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> Question Prescysol EF/Adostab compatibility and other questions about Prescysol EF |
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#1
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Question Prescysol EF/Adostab compatibility and other questions about Prescysol EF
Hello,
This is a question addressed to all knowledgeable people and to Peter, in particular, as he may know best : The Prescysol EF has very appealing properties and I'm seriously thinking about giving it a try but before to do so, I need to know if my use of Adostab as a wetting agent/silver stabilizer (Agfa Sistan's equivalent, not sure if the receipts are strictly the same) at the end of the film processing would not remove the staining and consequently negate all the benefits of using pyro developer. To me, the archival permanence of the negative is as important, if not more, as the global tonal range of the picture. That was my first question. Now, if I wanted to process a film pulled one stop (N-1) using Prescysol EF and the recommanded partial stand agitation, would 8.5 minutes (10.5 minutes minus 20%) be a good starting point or am I completely wrong ? Sorry asking such a dumb question but it seems difficult or risky, to say the least, to apply blindly the conventional wisdom to the pyro/staining developers. Another stupid question : the recommanded temperature for using Prescysol EF is 74°F/24°C. Do have the stop/water bath and the fixer bath to be that hot too or 68°F/20°C would be sufficient without risking reticulation ? And what about washing ? To conclude, I would like to ask for some recommandations : each developer, whether pyro or conventional one , does not work well with some films. I'm regularly using Acros, TMX, TMY-2, Tri-X and I'm willing to try the Adox/Efke 25/50/100 (pyro developer should make wonders with that stuff ! And no need for a hardening fixer as the pyro develops and hardens it altogether). Some are relating big issues with Acros/Prescysol (EF or not), Peter being the first on this forum, but I saw truly wonderful pictures made with this combo on the Web. So, ladies and gentlemens, please tell to all of us your greatest and awfulliest combos/experiences with Prescysol EF so that we can all know what works and what doesn't (or doesn't seem to). Many thanks in advance for your replies and opinions, Amine |
#2
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Welcome to fadu Amine,
I can't answer your questions but I'm sure someone will come along shortly.
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Cheers, Barry |
#3
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Barry,
Thanks for welcoming me. I'm glad to be member of your community and hope I'll be of some help when I'll happen to know something that deserves to be shared or could answer one's question. |
#4
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Peter will give the proper answers but when I have posed similar questions to him he said varying the development time does not have much effect and is not worth doing. He reckons to adjust development change the dilution of the developer. To increase contrast on an pushed film increase the strength by 1 1/2 to twice the strength. I haven't seen a solution on how to treat a pulled exposure (over exposed if I have it right)
With regard to stop and fix temperature I keep it between 20C to 24C and hve not seen any problems. From the reports I have read on reticulation I don't think it is the problem it used to be. We will see what Peter recommends. Tony |
#5
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Amine, welcome to FADU and I look forward to seeing some of your work soon.
Neil.
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"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance." Aristotle Neil Souch |
#6
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Hi Amine, and welcome to FADU.
I don't know the chemical make-up of Adostab, but if it is the same as Sistan it should be ok. Sistan is basically composed of potassium thiocyanate with water-dispersant added (as in Photo-flo) Whilst potassium thiocyanate is an acid salt, in an aqueous solution is is pretty much neutral, so should not affect the stain. Having said all that, Doug Nishimura of the Image Permanence Institute has found that image degredation - in either negatives or prints - is almost always due to storage conditions rather than airborne oxidants etc. Sistan was formulated for negatives which, for whatever reason, were not able to be fixed or washed. Sistan converts the silver to silver thiocyanate - a stable compound. You can't beat fixing and washing (and storing) properly. Just be aware that over-washing is just as bad as under-washing, and can also lead to image degredation. Whilst adjusting development time is not the best way to go, you cannot reduce the proportions of the developer mix with Prescysol. You can increase them, but that won't help with a pulled neg. I would suggest you reduce the time by just a minute and use the semi-stand method of agitation. Your neg may be a little dense, but it will still be very printable. Reducing the time too much will give weak shadows. You don't need a stop bath with Prescysol - just use a water rinse to get rid of excess dev. You can use that, and the fix, at 20 degrees. (To get reticulation you need to soak the neg in HOT water, then plunge it into ice-cold water. A few degrees won't be a problem.) Prescysol will develop any film, but the amount of staining will vary from film to film, and that is directly related to the amount of silver in the film. Acros doesn't stain as well as some others, but it always comes down to personal choice. If you like the results, that's ok. FWIW my own favourite films are HP5 and Delta 400. Hope that answers your questions! |
#7
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Welcome to Fadu amine,Look forward to reading more of you posts and seeing some of your work in albums,Richard
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#8
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Tony, Mono-inthedark, Peter and Richard,
Thanks so much. I'll soon purchase some bottles of Prescysol EF to make my own tests and I'll let you know the results, of course. Regards, |
#9
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I was wondering about this a while ago as used to use HP5+ at EI 200. However, seeing the results from using Prescysol with HP5+ at ISO 400, I have decided to not worry too much about it and go back to using films at their specified speed.
Steve. |
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