Response to HP5+ Film Testing (strange results) (LONG)

Not to muddy the waters further, but I'd ditch the dmax exposure procedure. The film base has significant density so the empty carrier method will give you an error. IMHO, you have to be careful trying to get absolute dmax of paper because dmax is hard to achieve and won't give you the best prints. Anyway, what you want is a negative density of 0.1 over b+f for an exposure 4 stops below your 18% gray card. That's actually quite easy to see. It's just slightly more than a detectable density when the neg is laid on a piece of white paper. A just barely detectable density is about .05 or a bit less and is quite hard to see. You need an unexposed area right next to it for comparison, maybe the unexposed edge of the film where the holder retains it. A question to stir the pot- Should an 18% gray subject reproduce as an 18% gray area of the print?

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