At Least It's Not Snowing

This has been one long, snowy winter, and one for the record books, but today the snow has turned to rain, and it's wet and windy, perfect for a day to be printing in the darkoom.

During the pandemic and the stay-at-home orders, it became increasingly difficult to obtain some of the materials I use, one being Ethol LPD developer, which was on backorder for ages, so I bought out my old formula books and started making print developers from scratch again.

Recently, I had a great job to print for a new client and we wanted neutral tones, so I used Ilford Multigrade FB gloss paper and a developer similar to Ilford PQ. Diluted 1:3, this formula gave me a clean, working strength solution and easily lasted the day, for about 30-40 8x10" prints.

Ilford PQ Stock Solution
Phenidone — 0.5g
Sodium Sulphite — 50g
Hydroquinone — 12g
Sodium Carbonate — 60g
Potassium Bromide — 2g
Cold water (to make) — 1000ml
(Dilute 1:3 for a working solution)