Does anyone here have a good recommendation for a starter darkroom kit? I’ve got an old enlarger, can’t remember the model. I know it’s a long shot since this community is small.
Does anyone here have a good recommendation for a starter darkroom kit? I’ve got an old enlarger, can’t remember the model. I know it’s a long shot since this community is small.
I disagree about the developer usage.
1L of Ilford Multigrade developer is good for developing something like 2-4 square meters of paper. Most amateur users will definitly not exhaust that in a session.
Stored in proper(!) bottles, you can use it perfectly fine for multiple sessions. Thats what i do.
Proper plastic bottles for chemicals can be had very cheap and are totally worth it.
That’s true, but Ilford themselves recommend making only enough for each session which is how I’ve done it to maximise how long my concentrate lasts:
That said they also have specifications for storing working solution, I just don’t print frequently enough or in such volume to use the solution before it spoils.
They also specify that working strength solutions may last up to 24 hours in bottles:
I suppose my reason for recommending this approach is it can be discouraging if you’re new to printing if prints fail or turn out inconsistently, and without experience a new person may not recognise the developer becoming exhausted as the cause and instead think they did something wrong. At least to start, using fresh solution each time means one less point of failure while they learn the process and gain experience.