T-Max 400 is my favorite film for platinum printing. Unfortunately they
don't offer it larger than 8x10 :-( It got a terribly bad reception when
it first came out. A lot of "silver" printers didn't like the strait line
reactions in the highlight area (complaints of "blown out" highlights).
This is part of why I love it for platinum, it has great separation way
beyond normal silver highlight densities. I use HC-110 for developing,
varying both the time and dilution to affect contrast when needed.
Does one need to be more careful developing it.....yes. Is that a big
problem....no. I've never liked Tri-X for silver or platinum, perhaps I
didn't work with it long enough? But arguing about film is a bit like
determining the best ice cream at "31 Flavors", you aren't likely to get an
agreement.
>I continue to maintain that, when properly processed, T-Max 400 has an
>equally long tonal range, the same speed and a lot less grain. <SNIP>
I never liked it for silver, although a good friend that develops in D-76
(I think) makes great silver prints with it. But it truly shines when you
need greatly extended contrast (platinum). And, how can you not love the
low reciprocity failure rate?
tomf2468@pipeline.com (Tom Ferguson)