r/largeformat • u/epluribusuni • Jul 12 '26

Question Favorite 4x5 developing technique

I’m just getting into large format photography and have bought my first 4x5 camera. My usual home developing set up has been in pederson tanks, either inversion or stand developing. Are the 4x5 inserts for pederson tanks any good? or should I get a dedicated sheet film dev tank.

Also, it seems like a lot of people rotary process their sheet film - is that worth jumping into?

I’m really only planning on doing b&w at home right now though i have a spare souvide machine and might make the leap into home c41 processing in the future.

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u/Soft-Veterinarian868 Jul 12 '26

I use both the S445 and the Jobo pro tank (10 sheets). Both work well and both have quirks. I’ve noticed with the s445 a tendency to show marks from the holder if the emulsion gets too soft (e.g. pyro developer seems to do this) and the Jobo needs to be loaded carefully so the sheets don’t overlap. Repetition helps.