Hello everyone. I'm cobbling together a darkroom and just learning to develop and print. I've seen it frequently suggested to pick a film/developer/paper combination and stick with it to get the best results. After a good amount of reading, I'm inclined to start out learning to use HC-110, as well as either Pyrocat HD or Exactol. Conceptually, I like pretty much everything I've heard about HC-110 (relatively easy to use as a one-shot, great shelf life, no need for stop bath, very flexible), but I'd like to also learn to use a staining developer for higher accutance prints. I'm leaning toward Exactol, but I've seen so many good posts about Pyrocat HD that I can't help but consider it. I don't expect to print high volumes, so the cost difference between the two is not an issue for me. In general, I'm willing to mix my own chemicals but prefer not having to. I will be primarily shooting Delta 100, FP4 and HP5 in 120 format on old lenses (Rolleiflex 2.8F and Agfa Super Isolette). I'll be printing with a Durst M70 (condenser head) on Kentmere glossy papers up to 16"x20" and, when needed, will selenium tone. Any thoughts on this approach are appreciated. Many thanks.
__________________ ~~~ Water, if you don't stir it, becomes clear. ~~~
For 120 HC-110 isn't a bad choice. The stuff was designed for newspaper work in the 60's and the primary push was to be fast, easy and reliable and image quality wasn't a big concern. For 35mm it isn't a very good choice, but it is fine for MF and LF work. D-76 is the 'standard answer' to the standard question 'what should I use for learning to develop film'.
Stay with _ONE_ developer. Sounds boring. It isn't. Concentrate on the image, not the developer. Do not start out with staining developers, they have so many interactions and variabilities they will get in the way of learning.
Begin with the old standard against which all developers seem to be compared - D-76. After using it for 100 or so times you will be familiar with what it can do and be ready to investigate other developers.
__________________
[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Films NOT Dead - Just resting[/FONT]
I do not disagree with the D76 recommendation - but - I am one of those guys who says - "do it - or don't do it - just don't do it half way"
After years of wandering through endless chemistries - If I had to pick one and only one - it would be XTOL. It is a little crisper that D76 - you can make a version of it yourself very cheaply.
Don't be afraid to mix your own. If you can make a cake - you can mix your own chems. You can get everything you need on the internet or at Trader Joes or a pool store or a health food store or a grocery store. I make the Mytol version called "instant Mytol" It is made in a glycol base and does not go bad on the shelf. I have to add one ingredient with it; a scoop of sodium sulfite, and water and it is excellent -
Or - you could use D76 -
If you have to buy and use D76 - at least use it as a stock solution and mix it 1:1 with water and use it one shot. And don't keep it more than a few months. One shot developers are always preferred over - increasing development time 10% each roll and only doing 4 rolls per liter etc. Forget that nonsense - alway use it one shot. The only developer I do not use as one shot is Split D-23 which can can do about 15 rolls per liter and has a shelf life of several years. It is easy to make and hard to screw up - but it lacks some of the crispness of XTOL. I little softer than D76 I would say - not too good for 35mm but great for TLR use with exposure guessing.
__________________
My photos are always without all that distracting color ...
Sponsored Ad. (Subscribers to APUG
have the option to remove this ad.)
I also suggest that you start out with D-76 and stay with it. As has been said, it is the standard against which every other developer is compared. I'd also suggest that you choose one of the three excellent films that you mentioned and stay with it. It really takes a while to fully appreciate what these film / devs can do. And any of these films is capable of producing superb results in D-76.
__________________ It's just the normal noises in here...
The last time I made a cake it came out looking like a scorched football. That being said, it sounds like maybe I've been get a bit ahead of myself with aspirations of HC110 and pyro from day 1. Maybe a rethink is in order.
__________________ ~~~ Water, if you don't stir it, becomes clear. ~~~
Rodinal (or similar R09 from FOMA) - a very universal developer. I agree with Nicholaas: stay with one developer, try different combinations 1+20...1+100...
Others have said that D-76 is the standard against which other developers are measured. This is true, in a way, but this sort of phrase seems to imply that D-76 is objectively better than other developers. That's not true, except in certain narrow ways. It's just that D-76 is, first, a very popular developer; and second, a good compromise developer. It does most things developers should do reasonably well, but not spectacularly well. Broadly speaking, developers can be measured by their effects on acutance (apparent sharpness), speed, and grain. D-76 strikes a good average on these three measures. If you want to sacrifice one of these to get better results on another, there are developers that will do so.
I've never used HC-110, so I can't comment on it from personal experience; but based on what I've read, I'd say it's not that bad a general-purpose developer. It's also got the advantage of coming as a long-lasting liquid concentrate, which may be preferable to a powder that you must mix to a stock solution and then (usually) dilute to a working solution. Depending on how much film you shoot, your D-76 could go bad before you use it all. HC-110 isn't likely to do that. If you think you're likely to go through your first batch of D-76 before it goes bad, though, it's a more popular developer than HC-110, which means you're more likely to be able to get help if you run into some strange problem with it.
Concerning Rodinal, it's another liquid concentrate, and it's got legendary keeping qualities. It's generally recommended for fairly slow films, though, (say, ISO 200 and slower) since it produces bigger grain than most other developers.
Ultimately, developer choice is very personal, and some people get very passionate about it. IMHO, it's best to start with something common and general-purpose, like D-76, XTOL, or HC-110, and move on to Rodinal, pyro developers, and other things later. Some people might move Rodinal into the first category or HC-110 out of it. Like I said, it's a subjective and personal matter.
I'll go out on a limb and say why not go with a pyro developer. I use wd2d+ with good results. It would not have been a logical starting point a few years ago, but, especially if scanning is going to become an integral part of your workflow... it might be a good place to start. My feeling is that the pyro developers make the most of the advantages of film with respect to straight digital capture.
Developers for starting out 
Linear Mode
