Strange black speckled areas at edge of film (lighter on negative)

[Nikanon99]

Hello, I am getting these strange areas of density in my prints/scans where there is some kind of clumping going on always at the very edges of my film but inside the image area. This is the most recent example of it, and the first image I included is a close up of one of the streak/clumped areas with increased contrast to show whats going on with the grain there, and the last one shows how it looks on a full image (although sometimes it is more obvious than this). This is Ilford FP4 shot at 200, developed in Xtol 1:1 68F for 13 minutes with regular 30 minute agitation on Hewes reels. This has happened to me with any film, in any camera. The constant is my film developing process, and I cannot figure out what is causing this!

[tim.bowman]

That looks kind of like air bubbles during development to me. Is that top edge parallel to the spiral on your reel? I get something similar on 120 if I'm not giving the tank a good rap to dislodge them. The bubbles displace the developer and make the neg thinner along the reel.

[Nikanon99]

I am beginning to think this is what this is. I assume this edge with the issue must have been at the top of the reel. I am trying some experiments with some films to see if I can reproduce or eliminate it based on how I bang the tank. The one I just tested I must have banged it too much because I had a very uneven development from top to bottom of the frame, but didnt see any marks!

[sanchell]

I concur with Tim that this may be partly due to the reel. But I believe it has more to do with the volume of developer than air bubbles. In fact, I don't believe air bubbles have anything to do with the problem you are experiencing - unless you are using carbonated water.

What size tank, how many reels, and what volume of developer per reel are you using?

I believe you meant to write you are agitating every 30 seconds, not minutes. Can you describe your agitation method, including how long your initial agitation is before beginning the 30-second cycle? Agitating for one full minute upon initial induction will reduce or eliminate many problems, such as uneven edge development.

Xtol is a high-acutance developer. Not only will you get better results if you agitate once a minute for 4 inversions or 10 seconds, whichever comes first, but it may also be part of the problem.

I'll know better when you answer the above.

[Nikanon99]

Hello Mr Anchell, in this case of the roll above, I am using a single roll metal tank with plastic cap lids and heavy duty Hewes reels. I am using 250 ml of liquid which I have checked by using a fully spooled reel in the tank and checked the liquid level to be sure it is adequate.

The water I am using is very hard water actually, not carbonated, I am located in Chugwater, Wyoming.

Yes, every 30 seconds, not minutes, typo. I do 5 inversion within about 5 seconds, so as the clock counts down to 35, I agitate by inversion 5 times, then when it hits 5, I do the same. My initial agitation is 30 seconds once the developer is in the tank.

I can give your suggestions a try on the very next roll!

[sanchell]

The problem you are having is caused by both the volume of the developer and your agitation method.

250 ml is not enough developer to ensure optimal development; 350 ml is my recommended minimum. An initial agitation cycle of one full minute is needed with most developers (there are few exceptions; Xtol is not one of them) to prevent defects such as the one you are experiencing.

For the first, use a two-reel development tank with two reels. Place the first reel with the film on the bottom and the second as a spacer on top. Fill the tank with 500ml of working developer. I know it will cost another .75 cents per reel, but do it anyway. Alternatively, you could use a four-reel tank and develop three reels simultaneously, with one empty reel at the top for a spacer. But never develop a single reel in a single reel tank; always use a spacer, and always fill the tank you use with the developer.

As mentioned above, one minute of initial agitation. Then, either 10 seconds or four inversions every minute thereafter. For example, if you get to 10 seconds and have only made 3 inversions, that's fine. If you make 4 inversions and it's only 8 seconds, that's fine, too.

Tap one corner of the tank gently; that is all needed to release any bubbles.

Finally, if you have some loose change and don't know what to spend it on, switch to a two-reel Paterson System 4 plastic developing tank. They hold slightly more volume and allow for faster initial immersion and dumping.

[Nikanon99]

Steve,

The tank is one of those small single reel tanks, it only holds about 275ml at the very most with no film on the reel. With film on the reel it holds about 260ml with no real room for chemical movement. I do have a four reel tank that I fill to 850ml, any more than that and I get bromide streaking as there is no air space for the chemical to move around. It sounds like I should switch to a double reel tank for any single film development! I will give the spacer concept a try on my very next development with my four tank.

I will do the full minute of agitation, as well as try the 10 seconds once a minute agitation method.

Do you prefer the plastic reels to the metal ones for this reason? I would certainly invest in whatever will develop my film better and without these errors.

[Nikanon99]

So I followed the development recommendation exactly as described above, and this time I got a problem I have never seen before with block spots all over the film as seen in the attached image

[Nikanon99]

Steve, I followed the development procedure again, Stock Xtol, 68F, Fomapan 400, 9 minutes with one full minute of inversion agitation, inverting for 10 seconds every minute, leaving one reel of four reels empty for a spacer. I now have much much worse artifacts that I have never gotten in all my days of development. I am assuming these are airbells but in a very strange clustered honeycomb shape

[sanchell]

That is very strange indeed. We need to isolate the problem to find the answer. We can do this by changing one variable at a time.

First, let's clarify your procedure. You are now using a 2-reel tank, correct? Are you filling it with developer, leaving room at the top for an air bubble?

If so, then let's take the next step. Try the same procedure with a different developer; I recommend D-76. Use the same film, tank, agitation method, and volume of developer.

Do this and let me know the results. In the meantime, I will consult with a few sources.

[sanchell]

Bill Troop thinks that this might be a defect in the Foma film. While rare, films are susceptible to defects in manufacture. My memory isn't what it used to be, but in the late '80s or early '90s, as I recall, Kodak produced a batch of film that had defects. They quickly rectified their error when it was discovered.

I would suggest you either try a different film (Ilford would be my recommendation) using the same developer and process or, as I mentioned previously, change the developer. Don't do both at once. Change one variable at a time.

This is also from Bill: There is the slightest possibility that these defects are due to some kind of mineral scum from his water. I think it is more likely a film defect. However, first and foremost, he should not be using tap water.

We'll get to the bottom of this.

[Nikanon99]

Steve,

Commenting back to your second comment first as I think this is most relevant, I believe this is also a defect in the foma film. I just developed two rolls of Kodak Double-X spooled as 35mm and shot at 400 ISO in my new patterson plastic two reel tank ( i purchased this just to try to eliminate the problem), one on each reel. I filled to 600ml and used the same 1 initial minute of inversion agitation, and then agitated every 30 seconds for 5 seconds using the spinning method with the stick until I reached 6 minutes (12 minutes total) and then did another inversion agitation and went back to the spin method until the end. There is not a single mark on either film, it developed perfectly. This is with the same batch of developer that I have been developing the Foma 400 in. I did ANOTHER development in this tank using 600ml of chemical with only one reel occupied and one empty, using the same method as described above and still had quite a few air bubble like marks on it.

My next plan is to mix up another batch of Xtol with distilled water this time ( I never used it before because I have never had a problem with the tap water mixture). It almost seemed to me like something about the foma film and perhaps either the water mixed in with the chemical reactions of the developer was creating some kind of byproduct that resulted in an air bubble directly on the surface. No matter how many different ways I developed and banged the tank more or less or extreme, it would not rid me of the bubbles. But this time, with minimal knocking and using the swirling agitation method chiefly, I have not had an issue. I will probably try going back to the metal tanks and inversion agitation with another film and the new batch to see if I get this problem at all, as the only issue I used to get is the very first one I posted at the top.

[Ian Grant]

It would be useful to know the film format. There have been 120 backing paper issues recently with Foma, Ilford, & Kodak films. While the backing papers differ slightly, they come from the same manufacturer. Apparently one of the components used was changed slightly by a 3rd party supplier, this made it difficult for the film manufacturers and the backing paper company. It also didn't help that these issues showed up only after film had been stored for some time.

Foma films were the worst affected.

Ian