Film developing takes skill and experience, but even then problems can arise.
Developing your own film gives a sense of control over the creative process as well as actual control. Developing slightly longer or cutting the time shorter can alter how the final film will look. It is hard to explain push processing to the local film developer in a department store. Yet, even seasoned photographers may find problems with their film processing and need to know fix it.
Instructions
1. Check your film tank. If there is a problem with the way the film developed, such as cloudiness or black streaks, you may have a light leak. This is less likely with stainless steel film tanks, but even they can develop puncture holes. With plastic film tanks, a light leak is much more likely to be the culprit in causing development problems. Bumping or dropping the lid, or the tank itself, can cause small holes or cracks to develop. The smallest crack can let light in, particularly if you do the development process out of the darkroom or with the lights on.
2. Examine the film reel. If it is stainless steel, the most common problem may be a bend somewhere in the spiral, or the clip on the inner part of the reel may slip. This can mean the film was not held in place firmly during development and may have touched another part of the film. This can cause areas of under or undeveloped film. If the reel is plastic, check for cracks or missing pieces. If there are any, you need to replace the reel and probably the tank because the reels are not usually sold separately.
3. Check the chemicals. Apart from light leaks, the most common problem for film development is with the chemicals. Unless you have a full lab to analyze the chemicals, the surest way to solve any problem with them is to toss them out. Even if you just mixed them, they can cause streaks or uneven development if the mix is not correct. If you mixed the chemicals from crystals and powders, the chemicals can be off. Crystals and powders can clump and not mix evenly. The chemicals also may be too old for full effectiveness, or rarely, the company did not make them correctly. Also check to make certain you are using the correct chemicals for the type of film. While most black-and-white film will develop in most black-and-white chemicals, using the recommended chemicals will produce better results.
4. Make sure the temperatures are correct for the type of film and chemicals you are using. If your images are coming out too dark or too light, it can mean the temperature was wrong or fluctuated during development. Black-and-white film and chemicals are much more forgiving of temperature fluctuations than color.
5. Agitate the film according to instructions. Just leaving the film in the chemicals will not produce good results. The developing-chemicals manufacturer will give specific instructions about agitation. For stainless steel tanks, this usually involves turning the film tank upside down for a few seconds every minute of development, with the first minute getting continuous agitation. For "daylight" or plastic film tanks, the time will be the same, but the agitation usually is done with a thermometer that doubles as a stirring device.
Tags: film chemicals, film tanks, stainless steel, chemicals using, chemicals will, chemicals will produce, common problem
