The Darkroom Cookbook Forum

Thanks Kevin!

My notes include the following - Higher Dilution = - Higher Acutance - Larger Grain - lower overall contrast? is that correct ? I thought by increasing dilution, contrast is increased by extending dev time? Taking into account how different types of developers behave differently - Any other input to...

I'm surprised to see no dev time for +1 push (800) w. Acufine published on Digital Truth. (400 = 3 minutes /1600 = 10 min) What is the rule/math for increasing developing time for this developer for a +1 push? Any additional input/experience to share on Acufine is certainly welcome. I'm doing a bunc...

Thanks Perfesserkev,



sometimes i feel like it's a fine line b/t under/oversharpening scans, this is helpful.

Steve - finally getting around to testing some HP5+ & DDX combo you suggested. Albeit I only had to push to 1600 for this, it's still a very nice tonality that isn't all that different from delta 3200 (from my experience). One follow-up question - Do you have any recommendations for prudent shar...

I do not process my E6, rather i rely on a local lab (chicago) that is well regarded. I was advised that you can push a stop if needed, however, the results were terrible. I did recently check out Fuji's spec sheet on velvia- they indicated that you can push 100 a stop if needed. I continue to wonde...

Funny you mention Pete Turner - the 1st photographer I really gravitated towards as a kid - he shot all the great CTI album covers & had incredible technique in the darkroom. I'm continually impressed by pro's use of Kodachrome that was <100 ISO. I seem to think the lower ISO E6 emulsions were/a...

I'm seeking confirmation on proper exposure practice for transparency film. is it simply metering your palm in the brightest light (assuming subject is in same light) & placing it in zone VI? Or is there something more subtle to it that I should be considering in terms of "exposing for your...

I'm a little confused about something I read when learning "the zone system." black & white film - skin tones are to be metered zone VI which is one-stop over avg reading of reflective meter for caucasian skin. My question is: In a studio environment - portraiture - main light = shoot ...

Thanks for the quick follow-up Steve - (will def be picking up the new edition of the developer cookbook!) for my purposes - 3 stop pushes are for high contrast indoor stage lighting scenarios. I will have to do some testing ultimately, but your input helps my focus on optimizing. Look forward to te...

Hi Steven, i'm a little late to this thread, but do want to verify - in your Developer cookbook vol.2 - you mention early on that HP-5 is NOT a favorable film for pushing, however, in this thread you're advocating that HP-5 & DDX as the best combination for extreme pushes - superior to any combi...