Which film developer do you prefer?

Favorite Answer

Same here - I've used D76, ID-11 (same formula), Rodinal and I've also been experimenting with caffenol (home made developer). The caffenol recipe I use is washing soda, vitamin C & cheap instant coffee. Been pleased with the results so far....Show more

Try rodinal.

At over 120 years old, it's the oldest know commercial developer that boasts things like a high acceptance (apparent sharpness), long shelf-life, and a great versatility. Usual dilutions range from 1:25 to 1:100, with more dilute solutions usually leading to less contrast and less grain depending on technique (great for pushed film). With the high dilutions, you'll be stand developing for an hour or two, which is apparently all the rage because of the benefits it confers (economy be chief among them).

It has many reincarnations, but they are all liquid-concentrate form.
http://www.freestylephoto.biz/sc_search.php?rfnp=30&q=rodinal&rfnc=301&

You can see thousands of examples of this developer on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=rodinal

I push pretty much all of my B&W film to 800-3200, so Rodinal and XTOL are my choice. If XTOL wasn't in 2l powder form and had better shelf-life, it'd be my favourite....Show more

I only use one at the moment and that is HC-110. I prefer concentrates over powders as i can mix up only what I need, thus reducing waste. I would like to give XTOL a try, it does seem rather lovely. I'm also going to give Rodinal a whirl at some point....Show more

After trying a few different developers, i settled on kodak hc110. Heck, it was good enough for ansel adams.

I rely heavily on this site for times etc
http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/hc110/...Show more

Hey it's Gordon Freeman.
When you gonna release a new game huh? It's been forever dude....Show more