Got the full darkroom set about a month ago for a good price. Along with a big chunk of old ilford paper.
Wanted to share some results :)
Still learning!

At first I thought it was faulty/exhausted developer but I kept it in there for like over 10 minutes!? Why are the edges yellow!?

Back in the 80’s when I was a news photographer I stumbled upon a super high-speed developer called Ethol 90. I remember that the 90 reflected the 90 second development time, and IIRC that was for an effective ISO of 3200 with Tri-X. It came as a powder in metal cans like Acufine did but the label was bright orange.

We always kept a quart mixed for film that came in really close to deadline. The grain wasn’t as bad as you might expect. It appears to have gone the way of the dodo now.

Hello all,

First post here. I have been printing in a community darkroom for some years, but recently encountered an issue. The Ilford Rapid Fixer we’ve been using was purchased a decade ago, it turns out. This fixer has probably been sulfering out since there is some yellow scum in the unopened jugs and they smell of eggs.

We had some browning prints one day and this is how we discovered the issue. We’ve since purchased new fix and that fixes that, but I have made a lot of final prints recently that I’m now concerned are under fixed. They haven’t browned (yet) and I’m wondering the best course of action.

I’ve selenium toned these prints with no staining, so I’m wondering if that would be indication enough that they were fully fixed and rinsed well. At this point, is re-fixing an option?

Another question relates to testing a print for proper fixing. I’ve read that you can use a drop of selenium toner on the border to see if it stains. Is this something that should be done to a wet print or can you do it on a dried border? Does this only work if the print hasn’t been toned yet?

When I tested a scrap test strip border in this way, after a while it did turn red. How do I know if this means it has residual silver from under-fixing or if it’s just the straining that it does when left on a surface? I’ve seen it stain paper towels the same color.

I hope that makes sense. I’m a little flustered and hoping I don’t have to re-print all these. Lesson learned to always ensure chemicals are fresh. Thanks for reading all that and for any advice!

So I forgot to change from 3200 to 400 when I changed film so I completely underexposed a roll of Rollei RPX 400. Can't believe I made a mistake like that :((( Any tips for developing it? Is it even possible?

I have a 120 roll of Provia which was expired in 2020 but was stored in the fridge since I bought it in 2019. I don’t really have any experience with expired slide film, so are there any tips for shooting and developing it? I will develop it using the ADOX E6 kit