after suffering through several 'dreaded Xtol failures' I have been scouting around for a good replacement developer with Kodak TMax films. I have found Ilford's Microphen to yield higher accutance and very scannable negatives. in fact, I am delighted.

thanks to Linda Butler, a wonderful large format photographer, for recommending TMax 400 in Microphen. Linda uses nitrogen bursting, but I found 30 second agitation and Ilford's specs to be a good entry point. check out Linda's new book 'Italy: in the shadow of time', or her feature interview and portfolio in a past issue of Lenswork.

-- daniel taylor (lightsmythe@agalis.net), March 15, 2001

Answers

You might try Paterson FX39 which is now becoming available on the USA market. My early tests with Delta 400 are promising.

-- Steven Alexander (alexpix@worldnet.att.net), March 15, 2001.

I've been using Xtol for several years without problems. However, I also develop EI640-800 TMY in Microphen diluted 1:2 with great results.

-- Tim Brown (brownt@flash.net), March 15, 2001.