Ideal developer for APX 100 / 400 (push?)

Gast · 2003-04-22T14:11:00+00:00

Hallo, kann mir jemand einen Tipp geben, wie ich beim APX 100 die besten Resultate beim Entwickeln erziele? (Bitte wenn möglich Temp/Verdünnung/Zeit) Hatte...

Gast

Hello, Can anyone give me some advice on how to get the best results when developing APX 100? (Please include temp/dilution/time if possible) I tried F 09 once; it wasn’t bad (and cheap, of course... :) :) :) ) Do you actually get a finer grain with a different developer, and what about the sharpness? On pushing: Does anyone have experience pushing APX 400? (Dev./Time/Temp) Does it work as well (up to 3200) as with HP5???? It would be great if anyone had any tips :blink: Regards, Pepe

Gast

Hello! Regarding the APX100: the ideal combination here is development with Rodinal 1+50 for 15 to 17 minutes at 20°C – super-sharp and with fantastic tonal range; it’s no surprise that this is the go-to combination for many photographers; in medium format, the grain isn’t a problem; with 35mm, it works for prints up to at least 18x24cm, and even larger depending on personal taste and subject... (At 1+100 the grain becomes even finer, but with subjects with low contrast it can look a bit flat – I’m currently testing a few films with Rodinal 1+75 myself – because they still fit nicely into my 750ml A&P bottle, and this way I don’t go below the minimum amount of 10ml Rodinal per film!) Oh yes, it’s supposed to work well at A49 too; I haven’t tried it myself yet (sheep will probably suffer a bit... perhaps good for portraits?). Regarding the APX400: you’re best off forgetting about pushing it straight away – even at its rated speed, the APX is one of the coarsest 400s around – even with a moderate push to 800 you’ll already get golf-ball grain (in combination with Rodinal – possibly even with grain-enlarging, 'thicker' 1+25 dilution, this is recommended for people who are deliberately aiming for coarse 'artistic' grain). On the other hand, the APX400 (in Rodinal 1+50) has quite nice, 'rich' tonal range – but I still wouldn’t use it in the KB Bonsai format. When it comes to pushing, HP5+ simply is and remains the best film – and given Ilford’s moderate prices, the question of an alternative doesn’t really arise, does it? Second place probably goes to TriX (I have no personal experience with it), and for fine 35mm, Fuji Neopan 1600 is of course also an option!

Gast

@ Roman: Hi Roman, First of all, thanks for the detailed information. I think I’ll give Rodinal a go when my bottle of F 09 runs out. I didn’t know about the coarse grain of the APX 400; I haven’t had my hands on it yet, or rather, I haven’t run it through the developing spiral. I’ll test two or three rolls of it, but I’ll probably restock up with HP5 for now, which pushes really well up to 1600 with ID11 (1+0). - Can you also push HP5 with Rodinal or F09? Best regards, Pepe

Roman

Hello! I tried pushing an MF-HP5 to 3200 in Rodinal 1+50 (if you want to know more about this, check out the Hobbylabor forum at www.phototec.de and click on ‘Search’): 3200 wasn’t quite achievable with my development time (35 minutes), but 1600 seemed to work; I was amazed at how balanced the contrasts were, and how great the tonal range; the grain was also finer than I’d expected with this combination (though coarser than, say, with Microphen); for 35mm, however, the grain is likely to be a bit too coarse for ‘conventional’ photos (but certainly a viable solution for ‘artistic’ grain!).

Roman

Oh yes, regarding Rodinal and F09: the latter is supposed to be the original Rodinal, though I’m not exactly sure what the difference is – but you can see it: with F09, even a fresh bottle looks as dark brown as the very last (still usable) residue of Rodinal does; I’ve used both and haven’t really noticed any major differences; I use Rodinal because I don’t have to order it from our forum host in Berlin like I do with F09, but can buy it from the camera shop round the corner (and quite cheaply too); besides, there’s much more information online about Rodinal (dilutions, times, minimum quantities, etc.) Have a look at www.unblinkingeye.com – there’s some interesting stuff about Rodinal there! Roman

Gast

APX100 developed in Rodinal 1+50 produces excellent results (sharpness, grey tones). The data sheet can be found at http://www.agfa.com/photo/products/de/pdf/.../C-SW16-D16.pdf Exposure of APX100 as ISO 160/23 and development for 17 minutes (tilt continuously for the first minute, then once every 30 seconds). If negatives with higher gradients are required for a mixed-light enlarger, the developer temperature should be increased to 22 degrees (this also applies to APX400). Extending the development time is of no benefit. If a particularly fine grain is desired (with slightly reduced sharpness), the A49 is a good choice for APX100 and APX400. Beautiful portraits can be achieved, for example, with APX400 and A49. Enjoy! Best regards, Otto Beyer!