Dektol And Selectolsoft
I recommend working with these developers — especially at first — until their potential is fully grasped. A number of others are available, but in my opinion these two developers can be adjusted to match almost any other formula by using one or the other alone, or by using them together in varying quantities.
Dektol is a metol/hydroquinone formula (comparable to D-72) that gives full, rich prints with fairly neutral color; it is an excellent general-purpose print developer. I consider development in Dektol diluted 1:3 for 2 to 3 minutes to be a good starting point for "normal" See page 95 contrast (this time is often modified by factorial development^).
Some photographers standardize on a 1:2 dilution with 2-minute developing time. .
Kodak Selectol-Soft contains only metol or similar agent (the actual formula is proprietary and has not been published), which is primarily a "surface" developer — that is, it penetrates the emulsion slowly in comparison with metol/hydroquinone formulas. The higher values of the print image develop first, and the middle and lower values are strengthened later in the development time. Consequently a "normal" development time tends to give quite a soft image, but prolonged development yields a nearly normal scale with excellent print color. Thus varying the time of development can be used to control print contrast.
If Dektol is used as the standard developer, Selectol-Soft may be tried when it is necessary to reduce contrast by less than a full paper grade. Similarly, if more contrast is needed but the next higher paper grade gives too much contrast when normally developed, it can be developed in Selectol-Soft to achieve the effect of about a "half grade" increase in contrast.
Further refinement is possible by combining the two developers. The ability to combine developers this way (or with the Beers vari-Sec page 117 able-contrast formulas <■) depends on the different activity of metol and hydroquinone. Metol alone gives soft contrast, and higher contrast is obtained with hydroquinone alone (although a small amount of an agent like metol must be present to initiate the action of hydroquinone). Thus by combining a low-contrast developer with a high-contrast developer in varying proportions, intermediate degrees of contrast become possible.
A typical episode might be as follows: You have made a soft print that shows the full range of the negative, and now wish to improve the contrast. To gain contrast, you change to the next higher paper grade, but you find that Dektol is a bit "hard" for this paper. Try Selectol-Soft (1:1), using at least 3 minutes as the "normal" developing time. If this is too soft and does not provide the "brightness" you require, you can then add Dektol in varying amounts.
My usual method is to start by adding about 50cc of Dektol stock solution per liter (or 1 Vi ounce per quart) of Selectol-Soft stock solution, regardless of the dilution of the working solution. If the contrast increase that occurs with the addition of the first increment of Dektol is not sufficient, you can increase the Dektol in units of 50cc until the desired effect is obtained. It appears that about 350cc of Dektol per liter of Selectol-Soft stock (or about 10 ounces per quart) gives maximum effective contrast; that is, by the time the amount of Dektol stock solution equals about one-third the Selectol-Soft stock solution, the effect is similar to using Dektol alone.
It is important that the quantity of Dektol added be sufficient for the volume of prints to be made, or the Dektol will become exhausted before the Selectol-Soft weakens. For example, if only a few ounces of Dektol stock solution have been added to Selectol-Soft; the solution may be able to develop only a few prints before developer fatigue sets in. My general rule of thumb when using Dektol alone is that one-half ounce (15cc) of Dektol stock solution is required per 8x 10 print (80 square inches). Because different prints contain different amounts of silver to be reduced, the exact capacity of the developer will vary; one-half ounce per 8x 10 print is quite conservative, but it is always best not to overwork the developer. In combination with Selectol-Soft, each ounce of Dektol can be expected to last longer, and the capacity must be estimated. You may need to increase the total volume of solution, maintaining the desired proportions of Dektol and Selectol-Soft, if consistency for a number of prints is important. The factorial method can help compensate for a certain amount of developer fatigue.
An alternative procedure is to develop the print in Selectol-Soft until good separation in the high values is observed, and then transfer it to a Dektol bath for completion of development. Dividing the development time in half (1 Vi minutes each in Dektol and Selectol-Soft) seems to have an effect about halfway between that of either developer used alone. Variation in the time the print is in each solution will permit further refinement of contrast. In this case, be sure to develop the print first in the softer developer, and use the stronger one to complete the process. This method works well when making only a few prints, or when printing more than one negative in a single darkroom session. Whatever development method is used, it is important to realize that rich blacks require full development of the print; insufficient development causes areas that are dark gray but lacking in tonal variation or texture, usually a disturbing effect.
You should not find it too difficult in most cases to achieve a good combination for the desired overall contrast, although there may be additional refinement needed. Before you proceed, however, be sure to consider the dry-down effect; in the fixing bath the print may look quite luminous and nourish your enthusiasm, but you must expect See page 82 that it will lose some brilliance when it dries. <
FACTORIAL DEVELOPMENT
I have so far advised developing test prints at first for a standard time. For subtle control I have used with considerable success a method I refer to as the "factorial system" for determining development time. This system involves determining the emergence time
Figure 5-3. Redwoods, Bull Creek Flat, California (c. 1960). This wall of trees marked the edge of "clear cutting" of dense forest, a common practice of the lumber industry of this area. The subject values were quite complex: the foreground trees were in strongest light from the sky, and the shadowed depths of the forest were very dark. This is an 8 x 10 Isopan negative exposed with the 19-inch component of a Cooke Series XV lens; it received Normal-minus development in Kodak D-23.
(A) A print on Ilford Gallerie Grade 1 developed in Dektol (1:3) is obviously too soft.
(B) Gallerie Grade 2, also developed in Dektol (1:3), gives more contrast than needed.
(C) By combining Selectol-Soft and Dektol an intermediate contrast range can be achieved on the Grade 2 paper. In this case I used 500cc of Selectol-Soft stock solution and lOOOcc water, with 50cc Dektol stock solution |a 1:10 ratio).
Very subtle effects are possible by combining the two developers, although the difference may be limited here by the press reproductions.
of a key print area, and multiplying it by a development factor to determine the total developing time.
It may seem awkward at first, but this system offers a number of advantages besides subtle control of print contrast. It helps to compensate for changes of temperature or dilution, or (to a degree) developer "fatigue"; if the developer activity changes for any of these reasons, the emergence time will change, but the factor does not. Thus if we multiply the new emergence time by the original factor to determine the new total development time, we should obtain a print that is indistinguishable from the earlier one.
We can use the factor to determine the appropriate developing time to compensate for a change of the developer dilution. Once the factor is known, the developer can be diluted to yield a much longer total development time (this is a decided advantage when developing Seepage 169 a number of prints at one time). < The new emergence time multi plied by the original factor will yield a new development time appropriate for the change in dilution, and all the prints should be identical.
Note also that the factorial method can be helpful when the developer must be replaced. You simply mix fresh developer (of the
same formula) and then determine the new emergence time. Multiply it by the original factor to obtain the new total developing time. The resulting print should be identical to earlier prints. Without such a system, changing to fresh developer in mid-printing is far more difficult and time-consuming to control. I must remind you, however, that papers that have developing agents incorporated in the emulsion layer do not lend themselves to contrast control in devel-Sec page 47 opment unless a developer of low alkalinity is used. <
The factorial system should be applied after the first test prints have been made, when a reasonably good work print is expected. Start the timer as soon as the print is immersed in the developer, and then watch closely as the print develops, while agitating it constantly. You will see the image gradually appear, and you must locate one specific area you will use to determine the key emergence time for that print. This should be a middle-value area (around Value IV-V) that shows texture — foliage, or the side of a building, for See Figure 5—4 example. < When that area in the print "emerges" (becomes faintly visible), note the time the print has been in the developer.
The total development time is this emergence time multiplied by the factor. For example, if you see an appropriate middle-value area emerge in 20 seconds and you are using a trial factor of 5, the total developing time would be 1 minute 40 seconds (20 seconds x 5 = 100 seconds). Inspect the print after fixing. If slightly more contrast is required, you should try a higher factor, and for less contrast, a lower one (a small exposure change may also be required to maintain the desired high values). Factors up to about 8 are usually workable; with very long development times we are likely to encounter fogging of the high values. Too low a factor (that is, too little development) causes a lack of solidity in the low values and poor print color.
Choosing the emergence area. To repeat, the "emergence area" should be about middle gray or slightly darker. In a meadow, you might look for the first trace of detail in the grass; in a building, perhaps a textured wall or door. If you look for the emergence of a dark area, like a shadowed tree trunk, you will find that it emerges rapidly in the developer and the factor needed to obtain full development will therefore be quite large,- if you wait for a high value to show some texture, the factor will be small and of limited usefulness. It thus seems best to observe some value around middle gray as being accurate and efficient. I prefer, whenever possible, to select an area where there are two clearly defined values, a white and a middle gray; the gray value shows clearly against the white, and determining the emergence time is thus more decisive. One caution: You should avoid choosing an area that has received burning or dodging, as slight variations may occur from one print to another in these operations.
Choosing the factor. The factor is usually determined while making one of the early work prints, often in the following manner: You have made a test strip, and developed it for your normal time (usually 2 minutes). You then make a full print at an exposure time chosen from the test strip. As this print begins to develop, watch for a middle-value emergence area and note the emergence time. Then give the print the remainder of the 2-minute developing time used for the test strip. For this preliminary print, the factor is the 2-minute developing time divided by the emergence time you have noted. If the emergence time is 30 seconds, for example, the initial factor is 4 (120 seconds divided by 30 seconds equals 4).
You can then adjust the factor, and thus the total developing time, to gain the desired print quality. As stated, exposure controls the high values, and the factor is altered as required to produce subtle contrast changes (other controls may be necessary, of course, if a more drastic contrast change is needed). The factor you finally choose can be used for making repeated printings of the image, provided the paper and processing are consistent. It will be helpful to record the emergence time and the factor for all proofs and prints.
Note that the factor, once chosen for the optimum print, does not subsequently change; in addition, you must keep to the same emergence area for the image, or the factor will have no meaning. If you find that the emergence time is increasing in the course of a printing session, it is a sign of developer fatigue or a drop in temperature; however, applying the known factor to the new emergence time yields a total developing time that should compensate for the developer's condition (until the developer approaches exhaustion).
If you cannot get the desired contrast by using a high factor (7 or 8 is about the limit with typical middle-value emergence areas), you must move to the next higher paper grade. On another occasion you may find that even with a factor of 3 you cannot achieve soft enough results; you would then change to Selectol-Soft or other very soft See Appendix i, page 192 formula such as the softest Beers solution. < Or you might, of course, change to a lower grade of paper with the normal developer. Remem-Sccpage 82 ber also to consider the dry-down effect. < In addition, if the finished print is to be toned, you should allow for a slight strengthening of Seepages 130-131 the low values in the toning process. <
Figure 5-4. Barn and Fence, Cape Cod.
|A| I use the appearance of the top of the icncc against the grass as the emergence area for this photograph. The area emerged to the extent shown here in 20 seconds.
|B] Using the emergence area and time shown in (A), a factor of 5 yields 100 seconds total development time |in Dektol 1:3).
|C) Applying a factor of 8 to a print identically exposed causes a subtle but distinct increase in contrast. Compare the barn door, shingled walls, grass, and even the sky areas of the two prints.
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Good printing is not a simple process! As experience is gained, the trial procedures become almost intuitive, and far less time-consuming than the foregoing description may suggest. I can also attest that factorial development requires far less time and paper to arrive at high-quality results than a purely empirical approach.
To repeat, the advantage of the factorial development method is that it gives precise control of the exposure-development relationship, and counteracts the effects of developer dilution or "fatigue" and temperature change (all within reason). In most instances, the appropriate paper grade combined with factorial development will yield a print of the desired overall contrast and value rendition with Dektol. If not, you may need to change developers or try a different brand of paper. 4
Once we arrive at the optimum printing combination, we should note the developer and dilution, development factor and emergence time, paper data, and exposure information on the negative envelope or in a notebook. However, there may very well be individual areas in the print that are not yet satisfactory, and we must next consider the dodging and burning that will be necessary.
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