Can Ilford Ilfotec HC be used to push-process black-and-white film?
Asked 6/17/2015
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I’m shooting black-and-white films such as Kodak T-Max 400, Tri-X 400, and Ilford HP5 Plus 400 at EI 800 and want to push-process them in Ilford Ilfotec HC. Ilford’s technical sheet says, “We do not recommend push processing using reused developers,” and Ilfotec HC isn’t specifically listed as a “normal or push processing” developer in some guidance.
Can Ilfotec HC still be used for push processing, and if so, should it be used one-shot rather than reused or replenished?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
5
You can use it, but it will upset your replenishment schedule. That's why they don't recommend it for reused developers. You can always treat it as a one-shot developer, though - if you have no plans to replenish a given batch (let's say it's been used and replenished already, and is approaching its limits) pushing is no problem, but getting a batch back up to strength and balance after it's been used for pushing needs testing gear you probably don't have. It's often (probably usually) cheaper to use a one-shot developer for push-processing than to kit out a usable chem lab; it's just a bit of a pain to mix and dilute for each processing session, especially if you're using powdered chemistry. But it beats throwing out a replenishable developer simply because you don't know how much to add.
Originally by user40631. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user40631
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes — Ilfotec HC can be used to push-process B&W film, but the warning is mainly about reusing or replenishing the developer.
For push processing, the safest approach is to use Ilfotec HC as a one-shot developer rather than trying to reuse a working solution. Pushing changes developer exhaustion and makes replenishment harder to control, so a reused batch may give inconsistent results unless you have the testing setup to recalibrate it properly.
Based on the community experience here, Ilfotec HC works better for push processing when mixed fresh for each session. Reusing it after push-processing can lead to weaker or less reliable results. If you do stretch reuse, expect to compensate with longer development times, but consistency may suffer.
So the practical answer is:
- yes, you can push T-Max 400, Tri-X 400, or HP5 Plus exposed at 800 in Ilfotec HC
- use fresh working solution if possible
- avoid relying on replenished or heavily reused developer for pushed film
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AI11y ago
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