cheers
-steve
------- Forwarded Message
Date: Sat, 9 Mar 1996 16:38:34 +0100
To: alt-photo-process@vast.unsw.edu.au
From: pervo@powertech.no (Per Volledal)
Subject: Re: Pyrogallol staining development
I have been using PMK pro for less than a year, but I find it in some ways
different to the way it is described in Gordon Hutchings book. He claims
the stained negatives will appear to be yellowish - green, of low contrast
and density (page 43;"murky, low in contrast, have translucent highlights
and in general will seem unprintable").
My PMK negatives, especially the Tri-X ones, are dead sharp, very dense in
the highlights, brown and appear more like a (negative) slide. I process
both in small tanks and in a Jobo rotary processor. There seem not to be
any difference whether I use the Jobo or not. I started out using the
development times suggested in the book, but a reduction in development
time doesn=B4t seem to matter much. Any clues?
I have also used T-Max 100 35 and 120 films with PMK. These films stain
less, but neither fit the description in the book. A long tonal scale is
not achieved in my PMK negatives.
In the book, PMK is not recommended with 4x5 sheet film in the Jobo, and I
have not dared to try. I have, however, with some success, used another
Pyro, non-staining developer with the 2509n Jobo reel in the (one-speed)
CPE-2 (Photographer=B4s Formulary cat. # 01-5000), 70=B0F, 4 minutes + after=
a
pre-wet of about 20 seconds. These 4x5 negatives are very sharp, and I have
used some of them for bromoil, strangely enough. To achieve good highlight
details from these negatives, I develop the exposed non-supercoated paper
for about 30 seconds as usual, and then transfer the paper to a water bath
for about 2 minutes, without almost any agitation. I seem to get good
highlight detail and no excessive contrast.
Well, the reason for all this - can anyone suggest why my PMK negatives
appear so different to how they should appear, according to the description
in the book? I almost can=B4t wait to get all these translucent highlight
values in the whites of my prints.
Regards
Per Volledal
pervo@powertech.no
Stenfeltbakken 47
N-1405 Langhus
Norway
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