dsbryant@telocity.com
Date: 11/27/01-08:27:21 AM Z
Carl,
>
> Stack of sheets in oversize tray, emulsion side *down*. Bottom sheet lifted
> out from under and placed on top. Go through the stack once every 30
> seconds. Number of sheets depends on size and film type.
The reason I asked was that I have found out the hard way that over agitation in a tray will produce excessive density and stain with PMK. Even though I have reduced my agitation to something similar to your procedure I still have PMK negs that have long printing times when making Ziatypes for example. It is not unusual to have a 30 minute exposure time for the majority of my Tri-X 8x10 negs processed in PMK. I'm using BL tubes and Cranes #90 paper. So I wonder where I may be going wrong. The upside is that I am getting beautiful prints! As a comparison Tri-X processed in HC-110 dil. B print in the 3 to 4 minute range! BTW, I assume your trays have flat bottoms. I tried developing face down and got streaks because my tray bottoms are ribbed.
Bob Herbst looked at some of my negatives this past summer at APIS and almost told me exactly how long my prints were taking to expose given my light source. He said this was due to too much post processing stain. I've eliminated that and still have longer times than I want. VDBs will print in 10-18 minutes. Ziatypes are running 18-20. Herbst is not using PMK anymore (if I remember correctly) he has been using the Wimberly WD2D formula, which I tried last week when making enlarged negatives on Arista APHS. The stain was much much lower and the developer is much more energetic than PMK. I'm not sure if the comparison between APHS and Tri-X is a fair one though.
Finally, I ordered some Catchecol <sp?> from Art Craft yesterday to mix some Pyrocat-HD. I really want to see if MMMV. I plan to use old Beseler color printing drums instead of trays. There has to be a better way to get fast printing negatives and still have the benefits of pyro.
One more thing, do the negatives you are developing in PMK allow you to make silver, platinum/palladium, or ziatype or do you tailor your film processing for the desired print medium?
Thanks,
Don Bryant
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