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u/OseaCostantiniStudio

r/filmdeveloping r/AnalogCommunity
▲ 1 r/filmdeveloping+1 crossposts

I was really tired of digging through datasheets, notebooks and scribbled notes, so I built a free app for developing B&W film

Hey everyone,

I've been developing my own black & white film at home for years, and I was really tired of digging through datasheets, notebooks and scribbled notes every single time. Finding the right time, working out the chemistry, remembering when to agitate... So I decided to build something that does all of that for me. It's called DarkLab RecipeStudio, and it's free.

You pick your film and developer, and it pulls the time straight from the manufacturer's official datasheet. There are 32 films and 10 developers built in so far, the usual suspects like D-76, XTOL, HC-110, ID-11, DD-X and Rodinal. Then you tell it your format (35mm, 120 or 4x5), how many rolls and which tank you're using. It works out exactly how much developer, stop, fixer and so on you need, down to the millilitre, including how much concentrate and how much water. If you use a Jobo or another rotary setup, switch to continuous rotation and it recalculates everything.

And if your combo isn't there, you can make your own. Build custom recipes with your own films, developers and tanks, using your own times, dilutions and agitation. There's monobath support too, if you'd rather develop and fix in one go.

The part I use most is the timer. It beeps three times before each agitation cycle and plays a chord when a step is done, so I can keep my eyes off the screen. There's also a red safelight mode for the darkroom. One thing I added almost for fun and now love: point your phone at a negative on a lightbox and it shows you the positive live.

You can also save favourites with your own notes, print a little card for your negative sleeves, and sync everything through your own Dropbox, Google Drive or iCloud folder. It runs in the browser, installs like an app and works offline.

👉 https://darklab-recipestudio.com

Obviously, double-check the times against the official docs before you run a roll you really care about. I'd genuinely love to hear what you think, which film/developer combos you'd want added, or if anything doesn't match your datasheets. Happy developing! 🎞️

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u/OseaCostantiniStudio — 10 days ago
▲ 118 r/AnalogCommunity

Testing Ilford Delta 3200 in broad summer daylight at 1000 ISO (Zone System & low contrast curve test)

Hi everyone,

I’ve always heard conflicting opinions about Ilford Delta 3200 Pro, specifically whether it’s unusable in harsh daylight or if its inherent low-contrast curve actually makes it a great candidate for high-contrast summer scenes.

I decided to run a test during a bright summer day using medium format. Here is the methodology and what I learned:

1. ISO & Exposure:

  • Since Delta 3200’s true nominal speed is closer to ISO 1000, I exposed the roll at 1000 ISO rather than pushing/rating it at 3200.
  • Using the Zone System, I metered the deepest shadow areas where I still wanted detail and placed them in Zone III.
  • I relied on the film's flat/low-contrast characteristic curve to protect the highlights from blowing out in midday sun.

2. Results & Grain:

  • The shadow retention is surprising. Even with intense sunlight, the midtones and highlights stayed readable without crushing the blacks into mud.
  • The grain is definitely pronounced and tactile, giving a 1940s cinematic / noir feel, but medium format helps keep it balanced and organic.

3. Development:

  • Developed to keep the contrast moderate for easier scanning and darkroom printing flexibility.

Have any of you used Delta 3200 at nominal speed during the day? What are your favorite developers for controlling its grain when exposed at 1000/1600 ISO?

(P.S. If anyone is interested in seeing the full POV shooting workflow and viewfinder composition, I put together a short video on it: [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=XEQMCvx-nTIUcc9R&v=6-PR_l56wJQ&feature=youtu.be ])

u/OseaCostantiniStudio — 3 months ago
▲ 447 r/filmdeveloping+1 crossposts

Pushed the "World's Slowest Film" (Rollei RPX 25) by 2 stops to ISO 100. Handheld street POV + rotary development tests.

Hey everyone,

Rollei RPX 25 is famous for its virtually non-existent grain, extreme sharpness, and... incredibly narrow latitude. It's usually a film meant for tripods, slow landscapes, or bright studio sessions.

However, I wanted to see if I could use it for handheld street photography in high-contrast situations. To get usable shutter speeds without a tripod, I decided to shoot it at ISO 100 (pushing/underexposing it by 2 stops).

My Exposure Workflow:
I shot this with my Rolleiflex 3.5 (Tessar 75mm). Since the sun was hitting hard, I used the Lightme app in spot-metering mode. Instead of metering for the shadows, I actually metered for the highlights to preserve them, placing them in Zone VI. This allowed me to keep the highlights perfectly under control, even though it meant clipping/crushing the blacks in the deepest shadows due to the extreme contrast.

The Development Recipe:

  • Developer: Bellini Hydrofen (Phenidone-Hydroquinone, great for compensation and sharpness)
  • Dilution: 1+31 (at 20°C)
  • Process: AGO Film Processor (continuous rotary agitation)
  • Time Adjustment: The standard manual tank datasheet suggests 12 minutes for this push. However, since the AGO processor rotates continuously, I adjusted the time down to 10 minutes (about a 15% reduction) to compensate for the continuous agitation and prevent the highlights from blowing out.

The Results:
I was honestly surprised by the density of the negatives. The contrast is definitely punchy, but the shadow detail is remarkably clean and the grain is still incredibly fine.

I recorded the entire handheld street session (POV through the Rolleiflex waist-level finder) and the home-darkroom development process in a detailed video. If you're interested in the workflow and want to see how the negatives turned out on the light table, you can watch it here: https://youtu.be/RMfHPPk4oXQ?si=vyL2BgJjZWIw4ioN

Would love to hear your thoughts! Have you ever pushed ultra-slow films like RPX 25 or Pan F? How did you handle the high contrast?

u/OseaCostantiniStudio — 3 months ago