Maximum Development Time Test (MDT) # Determining the maximum development time is important to determine the point at which highlights stop developing and the paper begins to fog. How To: Determine MDT # Cut a sheet of papper into 6 strips and number them on the back 0 to 5. This should be done in safe light conditions. Place the piece marked #0 directly into the fix (1 minute in bath 1, 1 minute in bath 2). Place the piece marked #1 into the developer for 1 minute, then stop and fix normally. Place the...
Most of these paper speeds have been obtained from the manufacturer. Paper Brand Paper Type Filter or Grade ISO Kentmere Kentona Grade 2 ISO P160 Kentmere FinePrint VC (& WM) Filter: 00 - 3.5 Filter: 4 -5 ISO P320 ISO P160 Ilford MG IV Filter: 00 - 3 Filter: 4-5 ISO P200 ISO P100 Ilford MG WT Filter: 00 - 3 Filter: 4-5 ISO P100 ISO P50 FotoSpeed Legacy Filter: 1 - 3.5 Filter: 4-5 ISO P160 ISO P80 Oriental VC-FB Warm Filter: 00 - 3.5 Filter: 4-5 ISO P200 ISO...
Over time, many people have asked me why I sign my name PEte, as opposed to Pete. First off, yes, it’s intentional. 😃 It all started when I was in second year university. I think there were two factors that affected me doing it. For many years, when I signed my name in email, I didn’t get my finger off the shift key fast enough, and I would sign PEte, but I’d go back and fix it. It, wasn’t a big deal, and really, I’d only do it 1 in 3 times maybe, so it was often enough to notice it, but not often enough...
Often times, burning in a small spot or an area with lots of different tones can be very difficult. You could burn it in, but you run the risk of letting your shadows go too dark, and not getting enough in the highlights, especially in very bright highlights such as skys, near lights, and other problematic spaces. Paper flashing is a really good way of dealing with this. Paper needs a certain amount of light before it will start to show tone. Flashing is a method of providing not quite enough light to...
These are generic instructions for developing black and white film. Each film and developer combination will have slightly different times and temperatures for which they give ideal results. You will need to test your particular film and developer combination. The values given below are just recommendations. One of the most important things about developing your own film is consistency. Always ensure that you do everything exactly the same as you did last time. For example, if you start your timer as...
When shooting our photographs, we all think in f-stops and zones, but when we step into the dark room, all of those principles are thrown out the window. The silly thing is, every single one of those principles apply in almost the exact same way. Paper is exposed exactly the same, add one stop of light, and you’ll get one more zone, subtract a stop and you’ll drop by one zone on your paper. Then why the heck do we think in time instead of stops? Well, because that’s what most of our timers give us. ...