Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/08/11

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Subject: Re: [Leica] OT - B&W negative developing info. in general
From: Martin Howard <mvhoward@mac.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2003 16:23:27 -0700

Frank Farmer wrote:

> Has anyone found a site or book that has been particularly helpful 
> with brushing up on darkroom skills?  I own a very old version of the 
> Kodak Darkroom Guide but figure there are others.  Are there?  Just 
> FYI - I shoot Ilford HP5+ or FP4+, Kodak Tri-X or Plus-X with a bit of 
> Fuji Neopan 1600 mixed in for good measure.

Any good introductory book on B&W photography should have a section on 
film development.  I recently got "Black & White Photography: A basic 
manual" by Henry Horenstein and Carol Keller for my girlfriend who 
wanted to learn B&W photography.  Another one to keep an eye out for 
(only available second-hand, try www.bookfinder.com) is David Vestal's 
book on the craft of photography.  Vestal's my hero.  I subscribe to 
Photo Techniques solely for his column.

> Also, it seems that Xtol is the choice developer for many - sounds 
> good - I would like to keep grain to a minimum most of the time.  Is 
> there another I should start with?  Is Xtol a good start with those 
> films?  What other "news" is out there?  Any general guidance on or 
> off list would be appreciated.  Sorry if I missed any of this is in 
> the archives.

Xtol only comes in 5 litre packages and is exceptionally sensitive to 
storage conditions.  I'd stick with something simpler, such as D76 1:1, 
or Edwal FG-7 1:15 (comes as a concentrated liquid) until you're 
comfortable with the mechanics of things, then start messing around 
with more "high maintenance" processes later.

M.

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