based on what seems to be the universal recommendation for folks starting out in the darkroom, i've picked one film/developer to concentrate my efforts on... i'm using plus-x (35mm) and d-76 1:1(posted 8496 days ago)i'm getting mostly what seem to be nice printable negatives, but since i started using a grain enlarger for focusing my prints i'm noticing different grain characteristics that seem to vary from roll to roll... what i mean is some negatives have uniform small grain while others have some large grain as well as small grain (the large grains i'm referring to look more linear than spherical)
what i'm thinking is my agitation may be causing this, i've been using the kodak recommended times & agitation (20oC, 7 mins with 5 initial inversions, tap then 5 sec at each 30 sec interval) i've noticed that i'm not always giving the same number of inversions for the 5 second agitation, should this make a big difference? (in case you're thinking other variables, this is all from the same stock soln of d-76 and i'm confident that my temperatures have been uniform)
also i've noticed some rolls seem to enlarge better to larger prints where others kind of start falling apart sooner.... this is comparing shots from same lens/camera in similar shooting conditions
is all that just normal variability or can you see something i'm doing wrong or leaving out? any suggestions or comments are appreciated
thanks, joe