# First colour film......



## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Messed up!  Yep in the long tradition of first time disasters my first attempt to develop a colour film has produced a very fancy orangey/brown strip of negatives! 

So in an attempt to understand more about what has happened can anybody tell me what has caused htis?

Temp was spot on all the way through, film was preheated for 1 min, developer and fixer was measured very carefully, time was followed to the second!

Chemicals have come from an un-opened "kit" from Jessops! Camera exposes the film OK, film was loaded onto the reel in complete darkness with even the neon of the extension lead turned off.

The result is a blank negative with no numbers or faint images.  So has the developing process over or under developed to produce this result?  How long does it take for an image to "appear" through the murky negative at the begining? And can anybody reccomend specific chemicals or kits? - Maintaining the temp doesn't seem to be much of a problem and can be held at 100f for the developing duration (thermometer in each solution, not the bath)

Any help and advice appreciated :hail:


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## terri (Oct 11, 2005)

You have my sympathy - rotten outcome!  

A completely blank negative, with no numbers?? Nothing there to post for us to see?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

I'm not too concerned as I suspected I'd be more likely to get it wrong than right! 


The negatives are completely plain orange and transparent with nothing else at all.  No numbers or faint images, no stains or odd patterns!

I spent ages last night looking through past treads in here but found more questions and suggestions than answers!  

Is it worth trying a different set or brand of chemicals or maybe developing at a different temp?


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

I use the Jessops kit myself with no problems.

I think it sounds like you may have put the bleach/fix in first.  Is that possible?


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## Unimaxium (Oct 11, 2005)

My only guess is perhaps you forgot to fix?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Everything was set out & followed in th correct order!


I did breifly allow myself to think " this is easy!" near the end so it might be because of that!  

Is there an expiry date for un-opned kits???


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

Even if the chem's were expired, you'd still have got some level of development.

It sounds like your film has not developed at all which is why I thought it most likely that you put the blix in first by mistake.  I've nearly done it myself a couple of times - and I still haven't marked my bottles up.

I can't think of anything else that would give this result.


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## Mumfandc (Oct 11, 2005)

I use the Tetenal C-41 kit. 

The temps tend to go +/- the recommended, but I seem to get great negatives with it.


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Should I try again from scratch, making new solutions etc?

Although I kept everything seperate (got lots of measuring beakers & stuff!) with a set for each chemical, is it possible cross contamination has occured to cause this result? (maybe not all the developer rinsed out for the stop bath/3 change step?)

Oh! also could too much or too vigourous agitation be a problem?

Can't wait to try again tonight but I only have so many films to experiment with before I have to start developing/destroying the wifes films!


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Marctwo said:
			
		

> Even if the chem's were expired, you'd still have got some level of development.
> 
> It sounds like your film has not developed at all which is why I thought it most likely that you put the blix in first by mistake. I've nearly done it myself a couple of times - and I still haven't marked my bottles up.
> 
> I can't think of anything else that would give this result.


 
  I read about this kind of mistake in here a few days ago before setting up so I marked everything up with it's own complete set! ! (beakers, bottles, funnels etc!)


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Marctwo said:
			
		

> It sounds like your film has not developed at all which is why I thought it most likely that you put the blix in first by mistake. I've nearly done it myself a couple of times - and I still haven't marked my bottles up.


 
If the film wasn't exposed at all would the numbers still develop?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Can I test the ph levels of the solutions to make sure that blix wasn't put into the dev bottle and vice versa by blind mistake?  It shouldn't have & I'm 99% sure it hasn't but I'd like to know what has gone wrong! 

(Who knows what daft error I've made! )


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

No, none of that would cause a complete lack of development.  If you contaminated your developer solution with fix, that would effect things but you sound like you've avoided this and I think you'd have got at least some development anyway.

I'd get a new film and in blackout conditions, pull a few frames worth out, cut it off and load it into your tank.  Try developing that and you should get the numbers if you're successful.  If it doesn't work then cut and load a bit more and try again with fresh chem's.  If that doesn't work then take 'em to Boots.  

I guess it could be possible that you got a bad/contaminated batch of chem's.


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

Whoa... you're too fast for me.

Yes, the numbers should develop.

I don't know about testing the PH but the developer is the lighter one.


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Marctwo said:
			
		

> I don't know about testing the PH but the developer is the lighter one.


 
Developer is the lighter one?  Looks like the developer is darker than the blix!  Are they the wrong way round or is this dyes from the film changing the colour?  

Happy if this is the problem (feeling pretty stupid though! ) as I can try again tonight if there's a hint it'll work out! :thumbup: 

Just doing a scan of the negs now!


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Pretty much the right colour. (but ignore the white dust spot!)


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

They'll both get darker after a few uses and you may need to hold them up to the light to tell the difference but the developer is the lighter one.


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Just found the info on the ph levels of each one (on the last page to read! Typical! )


They seem the right way round.  Dev should be 9-11 and is 11 (vivid purple) and blix should be 6-8 and is 8 (murky yellow)

Not much mistaking them that way!  Would this indicate the chemicals are OK too?

So still back to the beginning trying to find out what is wrong!


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

Strange.  Just to clarify:  You are using Jessops' Photochem C41 kit?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Yep, Jessops Photochem

Sticker on top of the bottles are:- dev-712204c (red)  blix-712204b (light blue)


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## Marctwo (Oct 11, 2005)

Well, the only thing I can suggest is trying the chem's the other way round and if that means you put the lighter mix in first then that would coincide with my experience of the Jessops kit.


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Aside from the ph test can't I test them on some colour print paper exposed to light?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Very confused now! :lmao: 


Marctwo said the developer is a light straw colour which the instructions agree with and say the blix should be reddish/brown, but the instructions say the developer has a ph of 11 which is the reddish/brown liquid in the bottle labled developer and the blix is 8 which is the straw coloured liquid in the bottle labled fixer!

I'm trying them the opposite way round on the first few frames of another film to see if that works! (remainder of the film is in another tank not wound onto a reel yet!)

If this doesn't work I think I'll have to get some new dev & fix at the weekend!:meh: 

If this does work I'm going to be even more confused as that'll mean the instruction booklet is messed up and the lables are on the wrong bottles! (How likely is that! )


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 11, 2005)

Marctwo said:
			
		

> Well, the only thing I can suggest is trying the chem's the other way round and if that means you put the lighter mix in first then that would coincide with my experience of the Jessops kit.


 
Trusting you here mate!  :thumbup: 

Better go to bed after this! It's 5am and I have to be up to "process" my little lad at 7:30!


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 12, 2005)

Film is now dry after trying the chemical the other way round but still no negatives!  
There is, however, what looks like some slightly darker smudging along the edges outside the sprocket holes.  Is this a good sign?

Process was followed exactly again but this time the temp rose by just under 1 deg C for the blix.


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## Marctwo (Oct 12, 2005)

The smudging may indicate a very slight hint of development but that's still no good;  It should develope properly or not at all.

I think it's time to take the kit back and get it replaced.  And don't forget to take the neg's and get a few films thrown in too.


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 12, 2005)

I think I have to agree!  Not having done this processing before I'm at a loss as to why it's not working! 


Unfortunately the kit wasn't bought by myself or from my local Jessops so a refund will probably be out of the question but I will get a new kit that I know should be OK (i.e not sat on the shop shelf for 6 months+!)

Can anybody reccomend any other kits like the Tetenal or Photochem?


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## PlasticSpanner (Oct 12, 2005)

:blushing: oops! I always forget this bit even though I mean it!:blushing: 


Thanks for all your help guys!


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## Marctwo (Oct 12, 2005)

You'll find a few more options here. I haven't used this place though so I can't really give it the thumbs up.


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