Author Topic: C-41 developing instructions... (Read 14244 times)

Diane Peterson · « **on:** March 19, 2011, 11:10:47 PM »

could someone point me towards the article by a filmwasters gving excellent directions on developing C-41 film..I was thinking it was Photo-utopia but can't find the article..anyone having an idea please send me in the link....Thank you!

jojonas~ · « **Reply #1 on:** March 19, 2011, 11:15:39 PM »

got you covered. I was just looking that one up today

http://photo-utopia.blogspot.com/2011/01/processing-your-first-colour-negative.html

mighty helpfull printing that one out to have in the darkroom. switched it back to back with the one from ordfabriken on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ordfabriken/2971532482/#

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #2 on:** March 19, 2011, 11:47:26 PM »

jojonas...thank you so much..I would never have found it! I really appreciate your help!♥

jojonas~ · « **Reply #3 on:** March 20, 2011, 12:04:29 AM »

you're welcome

keep the temperature

Ed Wenn · « **Reply #4 on:** March 20, 2011, 12:19:32 AM »

Diane, the link Jonas referenced is the one I used, so you should find it as useful as I did; it's a great tutorial. Only thing I'd add is a cheat sheet for quick reference (useful for the first 2 or 3 times you do it). Also, I don't have a fish tank heater; I just use a big bowl of hot water and add hot to it every now and then. Temps vary by a degree here or there, but it never seems to make a difference.

Here's what my quick reference sheet looks like:

Pre-soak: for 2 mins
Dev: for 3.15 mins. Agitate for first 15 secs and then every 30 secs.
Wash: Agitate for 30 seconds
Fix: Agitate for 1st min and then every 30 seconds for 5+ mins
Wash: in warm water for 1 min constant agitation. Repeat 5 times.
Stabalise: 1 minute with no agitation

Nigel · « **Reply #5 on:** March 20, 2011, 11:38:52 AM »

Quote

could someone point me towards the article by a filmwasters gving excellent directions on developing C-41 film..I was thinking it was Photo-utopia but can't find the article..anyone having an idea please send me in the link....Thank you!

Diane - have you bought the kit yet? My finger hovered over the 'buy' button earlier this week and I lost my nerve.

But this morning I've packed two C41 films to send to Peak Imaging and it's costing £12.88 including postage, so I either need to find a cheaper lab or have ago myself. Let me know how you got on.

jojonas~ · « **Reply #6 on:** March 20, 2011, 11:53:35 AM »

ah! thanks for the ref sheet, ed. looks better than my print out that I clottered with what was where

I've got a list like that jotted for my standard bw process that I usually have laying open as a reminder. dunno why I didn't think of doing the same for c-41

I also did the water bath thing - though I think I'd like one of those tank heaters

Ed Wenn · « **Reply #7 on:** March 20, 2011, 12:01:54 PM »

Jonas: Indeed, the tank heater sounds like a great idea. I just didn't have one to hand at the exact moment that I suddenly found myself 1. not at work, 2. not with the kids, 3. not with my wife and 4. at home for long enough to get my teeth into something new. That set of circumstances hadn't happened at any point in the 4 months since I'd ordered the Tetenal kit, so I made a quick decision to go for it even if I didn't have exactly the gear I would like. For instance, my developing thermometer only went up to 30C as I'd only ever processed b/w previously. What to use instead? Let's just say that we used to have a hipster room thermometer on a shelf in the lounge...now I have a very trendy-looking C41 developing thermometer

Re the summary list; that was exactly my train of thought, "I have several of these for b/w...I really need on for C41 too". The thing is, once you've done it a few times you don't even have to think about the process. It really is so much simpler to do basic C41 than it is to do basic b/w.

Nigel: If you don't get a C41 kit from AG (or equivalent) and give this a go, then you're not the man that I thought you were

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #8 on:** March 20, 2011, 03:14:04 PM »

Ed. thank you so much for your imput..jotted down your notes..so I will print all this out and keep it with my other developing things..

Nigel..I bought the kit awhile ago.. Arista kit I believe. As usual..Randy(holgamods) talked me through my first B&W adventure and so he will also talk me through this one..once I do it, I am sure it will be fine..but my point is..surely if I have the nerve to try this you would easily triumph! I have no idea what chemicals or kits you have access to over there but he swears by this one..after this I am going to get a kit to develope E-6...all I can say it's a good thing my home phone has free long distance so I just put it on speaker and my mentor talks me through!

astrobeck · « **Reply #9 on:** March 20, 2011, 03:46:12 PM »

Freestyle has their developing instructions online:

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/pdf/AristaE6.pdf

Good luck with the Arista kit. It's the one I use and I think Sean does too, it's a snap. Just keep the temps steady and you are sure to breeze right through it! You'll wonder why you never did it before!

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #10 on:** March 20, 2011, 06:03:02 PM »

Thanks for everyone's help and comments..! I so appreciate it!

Mojave · « **Reply #11 on:** March 20, 2011, 06:51:21 PM »

You can do E-6 at home too? Is the Fuji Velvia E-6? Man, I really need to try this.

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #12 on:** March 20, 2011, 06:57:15 PM »

Erin...go to http://www.freestylephoto.biz and look under chemicals..they also have a pdf.(thank you astrobeck) with information on developing both C-41 and E-6 right there....the other info above ( from fellow filmwasters with excellent tutorials) will also lead you to info on developing color chemicals..I love the net..you can find anything if your given the right "map"

al · « **Reply #13 on:** March 20, 2011, 07:46:00 PM »

On the subject of temperature with C-41, this may be of interest.

http://www.novadarkroom.com/pdf/2005%20Prospeed%20Instructions.pdf

It's the instructions for the kit I've been using (Nova Prospeed) See the section on Exposure Latitude which can give a clue to the likely effects of getting the timing and (with a bit of maths!) temperature wrong. Not sure how well this maps to other kits, but might give a starting point.

You'd need to be 30% out on dev time to push/pull by 1 stop
At 33 degrees, 5 degrees below the standard, 3:40 would result in a 1 stop pull (30% reduction in time)

So even if you were a massive 5 degrees out, and still processed 3:15 you'd be developing 40% too short, and would be just over 1 stop out. Not too bad considering the latitude of colour print flim? Maybe there will be colour shifts etc, but if your scanning then thats not such an issue.

In the 5 years I've been doing C41 I've never bothered with anything more than the bowl full of warm water method. So long as you have a reasonably large bowl which will hold a reasonable mass of water, the temperature drop over the short 3:15 period is pretty small. Try a dry-run, fill your bowl with water at 38C, wait 3:15, measure again. The temperature drop should be negligable, if not, then perhaps extend development time a little, or add some hot water to the bowl mid-dev.

Francois · « **Reply #14 on:** March 20, 2011, 08:22:09 PM »

Usually, they say we should take the temperature of the developer before and after development. Make an average and use this temperature to set the new time.

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #15 on:** March 20, 2011, 09:16:53 PM »

Wow! I never expected to get so much helpful information..I really appreciate all the imput!

Mojave · « **Reply #16 on:** March 20, 2011, 09:18:32 PM »

Thank you Diane!

I think Im going to send my currently exposed color 120 to the lab for now, but I will test this out on some cheap Fuji 35mm to get me started. To develop the 35mm at Walmart, process only, I pay less than 3 dollars so I wasnt too interested in braving the C-41 process at home for that. Its really the 120 and the E-6 that makes me want to learn to do this at home. I want to shoot that Velvia and I want to start shooting more color 120, especially with my pinhole Holga, and lab developing for 120, process only, is more than 8 dollars, plus postage, so yeah, doing this at home will save me a lot of money.

Photo_Utopia · « **Reply #17 on:** March 21, 2011, 11:48:36 AM »

On fish tank heaters a cautionary note, some only go up to 30-35 degrees C so you may want to check that out. Mine does 35 so its not ideal, some have 'trimmers' to adjust the final temp so you can calibrate with a thermometer.
I try to have a kettle of hot water to get a kick up to 38c (100F) but the great thing is it's only the first 3:15 that's critical.
Mark

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #18 on:** March 21, 2011, 03:20:51 PM »

thank you Mark! so happy I printed out your info...will add this note to my instruction sheet...Erin..don't know if you have one local but ..Cost Co...only charges about $1.76 for developing a roll of color 35mm.....so I will continue to use them for color developing of that format..but color for 120 is a different story .. I want to develope my large format and 120..also..it costs me about $15.00 to drive to town to get it done..so all things considered this will save me a lot!

Townheadbluesboy · « **Reply #19 on:** March 24, 2011, 07:16:59 AM »

I've used the Nova kit a few times. The bowl-bucket of water method seems to work fine. The only issue I've encountered is with the chemicals going off - I presume it's the dev oxidising. Everything will be fine and then one day it will stop working and my films will be blank. So, I'm going to try concertina bottles to keep this stuff in. It doesn't smell too good either - I use thick rubber gloves when I handle it.

jojonas~ · « **Reply #20 on:** March 24, 2011, 12:11:45 PM »

what's all this talk I hear here and there about the developer giving of a smell? I didn't notice anything with mine... maybe I'm just less sensetive since I started using coffenol? and that didn't smell TOO bad either, haha

Mojave · « **Reply #21 on:** March 26, 2011, 02:23:51 AM »

Ok, wasted a bunch of color film today and got my C-41 kit. So now Im drinking wine and will attempt to process some film. And yes, the wine will help. I dont think I could do this without it.

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #22 on:** March 26, 2011, 02:48:13 PM »

eager to know how the film developing came out and also if you have a massive headache today as a result of C-41 processing and the wine..

Mojave · « **Reply #23 on:** March 26, 2011, 06:08:26 PM »

Well, it didnt go so well. The color on the 34mm roll came out ok, but boring. That might just be the film though. On the 120, the film is all cyan. And also, the 35mm film looks odd. There is an opaqueness on the film where the densest part of the image is. It looks like b&w film that hasnt been fixed enough.

Im pretty sure my thermometer works because I've never had any trouble with my b&w processing, but Im thinking that I might be overheating the chems. I get the developer at the right temp but then the blix sits in the bath and I think gets too warm. Im finding it near impossible to get the temps right. Its so weird because its just a warmer temp than the b&w processing temps but for some reason it seems impossible to get it right.

al · « **Reply #24 on:** March 26, 2011, 06:45:45 PM »

Perhaps it just needs some more time in the blix? You can pop in back for a while to see if it helps. So long as you don't really over do it, extra blix time won't hurt.

It is more difficult than b&w to keep the teperature stable because the temperature difference to (normal) room temperature is a lot greater, but using the bath method there shouldn't be a problem. Try leaving everything (chem bottles and tank) fully submerged in the bath, with the bath temp a few degrees above 38C. Then leave it for a good 15 minutes, monitoring the bath temp (don't worry about the individual chemicals) topping up with hot water every few minutes to hold 38C. Everything will eventually stabilise and to be sure open the dev bottle and dunk the thermometer in before you start.

Townheadbluesboy: Yeah, air is the real enemy when storing the developer (blix is ok), I just re-used some 4 month old part-used chemicals with no issues at all and I've had it work with developer stored way way longer than that! But just a little air, or a leak in the lid seal and C41 developer is doomed within days.

Mojave · « **Reply #25 on:** March 26, 2011, 06:58:56 PM »

Ok, Im about to develop another roll of 120. I've let the chems sit in the bath for about 10 mins and will let them sit a bit longer before I attempt to use them.

Its good to know that the chems last longer than the instructions say, if no air gets to them. But honestly, this process has so many variables for disaster that I think this just might be my last attempt at it.

Mojave · « **Reply #26 on:** March 26, 2011, 07:14:22 PM »

Yeah, by the time 15 mins have passed, the bath has cooled too much the chem temp goes right back down, and thats after pouring a whole teapot of boiling water into the bath. I just think its too cold in my house to be doing this. Perhaps this can only be a summer time project for me cause this is a real pain.

al · « **Reply #27 on:** March 26, 2011, 07:49:41 PM »

Quote from: Mojave on March 26, 2011, 06:08:26 PM

There is an opaqueness on the film where the densest part of the image is. It looks like b&w film that hasnt been fixed enough.

Just had a though about this - were you looking at the negs before they were dry? They often look like this when wet, but after drying look fine.

al · « **Reply #28 on:** March 26, 2011, 07:57:39 PM »

Quote from: Mojave on March 26, 2011, 07:14:22 PM

Yeah, by the time 15 mins have passed, the bath has cooled too much the chem temp goes right back down, and thats after pouring a whole teapot of boiling water into the bath. I just think its too cold in my house to be doing this. Perhaps this can only be a summer time project for me cause this is a real pain.

Your profile says your in California? Don't think your house will be too cold unless you have air con switched on full!

Very odd. What are you using as a bath? it's not a metal bowl or something which conducts a lot of heat is it? I use a small plastic washing up bowl stood in the sink in our utility room, which is fairly cool. I fill it up with water from the hot/cold taps to about 45C and wait, after a few minutes I run the hot tap into it to boost the temperature back up again because the chemicals are stored in the garage can can be very cold to start with, quickly dropping the bath temperature. The only problem I get sometimes is boredom waiting for things to cool down when I've used slightly too hot water and the developer ends up at say 40C. It can take what seems like an age to drop 2 or 3 degrees.

Can you post scans of your results?

Mojave · « **Reply #29 on:** March 26, 2011, 08:08:55 PM »

LOL! I am using a metal tub! HAHAHA!!! So that explains the temp problems. Oh brother.

But the negs still look weird, after totally drying. They scanned ok, but still look weird.

The biggest problem Im having now the Cyan look to my 120. I just did another roll and this time the temps were fine. Took forever to get them right but I got it. But they still came out looking really magenta, just like the last roll, so Im sure they'll scan all cyan.

Mojave · « **Reply #30 on:** March 26, 2011, 08:10:21 PM »

Oh yeah, and I'll put a pic up after I do my last roll. Its redscale film. This should be interesting.

Heather · « **Reply #31 on:** March 26, 2011, 08:43:40 PM »

Quote from: Mojave on March 26, 2011, 08:10:21 PM

Oh yeah, and I'll put a pic up after I do my last roll. Its redscale film. This should be interesting.

I seem to recall my one redscale roll did look rather oddly red before scanning too. Still turned out redscale though.

Mojave · « **Reply #32 on:** March 26, 2011, 09:17:37 PM »

My redscale didnt come out at all. It looks like C41 processed in caffenol c. All opaque. I can see some images and Im going to scan some, but I can already tell that the developing is totally uneven. So yeah, no more at home color processing for me. Im throwing in the towel.

Mojave · « **Reply #33 on:** March 26, 2011, 09:20:08 PM »

Yep, and the last color roll is totally cyan. There is no other color. I have no idea how to explain that other than I must have corrupted the developer somehow.

Mike (happyforest) · « **Reply #34 on:** March 26, 2011, 09:36:45 PM »

If you are struggling to maintain the water bath why not try using on of those hard plastic shelled insulation boxes, like this.

They can generally be picked up quite cheaply.

Mike

Mojave · « **Reply #35 on:** March 26, 2011, 10:06:27 PM »

Thanks HF! I do have a few of these but I dont think temp is my problem. Even though it was a pain, I did manage to get the temp under control but the developing is all bad. The color on both my 120 rolls is no good at all. Its all cyan and the redscale didnt turn out at all right.

I think I'll just let the labs do it for me from now on. I dont think I shoot enough color film to worry about it. At least I can say I tried it!

Mojave · « **Reply #36 on:** March 27, 2011, 02:03:08 AM »

I think, actually, the film is ok and the problem is with my scanner but I dont know how to prove that. Scanner works with other color film but it isnt like it usually does. And, when I scan in b&w mode, the negatives look properly exposed but when I scan in color mode, they are totally blown out. I see this all the time when I scan in preview instead of thumbnail mode but usually, as soon as use the marque tool to tell the scanner what to scan, the blown out look disappears and my image shows up. That is what isnt happening now. So, maybe just a coincidence that this started happening at the same time, or maybe the film is toast. All I know is that I can see the image on the negative, even though its very magenta, and I dont see that same image after the scan unless I scan in b&w mode. Very weird. Hopefully I didnt just lose my scanner.

Mojave · « **Reply #37 on:** March 27, 2011, 05:20:48 AM »

Posting some results, as promised. I am not at all sure what is going on with my scanner. It scans color negs processed at the lab just fine. And it scanned my super dense redscale negs too. And out of two rolls of color 120 shots, which was only 12 pano shots all together, only one scanned in color. Its very odd, but I think I will try this color processing again, only with a better tub for the bath.

First shot, 35mm, Fuji 100 color film, shot with the homemade lens on my Pentax. The color has been slightly enhanced in PS. It was pretty flat without it.

Second shot is Kodak Ektar 120 shot with my Holga pinhole pano. I had to convert it to gray scale and turn the brightness all the way down just to get the image to show up, but as you can see, there is an image there.

Third shot is Rollei redscale film converted to gray scale because I didnt like the look of it as is but it did process correctly even though the negatives were very dense.

The last shot is the only Kodak Ektar 120 Holga pinhole pano shot that scanned in color.

Francois · « **Reply #38 on:** March 27, 2011, 04:03:47 PM »

Thinking about it, you might be running into a contamination problem...

Mojave · « **Reply #39 on:** March 27, 2011, 05:37:35 PM »

Quote from: Francois on March 27, 2011, 04:03:47 PM

Thinking about it, you might be running into a contamination problem...

Yeah, and perhaps the colors are off enough for my scanner to be having trouble scanning the negs. I dont know. I do know that Im feeling now like I dont want to give up on it so I might get another kit and try it again.

astrobeck · « **Reply #40 on:** March 27, 2011, 07:35:51 PM »

Erin, Don't give up!

I think your next try will be better!
My first try was good, then my second try was not so hot, but then it all balanced out and it's been smooth sailing ever since. I think you will find you like it after the second go!

Besides, you'll save a ton of money doing it yourself and you can buy more loupes with all that loot!!!!

Mojave · « **Reply #41 on:** March 27, 2011, 07:38:19 PM »

Thank you so much for your words of encouragement Becky! I think I will stick with it.

studioesper · « **Reply #42 on:** March 27, 2011, 09:33:13 PM »

Maybe you should try the digibase kits.

Mojave · « **Reply #43 on:** March 27, 2011, 10:15:30 PM »

Not sure what a digibase kit is. I'll have to google it. I used an Arista kit from Freestyle.

studioesper · « **Reply #44 on:** March 27, 2011, 10:35:39 PM »

its a c41 kit that does not use a combined blix. but a septate bleach and fix.

Mojave · « **Reply #45 on:** March 27, 2011, 10:41:09 PM »

I read about bleach when I was searching for troubleshooting tips online and it seems a common thing to use. I will check it out. Thank you so much Studio!!! And welcome to FW!

I would like to see some of your home developed color shots using the digibase kit, if you're so inclined to post any.