well. Just buy a cheap 1 liter photo chemical bottle to store it in.

Price isn't a real measure of quality with developers, liquid developers just cost a lot more as a rule. Powders are cheaper to package and ship so they cost less to purchase. If you can mix coolaid you can mix D-76 or ID-11 (they are pretty much identical formulas, just each company sells their own packaged mix).

And use the Ilfotol with distilled water. While you are at it you could mix the developer with distilled water as well, but using distilled water for the final rinse with the wetting agent really eliminates dust on the negatives.
 
Last edited:
Thomas78 said:
Thank you for your suggestions!

I already have some HP5 at home but I will also try the Tri-X.


Is

Ilford ILFOTEC DD-X
Ilford ILFOSTOP
Iford RAPID FIXER
Ilford ILFOTOL

a good set of chemicals to start with ?
Click to expand...

Yes, they are all excellent. DD-X gives a slightly higher true film speed (ISO 650 or better) so if you expose at 400 you may find you like the tonality better with the slight effective overexposure. DD-X also keeps half-way to forever, even in a part-used bottle: it is my standard developer. Mixed up powder developers oxidize (and sometimes hydrolyze) a lot faster.

Personally I do prefer a short stop, because it prolongs fixer life and has a couple of minor theoretical advantages, but as others have said, you can live without it.

Use the Ilfotol at about half strength, with distilled or deionized water, for best results.

Cheers,

R.
 
FalseDigital said:
My first experience was with Shanghai GP3. It's cheap as hell (roughly $1 per roll) so if you mess it up it's not such a huge loss. Even though it doesn't archive well I still love shooting with the stuff.
Click to expand...

Be careful of its uber-cheapness.
I had a 120 roll in which the film bunched up on one side of the camera back, so I was exposing the paper backing only.

And the tape they use for their films is ... uh, inadequate to put it mildly.
 
I first developed Tri-X as it's known to be forgiving, I developed it with HC-110 (Easy to mix and have a long shelf life). and I'm still learning but it's really simple and enjoyable most of the time! Really
 
My first criteria for film is unexposed.
My second criteria is cold stored, expired, CHEAP. Sometimes I even find unexpired film that meets the other two requirements.

So far I have been pleased with a bewildering variety of emuslions that meet both criteria.

Developers: D-76 1:1, Rodinal, Xtol 1:3. Xtol 1:3 being my favorite.
 
Thank you all for your suggestions!

Roger Hicks said:
Yes, they are all excellent. DD-X gives a slightly higher true film speed (ISO 650 or better) so if you expose at 400 you may find you like the tonality better with the slight effective overexposure.

...

Cheers,

R.
Click to expand...

Roger,
do you experience the film speed as 640 when you develop the HP5 and Tri-X as a 400 ASA film according to the charts given by ilford (9 minutes with DD-X) or do you develop it in a different way ?

I just started my first roll of HP5 and im a bit unsure if to expose it as a 400 or 640 film.

Best regards,
Thomas
 
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