What went wrong? :-(

[Monz]

Today I developed two rolls of film:
Roll 1: 35mm Fuji ARCOS 100
Roll 2: 120 Fuji ARCOS 100

Both rolls were developed within 30 mins of each other using a JOBO CPE 2 unit using the following recipe:
Dev in Ilfosol S for 5.75 mins (rotation)
Stop for 1 min
Ilford Rapid Fixer for 5min
Wash in water for 5min
Rinse in detergent/water

The developer was mixed 1+9 to 240ml which is the nominal volume for the Jobo tank. Obviously fresh developer was used for each roll.
I recycled the newly made stop and fixer.

Roll 1 came out perfectly.
Roll 2 had NOTHING on it! Zilch. Nada. The negative was completely and uniformly transparent when I opened the tank after washing. It was the first roll from a newly serviced Rolleiflex.

What could have gone wrong??

--
Monz

 

[Pherdinand]

are there the usual edge markings by Fuji visible?
If not, it's the development.
If they are there, it's the exposure (camera).

 

[Monz]

are there the usual edge markings by Fuji visible?
If not, it's the development.
If they are there, it's the exposure (camera).

Hi Pherdinand,

On one edge of the developed negative are the sequential frame numbers and the words "Fuji" and "100 Arcos" at regular intervals. I think these markings are permanently printed on the negative and would be present whether or not the development was successful.

--
Monz

 

[Pherdinand]

Hi Monz
I think you're wrong.
Those writings in my experience don't come up if the development is messed up.
I would check if the camera shutter really opens.

By the way, just to let you know, it is "ACROS" not "ARCOS". I see you consistently misspell it. 🙂

 

[mrtoml]

The only time this ever happened to me was when I accidentally put the fixer in the tank first in stead of the developer. Probably not what happened to you, but thought I'd mention it just in case...

 

[cmogi10]

that happened to me the other day, I'm not sure why or how I didn't have the frame numbers show up, I have a feeling I must of fixed before or screwed up my developer somehow ,that makes the most sense.

 

[payasam]

Monzur, as Pherdinand says, the edge marking show up only after development. You might like to follow his advice and check the camera's shutter with the back open.

 

[Never Satisfied]

I agree, if there is nothing on the film then it probably hasn't been exposed. Did the start of the film have a black end where it was exposed to the light before going into the camera? Andrew.

 

[Pherdinand]

Did the start of the film have a black end where it was exposed to the light before going into the camera? Andrew.

It's 120-format film, has no black(exposed) end, one can't thus check it that way..

 

[Monz]

Thanks everyone.
I have checked the Rolleiflex (it has just been serviced by an experienced repairman). The shutter works fine at all speeds. The aperture blades open and close smoothly. The film transport works as it should. It's an all mechanical camera, so there isn't much else that can go wrong.

When I did the developing last night, I mixed the 3 chemicals at the beginning and lined them up in their respective cylinders in the water bath. Each cylinder has a small coloured disc on it (green for dev, red for stop, yellow for fixer). It is possible that I might have mixed up the sequence.

@Pherdinand: I never noticed the Acros mis-spelling until you pointed it out - thanks 🙂
Also, will the Fuji edge markings come up if the film is fixed correctly without being developed properly or if the sequence of chemicals is in the wrong order?

I am going to have another go tonight.

All the best.

--
Monz

 

[Pherdinand]

The shutter works fine at all speeds. The aperture blades open and close smoothly. The film transport works as it should. It's an all mechanical camera, so there isn't much else that can go wrong.

The shutter and film transport also?
Then i have no clue what went wrong, sorry.
It just sounds as the film was not exposed at all, how that could be possible, i don't know.

Also, will the Fuji edge markings come up if the film is fixed correctly without being developed properly or if the sequence of chemicals is in the wrong order?

No.
If you fix it before developing, the film should clear up completely without any image and marks on it. Although i never used fuji acros 100 in 120 format, i would not expect it to behave differently. w respect to the edge text.
Once you fixed it, there's nothing to do, can't develop afterwards. It's gone.

 

[spyder2000]

Edge markings on film are created by exposure at the coating plant. These appear only after development. So the problem is not a chemical mixup.

The problem is that of no exposure. If the frames were exposed using electronic flash, your shutter was not synchronized (i.e. M instead of X or synch failure). If not flash, then perhaps your film is severly underexposed, i.e. shutter speeds firing off at 1/500 in all cases.

Bottom line - if you have edge markings on the roll, then you had a shutter problem.

 

[Monz]

Thanks spyder2000. I used both flash and ambient light. The shutter speeds all look correct from 1 sec down to 1/500.

Update: I have just tried loading another roll of Acros 100. This time the crank doesn't stop turning and the whole film is transported to the the top spool without the film counter moving from zero! In other words, the sensing rollers in the loading mechanism are not sensing the thickness of the film, the problem which led to the camera being serviced in the first place!

The previous film (same type) appeared to be tranported correctly with the crank stopping at half turn intervals - hence my previous comment about the film transport working as it should.

Anyway, the camera is going back to the chap who serviced it.

--
Monz

 

[Pherdinand]

You are putting the film through the sensign rollers...right?

 

[spyder2000]

Film transport may have been caused by failure to pass the film betweent he sensing rollers on the bottom. In any case, something is wrong as you were able to observe apparent changes in shutter speeds by looking through the lens.

 

[Monz]

Pherdinand and spyder2000: I am passing the film from the lower spool between the two sensing rollers and then over the lens box and onto the upper spool. See my pictures in the related thread...
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47866&highlight=monz


--
Monz

 

[telenous]

Hi Monz,

Did you use the black spool that goes in the middle of the plastic Jobo reel?

I remember when at first I started developing MF film, I forgot to use the spool and I had a light leak in the tank (the extended reel allows light to come in the tank, contrary to what is the case with the reel in its truncated form for use with 35mm film) that exposed the entire film and gave me transparent negs like in your case. I was mystified but then figured it out. Could it be it?

 

[Monz]

Hi Alkis,
Yes I am pretty sure I used the black rod which skewers the film spool in the tank. Normally, I place the Jobo tank, rod, spool, lid, roll of film and a pair of small scissors in a dark bag and load by feel.

When I get home tonight, I'll check the dark bag - if I forgot to use the rod yesterday, it will still be in the bag!

--
Monz

 

[Pherdinand]

ALkis, i dopn't understand the experience you are describing.
Light leak and overexposing the neg should not give completely transparent end result. It should give completely black result.
Negative is negative, i.e. more light means darker film if correctly developed (actually, i mean if developed at all).

Four cases are possible in general:

1. Negative not exposed (= heavily underexposed) but correctly developed+fixed: completely transparent but with edge markings.
2. Negative not exposed and not developed just fixed: don't know how it should look. I suspect completely clear...certainly without edge markings. The development is what makes the difference in the end result between parts that were exposed and parts that were not exposed.
3. Negative (over- or normally)exposed and correctly developed: (completely or locally) dark frames with edge markings.
4. Negative (over- or normally) exposed but not developed just fixed: i.e. "film leader in fixer" experiment: completely clear film. Again, nothing should be on ity since all the silver is left undeveloped and is washed out in form of silver halide when you fix.

Does this make more sense now?

 

[telenous]

ALkis, i dopn't understand the experience you are describing.
Light leak and overexposing the neg should not give completely transparent end result. It should give completely black result.
Negative is negative, i.e. more light means darker film if correctly developed (actually, i mean if developed at all).

Four cases are possible in general:

1. Negative not exposed (= heavily underexposed) but correctly developed+fixed: completely transparent but with edge markings.
2. Negative not exposed and not developed just fixed: don't know how it should look. I suspect completely clear...certainly without edge markings. The development is what makes the difference in the end result between parts that were exposed and parts that were not exposed.
3. Negative (over- or normally)exposed and correctly developed: (completely or locally) dark frames with edge markings.
4. Negative (over- or normally) exposed but not developed just fixed: i.e. "film leader in fixer" experiment: completely clear film. Again, nothing should be on ity since all the silver is left undeveloped and is washed out in form of silver halide when you fix.

Does this make more sense now?

Pherdinand,

your explanation is perfectly right, my bad. As it is now a few months that I had the problem, I must have a false memory of the negative coming out transparent when in fact it was fogged (?). The problem I had was solved however with using the black rod. It seems far less likely that Monz's problem has any relation to the one I had.