Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/08/09
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I've had a chance to use PMK pyro on a couple of rolls I shot of HP5
Plus in an M2 in Natchez and Vicksburg, some shots in bright sunlight,
some backlit, some indoors, and some at normal contrast. The way pyro
holds the highlights is astonishing. What used to be a white out of a
sky with HC-110 is now a sky with cloud patterns. When exposed for the
shadows, the bright sunlit areas now have a pleasing contrast. This
separation of contrasts seems to work out just as well on the indoor
shots. All of this occurs at the single 13 minute development time I've
read for HP5 Plus.
I have been using separate rolls for indoor shots taken without
flash, usually at f3.5 or f4.0 and 1/30 sec. for HP5 Plus, and separate
rolls for shots at sunny 16. The interior shots would be developed for
5 min. in HC110, normal contrast at 4 1/2 min, and bright sunlight shots
at 4 minutes. It appears after these two rolls that all shots at every
lighting condition can be taken on one roll of HP5 Plus and developed in
pyro at 13 min./70 degrees and come out fine on the contrasts. Also,
I'm seeing an edge sharpness and 3 dimensional type vitality that I
couldn't get from HC-110. It seems much easier to make prints from this
pyro. Grain seems gone.
I work on the JennAire stovetop that sucks fumes away while I'm
mixing and developing. Working in gloves, mask, and goggles is somewhat
of a pill, but I'm a doctor and used to working around hazardous
materials, and I haven't noticed any bird kills in the neighborhood
yet. While the gloves, mask, etc. are a pill, so was keeping different
contrast shots on different rolls. My only experience is with HC-110,
and there may be other developers that act the way pyro does. At any
rate, this is what's happening in Mississippi. I may be a convert.
Lee England
Natchez, Mississippi