Re: Pinholes in HIE

[George L Smyth <GLSmyth@xxxxxxx>]

John Sparks wrote:
> 
> Last weekend I developed my first sheets of 4x5 Kodak ir film.
> Everything looks pretty good except I got a number of black dots in the
> negatives.  These are not the typical dust blobs you often get with
> sheet film.  When I look at the film with a loupe, it looks like the
> emulsion erupted away from the film base.  My first guess is that it's a
> reaction between the basic developer and the acidic stop bath (I think I
> was using a fairly weak stop bath) and I was using much diluted Tmax RS
> (1:9 at the times listed on the IR homepage).  Anyone seen this (even
> with the 35mm HIE)?  Any recommendations?  Do most people use a water
> rinse instead of stop with HIE?
> 

Unfortunately, I've seen this all too often.  However, in my experience
the problem is not due to actual pinholes.  The most common problem
arises from dust on the negative during the time it was exposed.  The
other is due to loading without wearing gloves (though this wouldn't
appear as pinholes, but more as smudges).  I now go through the same
bathroom-steaming procedure I go through before drying negatives, and my
problems have been considerably reduced.  I use Kodak Indicator Stop
Bath at the recommended dilution, and would not recommend a water stop,
as it will reduce the life of your fixer.

-- 
 Handmade Photographic Images     
  http://www2.ari.net/glsmyth


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Topic No. 15