Matthias,
Yes, and what’s more, it has a balancing effect and its mode of action can be further adjusted through the use of different dilutions.
Why do you need a developer for large format that impresses with its sharpness? For 35mm, sure, at 10x enlargement sharpness is a much more important factor for our perception, but for large format? Or is it only the balancing effect that’s really interesting here, which alone makes it worth using Rodinal?
I wouldn’t see it that way.
You use large format precisely to experience the captivating qualities it offers you.
Now the aim is to get the best out of them. Of course, with large format, everything is better than with 35mm, and you could say that the cheapest film plus the cheapest chemicals are enough for me – the material reserves do the rest – why bother?
A reasonable argument. Just as with Harley riders, where engine capacity must be replaced by nothing but engine capacity :rolleyes:
But it’s all visible, of course. Maximum sharpness and grey tones with grain that isn’t yet visible would be my personal sweet spot.
You can see this too during an enlargement of a large-format negative, whether you’ve used a developer that enhances sharpness and creates edge effects or one that suppresses grain. The granularity is only slightly increased, but the sharpness and edge definition are significantly improved. In that respect, such a developer is more interesting for large format than for small formats. With 35mm, you might end up saying: ‘Sharpness is all well and good, but this grain is too coarse for me!’
Pyro: We sell the Darkroom Cookbook; otherwise, Weston has also published quite a bit on the subject. Our UK distribution partner, RetroPhotographic, manufactures its own pyro developers, and we will – provided we can find a legal way to import them amidst all this legal confusion – be adding these kits to our range soon.
Start off by taking your first steps with a simple developer like Rodinal. Enough things go wrong at the beginning anyway. After six months and once you’ve achieved reliable process consistency with R09, you can give pyro a try. Then you’ll also have a fair basis for comparison (...with the R09 negatives).
We don’t offer web space for uploading larger files: otherwise, stalkers and other forum trolls could cause us financial harm by patiently clogging up the server, and I’d have to sit here for hours cleaning all that rubbish out.
You can, however, upload smaller images.
Regards
Mirko
