Stand Development Darkroom Guide

[@philipd.6257]

Ted, Sometimes the bromide drag on 35mm film is the result of too much developer passing through the sprocket holes during agitation caused by what is referred to as The Venturi Effect. I have learned that the best method of agitation, to prevent or at least minimize the developer from rushing through the holes is to do the following. When agitating, each time you invert your developing tank you "snap" it back to the upright position. If , for example, your initial agitation is 1 min, it would be as follows - invert, snap back, invert, snap back, etc for the full min. ending with a firm tap to disperse bubbles. Each agitation cycle throughout the processing would be done the same way. I have done over 25 years of developing 35mm film using this method without any problem of bromide drag. -phil

[@MarkusBerkus]

I know this is old news after a month now but I thought I'd give my two cents as well. I've been doing stand development for almost 2 years now and found that I can actually do my development at almost any temperature as long as I go for a whole hour. I just see people talk about getting their chemicals to the right temp before starting but I've found that the temp (as long as its not TOO extreme) isn't all that much of an issue. As long as it's a consistent temp for the whole hour. I tend to do most of my development between 70º-80ºF since the tap comes out hotter where I live and as long as my water bath that I keep the tank in is the same temp as the chemicals I'm using I haven't had any banding issues! Hope it helps anyone trying to figure it out :) Thanks for all the awesome videos Ted

[@devizes.online]

Thank you Ted, that was most succinct. I am a darkroom pro of over 40 years, working in England. I found it amusing that you have to cool your chemicals down, here in Europe we have the opposite problem! I was taught how to do stand developing back in the early 70's when I was working in London for a top reportage photographer. The look he wanted, which was fashionable at the time, was a flat,sharp negative printed on very hard paper, Agfa grade 6. We used very active print developer to get the highest contrast possible out of the paper and the results were the classic 60's London photo style. We only used Tri-x and printed in condenser enlargers so print spotting was mandatory.

[@marcmeeks1929]

I also found agitation at the mid-way point relieved the bromide drag. My initial agitation is for only the first 30 seconds. Despite what others have said on the web I find temperature is very important. 68 degrees or slightly cooler results in much more consistent looking negs. The new Agfa APX 100 is gorgeous in stand at cooler temps, almost grainless. Good topic!

[@dannypryordoyle2710]

I work with Stand Development quite a bit. I stick to mostly T-Max and Tri-X, but HP5 looks amazing as Ted pointed out. I live in So. California and it does get hot here, but I will cool the dev. solution and film at the same time, keeping them both at 20*c for as long as possible. I use Rodinal/TF4, but have found a old stash of Gamma+ Zonal Pro developer at a local film store, and have achieved very similar results. Alternatives are out there, and experimentation is what its all about. Dynamic range is fantastic, detail is abundant and sharp, and for abstract prints I almost feel Stand essential. Thanks for sharing Ted @oceanfreshphoto

[@RareBrink]

it is pointless to aim for a 20c/68f temperature with stand development. Just leave a gallon jug of water out in whatever room you develop in. When you go to develop make your mixes out of that water. It isn't going to change temperature during the process because it is already settled at room temperature. There will not be a noticeable difference in your results, if any at all and it is less effort. I just refill the jug as soon as I start the development and put it back under the sink in my bathroom. You also don't need stop bath whatsoever in stand development no matter what fixer you use. Stop bath serves the purpose of immediately stopping development in traditional developing where time accuracy counts. With stand you aren't going to see a big difference between even 60 and 70 minutes so stopping super quick isn't necessary. Just thoroughly rinse the film (water, pour, water, 5 inversions, pour, water, 10 inversion, pour, water, 20 inversions, pour) and move on to your fixer. Photoflo is also not necessary as a film squeegee will do just as well and you don't have to keep buying it. Also, run your shower on its hottest setting while you fix and hang the negs in the bathroom. The steam will kill all the dust in the bathroom and will give you cleaner negatives. 35mm Tri-X takes about an hour to the point where I can put it into negative holders easily. You want to get the film into holders as soon as its dry enough to prevent further dust from getting on it. My minimalist B&W development setup: 1x Paterson 3-roll tank w/ Paterson reels 1x 1L measuring cups 1x 12ml Syringe 1x Dark bag 1x Bottle opener 1x Scissors 6x film clip (3 are weighted) 1x Adox Rodinal 1x Ilford Ilfostop 1x Gallon jug of water

[@MrGORILLAWRENCH]

dude, i though an uneven development in stand dev a fact of life. well I basically did what you said by leaving the water I'll use for my solution out to settle at room temp for half the day. Id usually use the water straight at the tap, but this must change temp resulting in a uneven dev. anyway the negs came amazing, lovely and even. thank you.

[@arekw9750]

Hi, you said there is no need for a stop bath and only fixer is required, so I guess you made a mistake in your minimalist dev setup by adding there an Ilfostop instead of a fixer. Am I right?

[@davegeraghty2187]

You say don't stop bath but then describe a more vigorous water stop phase than I do in normal development 😅

[@louontube]

Great video, Ted. I have watched several videos on stand development and I think this one has me convinced to try it out. Great tips on the process and thanks for adding the detail that was shared with you on the use of a cooler! Change in temperature is a definite consideration and one that hasn't been addressed by the creators of some of the other videos I've come across. I enjoy watching your videos - your content is informative and insightful and you have an outstanding public speaking voice that is to your credit. Muchas gracias!

[@AMBrikaer]

Thank you so much for this video Ted! I didn't have the guts yet to try stand development myself but I sure will try soon! You confirmed presumptions on detail, shadows, highlights and grain. As soon as I have done a roll (or two) I'll share my experience. The Art of Photography

[@Kleinbiology]

Just fantastic Ted. You never cease to inspire me. It's now on my 'To Do' list! . Thanks for this and all you do!

[@filibertkraxner305]

Glad I discovered thos oldie but goldie, just as I was about to develop another roll of Fomapan 400. It's stand developing as we speak. Thanks for clarifying the exact effects vs normal developing. Let's see how my roll turns out (only my second stand development ever).

[@hellraiserc1]

Thank you for the awesome tutorial! This makes me love the time and art of film development all over again!

[@blackwhitestyles1309]

I've tried some stand development with HP5 and Rodinal 1:100. The results really weren't so great, I was kind of disappointed. I only agitated continuously for the first minute and then let it sit. The pictures turned out way too flat. Maybe I'll give it another shot. If I remember correctly, the darkroom cookbook didn't really recommend stand development - Anchell was refferring to intermittent agitation instead. It would be really cool to see an episode comparing different developing techniques on the same film/settings! Cheers and thanks for the good episode!

[@jmickevi]

Great topic! I did my first stand development the day before I saw your post. Admittedly it was not the best combination of materials (20 year expired Tri-X 400 and Xtol developer). The negatives were kind of muddy but they seemed to scan OK. Very neat process and I will be doing some more. Loved your night shot of the skyscraper - that came out terrific. Keep up the good work with the podcasts - I look forward to them every week!

[@jameslane3846]

Thanks Ted for not only teaching me about stand development but also for telling me about the tonal graduation shift. I was always wondering why I had that on my film when I leave black and white film to be developed by my local lab... Now I see that they were being lazy!!! And they blamed my camera to have light leaks even though I never got light leaks with colour film in it...

[@AdrianFlores-rt9ry]

Coming back to this playlist now that I’m getting back into film and developing!

[@deemdoubleu]

ditto

[@macbookdieter]

I know this is an old thread, but I put my water in 2L soda bottles and store them in my darkroom. The temp is always around 20c. I mix my Adox just before I use it. I also use 10g of salt this works as a restrainer, simulator to Potassium Bromide. Thanks for the great videos!

[@BillybobSpangleberry]

I use 35mm Ilford Pan F+ developed for 1 hour in Rodinal at 1+100 dilution. I use 3mL of Rodinal concentrate and 300mL of water at 68F to process one single roll in a small tank. I soak the film in a water bath for a minute or two, then pour in the developer and agitate for one minute, then I let it sit for an hour. Another water bath to stop development, then fix as usual. I print with a condenser enlarger which exaggerates contrast in small negatives; with slow films and stand development I get negatives that are very sharp, fine grained, with a long tonal range. I can easily enlarge to 11x14 this way.

[@exhper]

Really get excited about these analog process clips! Thanks!

[@davidrothschild8913]

Would love to see how that halo effect would look on landscape and wilderness. As always Ted, such and eye opening episode. Thanks for your hard work.

[@kristofbarta2964]

Thank you for the video. I've just tried your method on my first ever roll of BnW with Fomapan Classic 100 and Fomadon R09 (it's supposed to be like Rodinal). I like the results a lot.

[@fredrikpersson7008]

3ml of Kodak HC-110 is what I use for one roll of film. 6ml for two and so on. I do a semi stand, agitating once after 30 minutes. Has worked without issues every time.

[@satyarod]

Thanks for this. Late lovely find- as been starting developing BW film, so look forward to try this 😇

[@cool69bober]

I tried straight stand with rodinal, and was faced with all those issues (streaking and bromide drag), so I switched to semi-stand which eliminates all of the problems and still contains "that look". My recipe is: Pyrocat HD 1+1+100 (paterson tank, 500 ml for 135, 700 ml for 120), one inversion every 20 minutes. Developing time is varying: 40 minutes for 50-100 iso film, 60 min for 400 iso, 80 min for 800 iso and 110 min for 1600 (I push hp5). Works like a charm, every time.

[@theartofphotography]

cool69bober The semi-stand seems to work best for me too… I need to try Pyrocat…

[@rmrfboy]

cool69bober how much time do you add on stand dev every stop you push? have you tried pushing hp5 to 3200 or 6400? i tried hp5 to 3200 for 2 hours but it looked like it didn't work :(

[@cool69bober]

rmrfboy Generally, I add 20 mins, and one inversion for each stop. I've never pushed HP5 to 6400, but 3200 comes out pretty good at 130-140 minutes. Just be sure to use greater volume of working solution because developer could get exhausted before your image gets what it needs to show up. We don't want that, so if for one film you need 300ml of working solution, you should use 500ml (or more). And dot't forget to invert your tank once every 20 mins. That should do the trick.

[@rmrfboy]

cool69bober 300ml to 500ml will be just the same, if i understand. but what's your ratio for 1 stop pushed, 2:100?

[@cool69bober]

rmrfboy It's always 1+1+100 no matter how many stops you push.

[@classicalemotion]

I would say that maybe you could not using stop bath, but then you can't be sure how many years will the film look good. One of the reasons we use stop bath is to enhance the preservation of the fix process on the film through the years.

[@michaelvincent121]

Can tell you live in Texas when you have to cool your water to 20, I always have to warm it up to 20. Great Vid.

[@oswaldlorenz8410]

15:30 why do all the images have this brighter right side? I mean what causes the effect? My first thought, if I would get constantineusly such results is that the camera might have a ligth leak or something. I mean the film is rolled in the tank, all right next to each other in there, so why do they all have the bright part on the very right side?

[@deliobartolucci5399]

very interesting. you answered to most of my questions. I'll try it with an across on night pictures whenever I'll find a good spot light meter

[@paulschmolke188]

Roll film issues…tray processed sheet film wouldn’t have the irregular development problems. I’m a 35 mm shooter so your video is quite relevant. 👍🏽👍🏽

[@stevenmuncy491]

One way to keep temperature drift to a minimum is NOT starting at 68F. Standardize on a temperature closer to room temperature. This may require an adjustment of dilutions or time, but there is nothing sacred about 68F.

[@ptegriffs]

I am exhausted. Its ok to breath. Fantastic and knowledgable, brilliant information good video but a little slower pace please.

[@silesian99]

Excellent presentation. Thanks!

[@mkshffr4936]

Hmmm... This might be a good technique for use with simple box like cameras where exposure is fixed.

[@InTheMistPhoto]

Really interesting process. Another topic: Have you ever done a digital to silver hybrid process? I'd be really interested in knowing more about that.

[@richardfloyd7387]

good video! Thanks! and are you planning on doing some on split D-23 development?

[@offtrailhiking4277]

I agitate the first 30" and then 3 inversions at the 30 minute mark. I wonder if that would have better maintained your highlights?

[@ytadaki]

Great video, as usual! What's the difference between "pushing" and just underexposure, in this case? Don't you have to "over develop" to compensate for the underexposure when you "push"? Maybe by using a bit more developer?

[@emotown1]

Great video .... as always. I do wonder whether that slight halo effect around an intense highlight wasn't just a normal halation effect? There is an anti-halation layer in fuji acros 100 but it still blooms around intense highlights (i can attest to that in 35mm version), like most films do in fact, so it's not like it's a terrible film or anything. Just seems odd for stand dev to cause that, when one thinks about the adjacency effects at play ...

[@darmibem8157]

Just tried it with Tri-X with shots taken from 25 to 1600 ISO on the same roll. Still drying at the moment but the negative strip looks promising.

[@erichstocker4173]

Do you not find that Rodinal increases the grain quite a bit?

[@maximf.5537]

very helpful, many thanks.

[@tobroken1965]

Great video Ted. For the night pic of the church, what were the lighting conditions and settings? I am having trouble with night pics.

[@MaxLamdin]

do you listen to the Film photography podcast? wouldnt be surprised if you did, however they have some very interesting conversations about developing and stand developing. this was very helpful Ted as ive recently set up a darkroom in my spare room for prints and plan on developing film soon

[@theartofphotography]

Max Lamdin I haven't really - will have to check that out…

[@gavinjenkins899]

D-76 1:3 worked BETTER for stand developing for me in large format when I did a bunch of tests a few years ago, than rodinal did. Still just initial agitation and 1 hour stand

[@lawrencewatts1838]

Since it's the depths of winter and I live in the Midlands in the UK I've been having trouble getting my water *up* to 20 degrees! Comes out of the tap at about 13 or so...

[@addictabledisaster]

Ted, you mentioned on one of your first darkroom technique videos that Rodinal lasts for ever, I happened to have an unopened bottle that could be from about 10 years ago or maybe a bit less... Do you think I should give it a try? And if so, should I have any special considerations?

[@theartofphotography]

+FedeDecuadro its probably fine, but like anything - just test it on a roll first

[@addictabledisaster]

Will definitely do that! By the way, awesome channel you created! It inspired me to create the Montevideo Film Socity here in Uruguay which is having amazing results. Tnks for everything Ted!

[@TheRobertSt]

Yes you could pre wet the film. OR you could use Kodat Photo Flo. OR you could add a tid of ordinary disk-waher detergent. Offcourse with this additive the solution will have a significant less surface tension all the way through the developing time. Which probably is good.

[@KingGameReview]

I like stand development because it's easy. I use Rodinal, but if you use something with higher than like 200 iso, it gets super grainy.

[@tacatube]

Thanks Ted! I have just started developing my film following this great video. I am not sure about the timing for the TF4 - you are using Tri-X and put that in the fixer for about 4 minutes. Is 4 minutes a general good time for all other films and iso other than 400? Would it ok/same time for Acros or other 100 films? Do you agitate as well?

[@randallstewart175]

No, T-grain films like TMax and Delta generally require about 25% more fixing time than non-T-grain films. No guess as to Acros, which has some elements of T-grain technology. Here's a novel idea.Why not go to the website for Photographer's Formulary (maker of your fixer) and look up your fixing times in the spec sheet they have thoughtfully provided to their customers, rather than seeking hearsay and BS-opinions on YT? Oh, and Yes, you have agitate during the fixing step. If you have just started developing your own film, forget this video and seek quality information. Best on-line source these days are the tutorials on B&W developing process on the Ilford website.

[@BriteFrog]

Hi Ted, I decided to try "stand development" after watching this video last night, and I had a couple of glitches. I used Adox 1:100 on Bergger Panchro 400 for and hour, with inversions for first 4 minutes, then 2 inversions at the 1/2 way point. I got 8 very useable images (120 film on a 6x7 RB67), but 2 contained what looks like chemical "burn marks", that is a white circular stain on the negative itself, and these two were towards the end of the reel. What went wrong?

[@jaisbr]

Are you sure that example photo for bromide drag isn't caused by light leaks? I had very similar streaks across my images which i fixed when I replaced the light seals in my camera.

[@schottdawg]

hey Ted, in the UK we can't get TF5, so I'm using a normal stop bath and fixer, could you tell me the ratios and time intervals for using both of them please with stand development. also I've read elsewhere not to use tap water for this, is that actually OK to use or should I use distilled water for every step? Thanks!

[@ivaa7777JAWA]

Great video

[@mauricerobinson5392]

I have processed a few rolls in stand with Rodinal since your first vid-cast about the process. My first few negatives came out dense and flat and we difficult to print. I am not scanning mine though, I am printing in the darkroom. I have adjusted to a simi-stand process that give me a bit more contrast. I am looking for more information on being able to print stand or simi-stand in the darkroom. Any thoughts?

[@RustyTube]

Can you do that with color film, too?

[@BeingWolfy]

I get gradient density shifts along the edges when I process with a traditional agitation dev process. It drives me nuts. Any other tips on solving that would be very helpful. Thanks for the video Ted!

[@theartofphotography]

wolfywho temperature control…

[@rmrfboy]

wolfywho i got the gradient thingy last two weeks when i purposely did a 1 hour stand development on 120 and 35mm. its very pronounced on 120. typically, i do semi stand (initial agitation, then 2 inversions on 30min mark) and never got the gradient shift you mentioned. i got lazy that day and questioned why i need to do the 2 inversions on the halfway mark... now i know.

[@BeingWolfy]

rmrfboy - That's the thing. I'm not doing stand or semi-stand development. Just standard dev'ing. 5 sec agitation every 30 secs.

[@oceandrew]

wolfywho Try using a different development tank in case it's a light leak.

[@NanoBurger]

wolfywho Welcome to the wonderful world of bromide drag! No cure as far as I know, but it does seem less when you add some photo flo to the developer. Agitation is the only cure, but that will increase contrast.

[@jamesjang1467]

Thank you so much for these youtube clip so helpful! Thank you again. I developed my self successfuly with this vedio

[@AI-Hallucination]

How long you been on the tube.

[@bjoernhallandsen5287]

What are the best films for Rodinal @0?

[@MeewoshB]

What about other developments? I am using ID-11 Ilford

[@aurostechnology7488]

very informative video! thanks!

[@tds_noel]

My negs have purple colour after developing, and my friend saw that and said "oh you have colours left in the negs" does black and white film usually have a gray colour (like the thumbnail for this video)? Or is the purple colour just the character of the HP5 and Tri-X?

[@TheNegative]

Not sure if you still need help with this issue but the fixer TF-4 is meant to remove the purple stain.

[@blackboxtool]

What type of scanner do you use? Thank you!

[@joecar1992]

Old video but hopefully someone can answer. Looks like Ted used 5ml to 500ml but then only used around 300ml to fill his tank. Would this not be below the recommended 5ml of rodinal per roll of film? Has anyone done 1+100ml in these single roll tanks with good results?

[@randallstewart175]

You are correct, but considering the crap-shoot you will get for results with stand development, what difference does it make? By definition, stand development surrenders all of the development controls like time, temperature, developer type, developer dilution, and agitation in exchange for a "guess and by golly" shot in the dark. Contrast control is not a saving grace, in that there are other well controlled techniques which provide that. Real men don't agitate at all; only non-believers agitate at the 30 minute mark.

[@brunobear88]

Hi Ted I just start developing my films with stand development, is normal that the film at the end of been dried is a little bit sticky? I don't understand why. I washed the film with a lot of water.

[@theartofphotography]

Did you use fixer? What type of film are you using?

[@brunobear88]

+The Art of Photography yes i used ilford rapid fixer 1/4 diluition for 5 minutes and than wash with water.

[@brunobear88]

+The Art of Photography film ilford fp4

[@Kitsaplorax]

I like Hubl Paste. Pure glycin developer. Glycin stains though not as much as pyro.

[@michelvisipsky8618]

Ted, may i use Rollei RHC DC developer for stand development?

[@alexcorona]

Michel Visipsky technically you can use any

[@jonnypanteloni]

My patterson tank no longer works, anyone recommend any online ones?

[@dimm1975]

Can you use D76 developer?

[@fotoluz12]

Wouldn't you also get bromide strikes on your film doing this technique

[@wpkg]

yes you could get streaking of some kind. What most people also fail to realize is that the more time the film spends in liquid, the shorter its lifespan. So sticking it in developer for an hour plus, the emulsion softens up so much that after a few years or maybe 10-15 years, the emulsion can just flake off. Something to consider if you like the idea that film will last for 200 years like it is supposed to.

[@alexcorona]

Jose Chavez this is mainly an issue with 35mm with the sprockets. I don't notice any at all with 120.

[@Dingosean]

use a good fixer. problem solved.

[@JosephCovingtonPhotography]

Thank you Sir"

[@pauldazar3348]

Ted: plastic reels should never be used for stand development, because they are thick they produce uneven development and bromide dragging. Use only stainless steel reels!

[@charlesmason58]

Sorry but your dilution explanation for minimum concentration to use doesn’t make sense. 5 to 500 and 10 to 1000 is the same. If you then only use the amount you require, as you say, and it’s back to 500, then you’ve used the same. I imagine Agfa was recommending how much minimum per roll in the tank is. Obviously you need a certain amount of syrup to develop a roll. Otherwise good video.

[@satyarod]

Ted - you agitation movement is zen like ☺️

[@MrLordofwar23]

Great, Stuff....

[@TheDandaDanda]

8 years ago this video thought me how tolive

[@lotlotschwaner4696]

this a camera compass from invalid window to nordea bank fillial17.thanks cointaner machine......hello gladys ate sally. nice to play the family group, to much enjoy like turtore.this is a done to all people to my home.. enjoy to usb.

[@granddesign]

Enjoy to usb to you too!

[@jpearl906]

Going for it. Can’t wait to see the results. On Instagram as lomoanalogue 🎞