Well that was easier than I expected (1st home dev).

[norters]

Yes! It's another of these threads! Anyway, my lovely girlfriend provided me with all my equipment today and off I went! After butchering a Poundland Agfa practising with the reel I then went to work in the changing bag. A bit sweaty but managed to load the reel first time

After a lot of research I decided for my first roll that I would try the popular semi stand technique in Rodinal 1+100. I decided on this as the roll I was developing was HP5+ that I had pushed to 800 as I knew I would be indoors at a gallery and in more than one detailed article I had read that the semi stand technique works well for this.

Well, enough waffling, here are some of the photographs

Ben Folds at his gallery show:



ben folds by rednorters, on Flickr

The 'day' statue in town:



day by rednorters, on Flickr

The 'night' statue in town:



night by rednorters, on Flickr

Some shadows;



shadows by rednorters, on Flickr

And finally, my aforementioned lovely girlfriend meeting her, and my, musical hero:



emma and ben by rednorters, on Flickr

If it wasn't for the F&C section here and all the help on contains I would have never had the confidence to try and do this at home

Thanks for looking as always.
Here's to the next roll

 

[steveo_mcg]

Looks like its worked out. Doesn't look as grainy as I'd have expected.

Good present, much better than socks!

 

[norters]

Looks like its worked out. Doesn't look as grainy as I'd have expected.

Good present, much better than socks!

Cheers! I am well pleased with how they came out for a first go. I did get socks too. They have Snoopy on them

 

[simon ess]

Oh man - I'm so jealous - Snoopy socks!

And meeting Ben Folds.

 

[KayJay]

They look great. You can't beat the black and white film grain. Interesting contrast in these images because when I shot HP5 I could never get high contrast images. Did you leave in developer for longer than normal?

 

[FruitFlakes]

Good tones, just how I like 'em. Might give HP5 and Rodinal a go when I run out of Neopan 1600.

 

[norters]

They look great. You can't beat the black and white film grain. Interesting contrast in these images because when I shot HP5 I could never get high contrast images. Did you leave in developer for longer than normal?

Cheers! These were devved for one hour at a lower than normal concentration. I'm still learning this diy thing but as far as I'm aware this does increase contrast. I replaced the stop bath with tap water under the instruction of another member here then fixed as normal.

I did give all of these a slight s curve in Lightroom but I do that with all my photographs. It's kind of second nature now!

 

[norters]

Good tones, just how I like 'em. Might give HP5 and Rodinal a go when I run out of Neopan 1600.

Thanks! I had heard some bad things about the film but I really like the results. Helps that I can pick two for a tenner from boots without waiting for delivery too

 

[ChrisR]

Wonderful!

 

[35millimetre]

These are gorgeous, much better than my first attempt!

 

[norters]

Wonderful!

Thank you

 

[norters]

These are gorgeous, much better than my first attempt!

Thank you so much. I had so much fun doing it. Gives me more of a push to shoot more!

 

[happygolucky]

Fantastic, I hope my first attempt is as half as good as your results when I get my kit. I'v got three used rolls of HP5 waiting to be devved.

 

[freecom2]

Congratulations, and a great set of shots as well. Impressed at the controlled grain considering it's HP5+ and Rodinal and pushed as well, 3 words that usually get the grain turning into golf balls...

And trying with a roll in daylight really is useful, I recommend it to all first time developers, especially when the roll contains shots you value (like the ones posted here).

 

[Asha]

Well done Nick ...very nice results for a first attempt.

I recall the very first time I devd at home.... seeing the images on the film was so exciting......something I still continue to enjoy....tbh I think I sometimes get more from deving than actually taking the shots.

Look forward to seeing more of your "home brewed" shots!

 

[antonroland]

Very nicely done! I am still not brave enough to do the pushing thing!

Was that 35mm film?

Looking forward to seeing more!

 

[rosiepep]

The fourth is my about its.

 

[norters]

Thank you all so much for the positive responses here it means a lot.

@anton - yup, 35mm. I think I'll need to butcher a lot of 120 before I am confident of getting that onto the reel!

 

[freecom2]

@anton - yup, 35mm. I think I'll need to butcher a lot of 120 before I am confident of getting that onto the reel!

Definitely recommend a wide flange reel for 120 film if you can get your hands on one - mine is a Samigon, they might be made by AP as well. Makes loading so much easier and less hassle.

 

[antonroland]

Definitely recommend a wide flange reel for 120 film if you can get your hands on one - mine is a Samigon, they might be made by AP as well. Makes loading so much easier and less hassle.

Can 2nd that!

I use the Paterson system with the white reels. 35mm loads like a dream but 120 is...welll...a total BEATCH! Normally requires the help of the missus to get it loaded

 

[FruitFlakes]

I actually have an easier time loading 120 film onto reels than 135. Unless the reels are wet. Then there's lots of swearing involved.

 

[antonroland]

I actually have an easier time loading 120 film onto reels than 135. Unless the reels are wet. Then there's lots of swearing involved.

Hell no, would love to know what reels you use though!

Wet or dry, those white Paterson reels are a PITA to load with 120...well, for me at least...

 

[freecom2]

I actually have an easier time loading 120 film onto reels than 135. Unless the reels are wet. Then there's lots of swearing involved.

Me too, for the same reason I prefer dealing with medium format anyway - it's just so much less fiddly because of the size of the negatives! Like putting them in negative storage sheets - with 35mm it's such a delicate procedure, but with 120 you know you'll never cut through any pictures.

Wet or dry, those white Paterson reels are a PITA to load with 120...well, for me at least...

Again, that's why the wide flanges are so much better, less chance of the film kinking in the middle and causing problems. The Paterson ones are okay with a bit of practice though (we wouldn't have needed a bailout if there was a swear box for my first roll of 35mm, you could've just used that money).

 

[antonroland]

Thank you all so much for the positive responses here it means a lot.

@anton - yup, 35mm. I think I'll need to butcher a lot of 120 before I am confident of getting that onto the reel!

Nick, best thing is just do it! Nothing like standing in total darkness past the point of no return with a roll of potentially good exposures on 120...:nuts:

 

[antonroland]

Me too, for the same reason I prefer dealing with medium format anyway - it's just so much less fiddly because of the size of the negatives! Like putting them in negative storage sheets - with 35mm it's such a delicate procedure, but with 120 you know you'll never cut through any pictures.



Again, that's why the wide flanges are so much better, less chance of the film kinking in the middle and causing problems. The Paterson ones are okay with a bit of practice though (we wouldn't have needed a bailout if there was a swear box for my first roll of 35mm, you could've just used that money).

Now this is one purchase the missus will embrace instantly! Brand name? Can I find them on fleebay?

 

[FruitFlakes]

Hell no, would love to know what reels you use though!

Wet or dry, those white Paterson reels are a PITA to load with 120...well, for me at least...

Just the standard Paterson ones. Usually takes me about a minute to get a roll loaded, but when the reels are wet they take much longer. Last time I did that (to meet a print deadline) it took me almost 15 mins, I had to disassemble the reel quite a few times to make sure I didn't kink the edges of the negs or to unstick them from the grooves on the inside. Nightmare.

Me too, for the same reason I prefer dealing with medium format anyway - it's just so much less fiddly because of the size of the negatives! Like putting them in negative storage sheets - with 35mm it's such a delicate procedure, but with 120 you know you'll never cut through any pictures.

It also depends on what sheets you're using too - the acetate ones are much more fiddly than the glassine ones. When I cut my negs I use a folded over plastic card as a guide, I haven't cut through my 35mm negs in quite a while.

 

[wickerman]

Now this is one purchase the missus will embrace instantly! Brand name? Can I find them on fleebay?

I have used these in the past. They have a wide flange and can be used in the Paterson System 4 tanks. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUTO-LOAD...raphy_DarkroomSupplies_SM&hash=item484cfeaeb2

Usually takes me about a minute to get a roll loaded, but when the reels are wet they take much longer.

I would imagine trying to load using a wet reel to be a nightmare. You could always use a hairdryer to dry the reel if you have one to hand.

 

[freecom2]

Now this is one purchase the missus will embrace instantly! Brand name? Can I find them on fleebay?

Mine were by Samigon, although I've never seen them for sale in the UK (I bought them on holiday - not your every day holiday purchase!). These AP ones that David linked to look identical:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUTO-LOAD...raphy_DarkroomSupplies_SM&hash=item484cfeaeb2

I would imagine trying to load using a wet reel to be a nightmare. You could always use a hairdryer to dry the reel if you have one to hand.

The problem with using a hairdryer is that I've heard stories of the plastic reels melting after a bit too long under the hairdryer - difficult to judge.

 

[antonroland]

Thanks for the link David!

Will look at getting one or two and try them!

 

[menthel]

I find Paterson reels really easy to load. Always make sure they are dry and I lubricate the bearings with a little graphite from a pencil. Hb is preferred!

 

[norters]

Well things have gone downhill since my successful first attempt! The two subsequent rolls have had visible sprocket holes and all kinds of bad stuff! The second roll I did in ddx was a write off and I did a roll last night using the same method as these shots and the same happened! Desperately trying not to lose heart though! I have a roll of tmax 400 that I want to dev I ddx tonight when ibget home. Has anyone here used that film/developer combo that can offer me any helpful tips? I have the developing times at hand for when I do it already

 

[norters]

Apologies for the typos in the previous post! My phone is not the easiest thing to use for forum posting!