> When etching, the center area of the plate always seems
> to be a bit behind the rest. This results in what looks like an oval shaped
> hot spot, usually most visible in underetched highlights. These hot spots are
> not in my positive.
Is it possible that this is due to your way of development, i. e. the
way you move the plate in the water? If the hot water is allowed to move
circular, it will have a lot more speed at the edge of the plate than in
the center and thus will wash out more gelatin. With smaller plates the
water is more likely to swap from one edge to the next. Also if your
tray is too small, the exchange rate of water at the edges will be
bigger than in the center.
Klaus Pollmeier