Bruce Barnbaum - The Art of Photography - An Approach to Personal Expression

Mechanical Drum Development

Mechanical developing procedures, such as automatic periodic agitation in nitrogen burst tanks or continuously rotating drums such as Jobo, are perfectly fine negative development methods. If you use such methods, be sure the development is even throughout the negative. Also be aware that continuous agitation in a mechanical processor precludes the possibility of compensating development, since non-agitation periods are mandatory for the compensating process to be effective. Use a drum processor for negative development in the normal ranges, but switch to hand development and periodic agitation to achieve the compensating effect.

Agitate by inverting tank fully and spinning it 90° when bringing it back to upright position .

Figure 9-13. Agitation Procedure for Roll Film Development in Invertible Tanks

Development of roll film on spiral reels should be done only in an invertible tank, not in tanks requiring agitation by spinning the reels. The only agitation that I have found to yield uniform development is a wide, upward sweep to the inverted position, and then a return sweep—like an inverted pendulum with your elbow as the fulcrum—and, perhaps, a 90° turn along the way (the 90° turn is not necessary with each inversion; I do it periodically). Spinning the tank should never be done because it creates additional agitation and density along the reels, which translates to light streaks along the edges of the print. If your prints lighten noticeably along the edges, it’s a good bet that spinning the tank is to blame.

One common mistake in developing roll film is to load the reels first, place them in the tank, then pour in the developer through the small hole at the top. This is the worst way to start development! The reason is that some portions of the negative will be in contact with developer for 20–25 seconds before other portions are finally submerged, and uneven development is virtually assured. A better procedure is to remove the reels first and fill the tank with developer, and then load the film on the reels. (Of course, it helps greatly to load the reels in total darkness.) Then drop the reels into the tank, clamp on the lid, and begin agitation. Once the lid is clamped on, you can turn on the lights during the development time. Toward the end of the development time, turn off the lights, remove the lid completely, dump the developer quickly, and pour in stop bath from a nearby flask, premixed with the proper amount of liquid. Once development is stopped, you can pour out the stop bath and pour in the fixer in a leisurely fashion.

Completing Development with a Stop Bath and Fixer

For both roll and sheet film, place the negative in a stop bath for several seconds of continuous agitation to quickly stop development. Then fix it for the recommended time in the fixer. With most standard fixers (I use Kodak standard fix with hardener), 10 to 15 minutes is sufficient; excessive fixing may bleach the negative slightly. After you immerse the negatives in the fix and agitate them for two minutes or more, you can turn on the lights for inspection. A subsequent wash of 10 to 15 minutes—or five complete changes of water—makes the negative archivally permanent.

Developing negatives is not my favorite pastime, but proper development is the only way to continue the process started when you exposed the negative. There can be no substitute for a well-conceived, well-composed, well-exposed, and well-developed negative. If any of the four is given short shrift, there will be a distinct loss of quality in the final, all-important step: the well-printed photograph.

Appendix A contains tests for film ASA and contrast levels of your developed negative. It shows a method for determining normal contrast development for your film/developer combination, as well as other excellent tests for materials and equipment.

The Zone System and Roll Film

How can you use the zone system and contrast control procedures with roll film? To be sure, they don’t work quite as well as with sheet film. All negatives on a roll are developed the same way, whereas each negative on sheet film can be developed exactly as desired.

However, several options are available for roll film. First, you can use more than one film back or camera body, designating each back or body for a different contrast development level. By employing a sufficient number of backs, any desired development can be produced and nothing is lost. Most likely you would use only two or three backs and make small compromises. With three backs, you could use one for contrast expansion, one for normal or slightly reduced contrast, and one for compensating reduction. With two backs, you could use one for normal or reduced contrast and another for increased contrast. However many film backs you have, expose each photograph on the roll that most closely fits your needs.

If additional backs are either too expensive or unavailable for your camera, another approach may be possible. If you can unwind the film from your camera prior to complete exposure of the roll (a procedure that is possible with most 35mm cameras, but impossible with 120mm film), then carry several rolls with you at all times, each marked for different development. Whenever you encounter a scene that requires different development from the roll currently in the camera, unwind the one inside and label the frame it is on, then wind in the appropriate roll just beyond the frame last exposed (to avoid a double exposure) and shoot. If the next scene requires the previous roll again, unwind the current roll, mark the frame number on the roll or cassette, and wind in the roll you need just beyond its last exposed frame. This may be time-consuming and inconvenient, but it allows for proper development for each photograph.

However, my best suggestion involves another approach that shocks most people when they first hear it, but it really works! Whenever you expose a frame that is truly exciting to you—one that you feel will be a superb photograph—unwind the roll immediately and develop the entire roll for that particular exposure! You may want to make several variations of the exposure first. You may try different camera positions, filters, lenses, aperture and shutter speed combinations, etc., but then remove the roll! That may be a very surprising suggestion, but what do you lose? Film is the least expensive part of photography, so why compromise on a potentially great shot? I have seen people leave a roll of 20 exposures in the camera for months because the last two frames are not yet exposed. That makes no sense. Keeping film in the camera after a great exposure just to finish out the roll is equally absurd.

A second consideration may be even more important in support of this radical suggestion. Choose any great photographer—let’s say Ansel Adams, for he was great and his work is so well known—and ask yourself how many truly great photographs he produced in his lifetime (50+ years of photography). 50? 100? 200? Maybe more. But that is about four per year at best! Now, with that in mind, how many truly great photographs do you think you actually have on that one roll? When you stop to think of it, you don’t lose anything by trying this suggestion.

The only other alternative is to get the best “average exposure” on every frame and develop normally, hoping that high or low contrast papers will provide enough leeway to yield a good print. (This is a poor alternative to the previous suggestion.) This is the usual approach, and while it renders contrast control useless for the negative, it does show that use of the zone system for determining the initial exposure is still very important.