I am returning to the darkroom after a year off. I am shooting TMAX 100 120 format and am looking for developing suggestions. In the past I have processed my film with Kodak Microdol and print with a condenser enlarger.

My reason for doing so was for the advertised detail and fine grain that Microdol would provide. On second thought should I stay with TMAX developer since presumably the film and liquid were developed to work together.

So, three questions: 1) For those that use TMAX 100 and TMAX developer, plus a condenser enlarger what are your preferred processing times and temperatures.

2) Does anyone prefer alternate developers, and for what purpose ?

3) The "Photographers Formulary" in Montana packages alternate developers for TMAX films. Has anyone used these ?

Thanks for your help, Grant

-- Grant A. Thompson (gathompson@bc.sympatico.ca), April 20, 1998

Answers

I know one person who feels TMX and Rodinal is the "most elegant film/dev combination" around. Don't know the specifics, but I've had pretty good luck with the recomendation on the Rodinal box.

Lloyd Erlick www.heylloyd.com has praise for D-76 1:1.

A lot of people are using XTOL.

-- mike rosenlof (mrosenlof@qualcomm.com), April 21, 1998.

I have used TMAX with Rodinal diluted 1:50 and results have been spectacular. I vary my processing times based on the desired affect but the advertised times will suit you fine.

-- Harold Todman (harold_todman@dmr.com), April 23, 1998.

PMK works very well with T-Max. Photograhers' Formulary makes a liquid developer specifically for T-Max. I used it some years ago when T-Max was new and it seemed to be quite good. It offers a great deal of contrast control. PF has PMK kits as well.

-- Michael D Fraser (mdfraser@earthlink.net), April 26, 1998.

response to B&W - film & processing

if i may be so bold... if fine grain is what you seek give techpan a whirl. develop in technidol and follow directions to the letter. agitation is most important. two seconds of vigourous shaking followed by 28 seconds of sitting.

drawback of techpan is that it is slooooow. kodak rates it at 50 iso but i tend to shoot it at 25 as i get a little more contrast, but losw just a bit of shadow. add a red (or B&W green) and you add two two-thirds to three stops. exposure times of 2 minutes are not uncommon. obviously this is best for landscapes and very patient and immobile subjects.

anywho. i shoot tons of tmax and develop normally in tmax developer with excellent results. i've found that for most part grain is very good (unless you're looking to got to poster size and up). any slight contrast changes are handled in the darkroom with ilford multigrade IV or multigrade FB depending on what client wants or needs. good luck

-- Thomas L. Applebach (tlapple@enter.net), April 27, 1998.

Grant,

I try to look at a few main factors when I'm selecting a developer for a specific film--Grain, sharpness, emulsion speed, and what I am trying to achieve based upon my application. TMX has a lot going for it. It is very sharp, extremely fine-grained, and has an incredible tonal scale. I am a big fan of the XTOL developer right now and feel that it gives me the most of each of those features with room for modification through dilution. It is a very well-balanced developer. While Microdol-X is a great fine-grained developer it may not give you what you are looking for in terms of emulsion speed or sharpness. So much is a matter of personal taste. That's what makes this science so much fun--we have options. Enjoy!

Michael D. D'Avignon - KODAK Professional

-- Michael D. D'Avignon - KODAK Coordinator (l638708@mso.kodak.com), May 05, 1998.

I've heard nothing but good things about TMX and Rodinal, so perhaps some day I'll try it. These days however I use TMAX-RS from the concentrate. It gives great contrast and decent sharpness with very repeatable results. By using it straight from the concentrate its convenient and easy to mix in different dilutions to suit your needs.

-- Tony Mastres (mastres@id.ucsb.edu), June 03, 1998.

RE: your third question about the Phot. Formulary developers. I've used their BW2 developer that was advertised as bringing out the true sharpness of T-Max films. This developer produced extremely grainy 120 negs for me and , yes they were sharp but they virtually unprintable beyond 11x14 size. I'd guess it was similar or slightly worse than Tri-x pushed a stop. Now you have to understand that T-Max(100) 120 can usually be printed to 20x20 or larger and still look good so the trade off wasn't worth it for me.

-- Tony Mastres (mastres@id.ucsb.edu), June 03, 1998.

Hi,

I use Tmax chemical for TMAX films. For 120 format I take 100ml chemical + 400ml water. Develope time is 5 minutes 10 seconds in 26 degree Celcius.Before starting developer wash the film with normal filtered water which is 26 degree celcius.

I don't think you don't have to worry about temperature when you print,for muligrade paper 2 minutes in 1:2 diluted chemical in ilford bromophen paper developer.

I don't know about The "Photographers Formulary" in Montana packages alternate developers for TMAX films.

Thanks Mohammad Irfanul Islam Darkroom Section Drik Picture Library E-mail: darkroom@drik.net

-- Mohammad Irfanul Islam (darkroom@drik.net), July 23, 1998.

I've been shooting home-spooled T-Max 100 in my Minox and developing in D-76 1:1 at Kodak's suggested times with good results. I've been using much less agitation than Kodak recommends (once every two minutes vs. twice a minute) to keep the grain less evident, but development is still even and complete.

My only complaint is that I sometimes get a bit contrastier results than I expect, or would get with a conventional film like APX 100 or Plus-X. But then, APX 100 and Plus-X, while having better exposure latitude and softer contrast, don't have the tremendous resolution or very tight grain of the TMX, so it's a trade-off. (It's a good trade- off most of the time, in that I usually get lovely 5x7 prints from Minox negatives with only a hint of visible grain at normal viewing distance! You can check out some scans at The Sub Club Gallery - http://members.aol.com/xkaes/gallery.htm if you'd like.) I haven't done much 35mm TMX, but I'm sure there's much more leeway there than with the teeny Minox negatives, because you're usually not trying to squeeze so much out of them...

Anyway, good old D-76 is probably worth a try with TMX!

-- Michael Goldfarb (mgoldfar@mobius-inc.com), January 19, 1999.