bad neg msytery

I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print. The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

Did you use acid stop bath?


Art Reitsch wrote:
I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print. The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

In article ,
Art Reitsch wrote:

I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print. The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

Could it be you are printing with condenser lamphouse
and the condensers are dirty? check the negative for black
spots.


--
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918

greg_____photo(dot)com

spake thus:

Art Reitsch wrote:

I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print. The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?

Pin holes in your bellows, just thinking if the still life shots were
indoors and the problem negs where shot outdoors.

Nope; pinholes will fog the film, or give large spots, not tiny ones as
he described. (Think of the cone of light between the pinhole and the film.)


--
If the United States government, with all its capacity to collect
and interpret information, did not see Hamas doing very well in the
Palestinian election in the wake of these other Islamist victories,
then it is either willfully blind or totally incompetent—-
and neither possibility is a very comforting thought.

- Rami G. Khouri, editor at large of the Beirut-based _Daily Star_

Art Reitsch wrote:
I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print.

This happened to me a few times when I went to water rinse instead of
acetic acid stop bath. When I went back to using acetic acid stop bath,
the problem disappeared.

The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

I use HC-110 developer and yes, I use an acid stop bath. Note: I'm not
talking about printing, the black spots are on the negative after
developing it.
Art

UC wrote:

Art Reitsch wrote:


I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print.



This happened to me a few times when I went to water rinse instead of
acetic acid stop bath. When I went back to using acetic acid stop bath,
the problem disappeared.



The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

Hmmmmmmmm..................

Try new batch of film....

Do you use trays? Try tank and hanger....


Art Reitsch wrote:
I use HC-110 developer and yes, I use an acid stop bath. Note: I'm not
talking about printing, the black spots are on the negative after
developing it.
Art

UC wrote:

Art Reitsch wrote:


I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print.



This happened to me a few times when I went to water rinse instead of
acetic acid stop bath. When I went back to using acetic acid stop bath,
the problem disappeared.



The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

You could be dispersing some kind of contaminant onto the film somehow.
Photo chemistry powders can become airborne dust and settle on your
film at some point. Just raising the possibility...


Art Reitsch wrote:
I just posted this note on the large format group as it involves 4x5
negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images from 4x5 negs
that have many very small white spots on the 16x20 print. The negatives
show that the black neg spots are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but
exposed onto it. Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my
210mm and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs were
exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a hundred or more tiny
black spots. But only two hours before I shot some still lifes with
this lens, developed all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and
those negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film purchased
within the last year. I always expose with an f-stop in the mid range,
neither wide open nor with a very small aperature. The problem seems to
be bad film, but randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art

In article ,
Art Reitsch wrote:

I use HC-110 developer and yes, I use an acid stop bath. Note: I'm not
talking about printing, the black spots are on the negative after
developing it.
Art

Its either the film or

Art it could be the holder, your using sheet film I believe you said.

In any event way back when I first started using sheet film I had some
old holders, and they had small pin sized scrapes on the metal....I used
a sharpie to blacken the places.


--
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918

greg_____photo(dot)com

"Art Reitsch" wrote in message
...
I just posted this note on the large format group as it
involves 4x5 negs developed in a traditional darkroom.
In the past few months I have printed two or three images
from 4x5 negs that have many very small white spots on the
16x20 print. The negatives show that the black neg spots
are not "on" the neg like dust spots, but exposed onto it.
Yesterday I made two bald sky exposures, one with my 210mm
and the other with my 150mm as I'm sure the trouble negs
were exposed by one of these lenses. The 210mm showed a
hundred or more tiny black spots. But only two hours
before I shot some still lifes with this lens, developed
all negs at the same time in the same chemicals and those
negs were perfect. The film is Kodak Tri-X 320 TXP film
purchased within the last year. I always expose with an
f-stop in the mid range, neither wide open nor with a very
small aperature. The problem seems to be bad film, but
randomly appearing from the same pack. Or am I missing
something? Any ideas?
Art


This is pretty puzzling. Have you examined the spots with
a strong magnifier. Check the surface of the film. This
might tell you if there was a coating problem. I very much
doubt that its due to out gassing as was suggested by
another poster. Outgassing in acid stop bath happens only
when the developer contains carbonate, which HC-110 does
not. In any case, it does not seem to be problem with modern
films.
I can't think of anything that would produce _sharp_
black spots on negatives. Almost everything, pinholes in the
camera or reflections from something, produce blured spots.
Perhaps the holder dark slide has holes in it but I've never
seen such a thing and it would probably produce streaks not
spots. I don't suppose you were using a focal plane shutter.


--
---
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles, CA, USA