How should I guesstimate the time for refixing?
The pretty close to definitive guide to how you screwed up
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You can just check the film every minute or so by holding the film near a light source. When it looks to be clear, give it a bit more and wash.
Dont think you can over fix.
I have never encountered a problem with over fixing.
Rapid fixers are very weak bleaches (of the dissolve-the-image-silver variety). It is possible to overfix with them, though with most films and papers you'd never notice unless you left the medium to soak for days or weeks. Where you might actually see some effect from overfixing is if you're shooting microfilm stock -- as for instance in a submini camera to get grain that doesn't look like golf balls in an 8x10 print, or with microfilm-derived stocks like Tech Pan or CMS20. With silver grains as small as those films produce (or with some papers, especially warm tone) you may see some loss of density if you leave the film in the fixer for much longer than the short time needed to actually fix.
How would I scan and post a negative here to show what it looks like?
Hold it up in front of a diffuse bright surface (that will be out of focus, ideally) and photograph it with a smart phone or digital camera, scan it with either a reflective scanner (once again, backed with something light like white paper), or scan without inversion on a film scanner. All these methods have their up and down sidees.
Are these negatives too underexposed. I was able to create this from the shady picture from editing in LR.
I see detail in the deepest shadows you've included in the "shady" negative, so they aren't any lower than about Zone VII. I wouldn't call that underexposed, that's about right. Depending on visualization, you could even have given one stop less exposure.
Just refixed. Trix Negs look clearer. Waiting to dry. Would be interested to compare before and after scans
It didn;t seem right as if it was too light. But it did seem to adjust ok in Lightroom. Thnaks.
Surprisingly I only had a couple of the items from Ilford's list. My latest goof comes from taking the camera out on a humid morning and forgetting to check the lens for fog just before capture. What was a low contrast image to start with is even more so, but still has some sharpness to it, not quite sure how. Seems to affect the darker tones more than the lighter tones.
I guess those are just the most common errors. There was a more comprehensive catalogue in the old Ilford Manual of Photography.
(Most of that book is still relevant and worthy of study if you can find a copy. I got mine as a school prize in about 1970, and it was in its umpteenth edition by then.)
(Most of that book is still relevant and worthy of study if you can find a copy. I got mine as a school prize in about 1970, and it was in its umpteenth edition by then.)
For hypo fixers, I pop the film leader into the top of the developing tank, under the cap, and check it between tank inversions. When it is clear, note the time and give the film the same time again.
I'm pretty sure I read in an Ilford data sheet that rapid fixers don't follow this rule, so I follow Ilford recommendations on those.
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I started adding 50% of recomended time to fix. Small time price to pay to make sure it is fixed right.
I have a new mistake to add.
Wearing an Apple watch while using a changing bag ... I of course never saw the lights come on inside the bag, but the sheet of film did
Wearing an Apple watch while using a changing bag ... I of course never saw the lights come on inside the bag, but the sheet of film did
I can come up with lots more ways than this to screw up, even just from recent memory.
Just tried ilford rapid fix.
6 minutes of fixing has the same results of under fixing.
My developer is Kodak Xtol.
Any idea what makes the fixers not work as well?
I am using kodak stop bath in between.
6 minutes of fixing has the same results of under fixing.
My developer is Kodak Xtol.
Any idea what makes the fixers not work as well?
I am using kodak stop bath in between.
In my experience, that product is very reliable, and stable under reasonable storage conditions, so I feel sure something must be wrong at your end.
What exactly are you seeing? Has the film failed to clear? I can't think what other signs of under-fixing you could see without chemical tests. Any residual pink base colour in e.g. T-Max should wash out after fixing.
You say 'just tried': does that mean this is your first use of the product? Was it a previously unopened bottle of concentrate, and not very old stock? Are you certain you diluted it 1+4? Did you dilute it for this film? Otherwise, how long ago was it mixed, and how many films has it processed?
Also - may seem a stupid question - but what film? I mean, if you had loaded a colour film by mistake ... I know, I know, but mistakes do happen.
Good news is that you can almost certainly re-fix in a fresh solution without penalty, even if you have washed and dried the film - but 3 min fixing in a fresh solution should be ample. I think I've read that serious over-fixing can lead to nasty things happening to the emulsion, but I've never done that so I have no experience.
What exactly are you seeing? Has the film failed to clear? I can't think what other signs of under-fixing you could see without chemical tests. Any residual pink base colour in e.g. T-Max should wash out after fixing.
You say 'just tried': does that mean this is your first use of the product? Was it a previously unopened bottle of concentrate, and not very old stock? Are you certain you diluted it 1+4? Did you dilute it for this film? Otherwise, how long ago was it mixed, and how many films has it processed?
Also - may seem a stupid question - but what film? I mean, if you had loaded a colour film by mistake ... I know, I know, but mistakes do happen.
Good news is that you can almost certainly re-fix in a fresh solution without penalty, even if you have washed and dried the film - but 3 min fixing in a fresh solution should be ample. I think I've read that serious over-fixing can lead to nasty things happening to the emulsion, but I've never done that so I have no experience.
Radost, I know of no better teacher than experience when it comes to knowing when the film is fully developed. Keeping notes and learning from things is a huge part of analog photography. Or, screw up enough and you become an expert. There really is no replacement for experience.
I keep my chemicals in mason jars w/ the lids on them in the water bath. The lids have FIXER and DEVELOPER written in black marker on their tops. That ended my experiments w/ developing film w/ fixer......for now. I'm sure one day I'll get them mixed up again. Probably should just keep the fix on the counter, the developer in the water bath, I doubt that room temps will affect the film if it's developed at the right temps.
I keep my chemicals in mason jars w/ the lids on them in the water bath. The lids have FIXER and DEVELOPER written in black marker on their tops. That ended my experiments w/ developing film w/ fixer......for now. I'm sure one day I'll get them mixed up again. Probably should just keep the fix on the counter, the developer in the water bath, I doubt that room temps will affect the film if it's developed at the right temps.
The film is CInestill BWXX.
So let me try Kodak TriX tonight and see if it makes a difference.
But what are you seeing in the 'underfixed' case?
Muddy negatives.
Will take a picture tonight.
As fixer gets older extend the time. Fix for 10 minutes. After that is fixing is not complete mix new fixer.
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