wschwetz
I’ve bought a Splitgrade. If I’ve understood correctly, you use the ‘Forte Polygrade – V RC’ setting for the Classic Arts Polykaltton RC and ‘Forte Polywarmtone Plus RC’ for the Polywarmton RC. Is that right?
As only the glossy surfaces are calibrated and I only use the matt Polykaltton, I can’t compare the two papers. Can anyone offer a tip on the necessary correction?
There are also two FOTOIMPEX papers preset. Which ones are they?
Developer:
The Forte papers are calibrated for Ilford Multigrade developer; I use Calbe N 113. Does anyone know if corrections to exposure/gradient are necessary (I haven’t worked with Ilford yet)?
Finally: I still have quite a bit of Fomaspeed Variant and Fomatone Variant. Has anyone processed these on the Splitgrade yet and can give me a tip on the settings?
MirkoBoeddecker
Hello Wilfried,
Yes, your settings are correct.
If you download the latest Heiland ‘drivers’, there is a setting for FOTOIMPEX Polywarmton.
With N113, this setting tends to measure half a gradient too soft.
We correct this in advance by adding 0.5 to 1.0 gradients, depending on the negative.
As the emulsions are the same on PE and baryta, the settings for PE and baryta can be used.
For Polykalt, the "Normal Speed Paper" setting works quite well for glossy or matt, and N113 as an alternative to the Forte setting.
Foma Variant III:
Channel: Ilford MG 4, aperture minus 1.1. Developer: N113 20°C for 1 minute.
Best regards,
Mirko
Gast
@Wilfried + Mirko: Fomaspeed Variant does not produce good results in the MGV channel of Splitgrade; Kentmere VC Select, on the other hand, is almost perfect (with deviations there of no more than > grade 4).
Polywarmtone also performs significantly better with the Moersch setting than with that of Forte paper; due to variations in the emulsion, a fine adjustment may be necessary here (variations approx.: 0.3 BL, 0.2 degrees; I would need to check which way).
Best regards + have fun
Detlef
MirkoBoeddecker
If there’s a Moersch setting, it has to be spot on!
I didn’t know that existed. We last loaded the drivers a year ago.
We tested the Foma setting for the N113.
But thanks for the tip – we’ll give it a go with Kentmere VC.
Best regards,
Mirko
Gast
"Moersch" – "I don't know if that exists."
Mirko: since Splitgrade version 1.19a – and that's quite a few years old (late 90s).
I haven’t developed with N113 yet, but with Variant III (a speed paper with embedded developer substances), I consider it fairly insignificant which developer is used for development of the images; the recommendation for the MGIV channel (-1.1 f-stops) therefore remains a bit of a mystery to me.
BTW: with the same settings (namely Kentmere), the Oriental VC (RC) also ‘works’, just as the PWT Baryt can be exposed using the settings for Moersch Baryt (subject to minor adjustments).
@ wilfried: I’ll send the polykalt tone later.
Kind regards
Detlef
wschwetz
Hello, both of you, thanks for the replies, but I’m still a bit confused:
For CA Polywarmton RC:
In Splitgrade, CA FB Polywarmton matt is set to Eukobrom. Do you mean this setting plus 0.5–1.0 gradients in N113
or
with the Forte Polywarmton Plus RC setting during development in N 113 plus 0.5–1.0 gradients, exposure remains the same
or
with the Moersch Sepia VC RC setting without corrections, also in N 113?
CA Polykaltton RC glossy and matt with the ‘normal speed paper’ setting without corrections.
Fomaspeed Variant in N 113 with Ilford MG IV setting, aperture minus 1.1
or with Kentmere VC Select setting, but in which developer?
Is that correct?
Does N 113 generally produce a softer result? For example, when using your Kodak Polymax (a lovely paper)?
Wilfried
Gast
Come on, Wilfried, you’ve already had plenty of help – but there’s one thing it can’t replace: taking a close look at what you’re actually doing. For example, as I pointed out, fine-tuning might prove necessary. If you want to know how a sheet of paper (YOUR paper) behaves in a different developer, just give it a go. If you want to know which papers are preset in the controller, you simply have to look it up.
There seems to be a fundamental misconception surrounding the Splitgrade, namely that the sound it makes completely replaces the thinking and testing work in the darkroom. However, it is an (excellent) tool – you just need to learn how to use it. After that, it’s simply a lot of fun.
Regards,
Detlef
P.S.: Two final tips:
1. The Splitgrade settings need to be adjusted regularly when switching from glossy (the norm) to matt.
2. Stick to 2–3 types of paper.
Gast
If you use a paper preset stored in the Splitgrade controller with a different developer, you can quickly determine the necessary corrections regardless of the subject matter by using a test negative:
http://www.schwarzweiss-magazin.de/swmag_leser_05.htm
Best regards, Otto Beyer!
