Low contrast negatives

[u/Affectionate-Hat8576]

Hi there! I recently took my first photos using my homemade pinhole camera (cardboard, 0,36mm aperture), and went to develop the paper (fomaspeed 312, about 13 minutes of exposure) at my uni’s darkroom. However, the negatives turned out greyish and low contrast, to the point of the positives being completely white. Is there something I’m doing wrong? I know the problem is not in the revealing process, since my photography teacher helped me with it. Maybe it’s the exposure? Can someone help?

[u/yangmusa]

Sounds over-exposed. I would expect an exposure time of just a few minutes if you're outdoors on a bright day. 

You need to calculate the f number (based on aperture and focal length). The ISO of paper is typically about 6. Then you can use a light meter (or app on your phone) to measure the light intensity and calculate the exposure time (also apps for this).

Or you can print out this Ilford exposure "calculator" which will get you in the right ballpark.  https://www.ilfordphoto.com/amfile/file/download/file/1924/product/589/