NatureArtRx Film Development

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Large Format Color Films

For my NatureArtRx nature and landscape large-format photography, I use three primary films. I use Kodak Ektar 100 and Kodak Portra 160 for color negatives, and for reversal (positive), I use Kodak Ektachrome 100.

Color negative films require C-41 development, and reversal films require E-6 development chemistry. I list the chemistry and my workflows in the sections below.

C-41 FILM DEVELOPMENT MIXING GUIDE

I use the Arista C-41 Liquid Color Negative Developing Kit to develop my large format Kodak Ektar and Kodak Portra sheet film in my Jobo processor.

The chemistry comes in 7 different bottles: Color Developer (Part A, B, C), Blix (Part A, B, C), and Stabilizer.

I use the Jobo 2500 Series Multi Tank with the 2509 reel to develop 6 sheets of film simultaneously. The minimum chemistry is 270ml, but I mix and use 300ml to ensure adequate coverage.

I mix the color developer as one-shot and I re-use the Blix and Stabilizer until the developer is all used.

Other photographers claim they re-use the developer chemistry, but I don’t take that risk. I invest a lot of time, effort, and money to expose my film and I don’t feel the need to save a few pennies to risk these big investments.

INFORMATION/TIPS

I use a syringe and lab scale to measure each chemistry to ensure my volumes are exact. If you go over, never put chemistry back into the original container. Make sure the Jobo development tank and reels are clean and completely dry before loading film. I use distilled water to mix all of my development chemistry.

I use the smaller 1 quart kit because I typically expose and develop film infrequently and this allows me to always have fresh and unopened chemistry on hand. As long as you don’t open the chemistry, the shelf life is several years.

As of March 2024, the 1 quart kit is $28 + $5 shipping from B&H. If I develop 6 sheets at a time in the Jobo 2509 and use one-shot developer, I can get three development cycles or 3 x 6 or 18 sheets of film developer for the $32. That is roughly about $1.75 a sheet which is much cheaper than sending the film out for development. As shown in my notes below, if you can use the Jobo 3010 Expert Drum to develop 10 sheets per run vs. 6 using the 2509, then the cost per sheet goes down to about $1.07 per sheet vs. $1.75.

If you want to lower your cost per sheet even further, you can purchase the larger 1-gallon kit for $90 and save 20% over buying four of the 1-quart kits. Even though this is cheaper, I use the 1-quart kits for the longer shelf life of the smaller kit.

YIELD FOR ONE-SHOT DEVELOPMENT

4×5 Large Format Sheets: 3 batches x 6 sheets in Jobo 2509 (Yield: 18 sheets) Cost is about $1.75 per sheet for C-41 and $3.50 for E-6.

NOTE: If you have a larger Jobo processor that can use the Jobo 3010 Expert Drum, you can develop 10 sheets of 4×5 sheet film instead of 6 using even less chemistry. The Expert drum yield will be 30 vs. 18, which is a significant savings. Technically, the 3010 Expert Drum only required 210ml of chemistry vs. 270ml; however, I based my development on 300ml to ensure adequate coverage and perfect results every time.

120 Roll Film: 2 rolls (18 exposures) x 3 batches in Jobo 2500 Multi-Tank (Yield: 6 rolls/48 exposures). The Cost is about $0.67 per exposure for C-41 and $1.40 for E-6. For a moderate increase in chemistry, it is possible to use a larger 2500 series tank to develop 4 rolls instead of 2, reducing your cost per exposure even lower.

The yield is identiical for C-41 or E-6 with the Arista chemistry, but the cost for E-6 is roughly about two times of C-41.

There are no free lunches. What I mean by that is there is always a price to pay for seemingly lower costs. In the case of C-41 vs. E-6, the E-6 development costs are about double of C-41, but the scanning time and complexity is easily twice as much for C-41 vs. E-6. Also, if it matters, looking at a positive sheet of slide film on a light table or holding it up to window light is a magical and mezmorizing experience.

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C-41 DEVELOPER

To make 1 quart / 300ml
Distilled Water 591ml (187ml)
Dev A 237ml (75ml)
Dev B 59ml (19ml)
Dev C 59ml (19ml)

** There is enough developer in the 1 Quart kit to develop 3 batches of 6 4×5 sheet films for 18 sheets.

C-41 BLIX

I mix up the entire Blix solution at once and reuse it until the developer is gone. I only measure out 300ml of Blix at a time for the Jobo 2509 development process. This way, I am technically only exhausting 300ml of the 950ml at any given time.

I pour all three parts of the Blix stock chemistry into 532ml of distilled water to make the 950ml of working solution.

C-41 STABILIZER

I use the entire 59ml (2 oz.) stock solution to make 1 liter of solution and re-use it until the development chemicals have all been used. I simply pour the stock solution into 1 liter of distilled water and store it in a chemical safe bottle.

NOTES: If you are a brave soul and want to maximize your chemistry yield, the instructions claim to provide a yield of 32 sheets of 4×5 film with the 1 Quart kit. That would effectively be 5 Jobo tanks with 6 sheets per development for a total of 30 sheets. If you go that route, mix all the chemisty at once and then seal tightly in a chemical storage bottle. I would also suggest to use all the chemistry within one month, but you would need to test and verify in your own environment. I don’t take that risk and only use the developer as one-shot as described above. The only exception to my one-shot method would be if I have 30 or more exposed sheets of film ready to develop and then I would mix the chemistry and use it all in one day.

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ARISTA C-41 1 Qt. KIT CHEMICAL INVENTORY

Developer Part A – 8 oz. (236.5ml) – use 75ml per 300ml (3.14 uses)

Developer Part B – 2 oz. (59ml) – use 19ml per 300ml (3.10 uses)

Developer Part C – 2 oz. (59ml) – use 19ml per 300ml (3.10 uses)

Blix Part A – 8 oz. (236.5ml) – use 169ml per 300ml

Blix Part B – 2 oz. (59ml) – use 19ml per 300ml

Blix Part C – 4 oz. (118ml) – use 37ml per 300ml

Stabilizer – 2 oz. (59ml) – use the entire 59ml to make 1 liter of solution.

Link to the chemistry on B&H.

C-41 JOBO DEVELOPMENT at 40C/104F

I mix all chemistry with distilled water (DH20). I pre-heat the Jobo for at least one full hour before confirming the waterbath is at 40C. Next, I use a Kodak Color Process Thermometer to confirm the developer is between 39.8C and 40.5C before starting the development process.

The Jobo 2500 series Multi-Tank with 6 sheets of 4×5 film in the 2509N reel requires 270ml of chemistry. I round up and use 300ml to ensure adequate development.

On the Jobo CPE-2, I use motor speed 2 to develop my C-41 film for this process.

STEP 1 – Pre-soak 60 seconds in Distilled Water at 40C
STEP 2 – Developer 3.5 minutes (40C)
STEP 3 – BLIX (bleach + fix) 6.5 minutes (40C)

FILM IS LIGHT SAFE NOW – REMAINING STEPS IN OPEN ROOM LIGHT at 20C

STEP 4 – Fill the opened tank with tap water and empty 7 to 10 times over 3 minutes
STEP 5 – In a tray – Stabilizer 1 minute (agitate for first 15 seconds)
STEP 6 – In a tray – Photo-Flo 1 minute (agitate for 1 min in tray of DH20 + few drops of Photo-Flo)
STEP 7 – Hang to dry

E-6 FILM DEVELOPMENT MIXING GUIDE

I use the Arista Rapid E-6 Slide Development Kit to develop my large format Kodak Ektachrome slide film. I purchase the 1 Quart kit for the same reasons I do for the C-41 kit. Note that 1 quart equals 946ml.

To compute the one-shot solutions, I needed to divide the target volume of 300ml for the Jobo by the mixing ratio for 1 quart (946ml) to get a dilution factor of 0.317

E-6 FIRST DEVELOPER

To make 1 quart (946ml) / 300ml

  • Distilled Water 708ml (95ml)
  • First Dev 236ml (75ml)

** There is enough First Developer in the 1 Quart kit to develop 3 batches of 6 4×5 sheet films for a total of 18 sheets.

E-6 COLOR DEVELOPER

  • To make 1 quart (946ml) / 300ml
  • Distilled Water 650ml / 206ml
  • Color Developer A 236ml / 75ml
  • Color Developer B 59ml / 19ml

** There is enough Color Developer in the 1 Quart kit to develop 3 batches of 6 4×5 sheet films for a total of 18 sheets.

E-6 BLIX

I mix up the entire Blix solution at once and reuse it until the developer is gone. I only measure out 300ml of Blix at a time for the Jobo 2509 development process. This way, I am technically only exhausting 300ml of the 950ml at any given time.

I pour all three parts of the Blix stock chemistry into 414ml of distilled water to make the 950ml of working solution.

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E-6 JOBO DEVELOPMENT at 40C/104F

I mix all chemistry with distilled water (DH20). I pre-heat the Jobo for at least one full hour before confirming the waterbath is at 40C. Next, I use a Kodak Color Process Thermometer to confirm the developer is between 39.8C and 40.5C before starting the development process.

The Jobo 2500 series Multi-Tank with 6 sheets of 4×5 film in the 2509N reel requires 270ml of chemistry. I round up and use 300ml to ensure adequate development.

On the Jobo CPE-2, I use motor speed 2 to develop my C-41 film for this process.

STEP 1 – Pre-soak 60 seconds in Distilled Water at 40C

STEP 2 – First Developer 6.5 minutes (40C)

STEP 3 – Wash (fill the tank and empty 7 times) (40C)

STEP 4 – Color Developer 4.5 minutes (40C)

STEP 5 – Wash (fill the tank and empty 7 times) (40C)

STEP 6 – BLIX (bleach + fix) 6.5 minutes (40C)

FILM IS LIGHT SAFE NOW – REMAINING STEPS IN OPEN ROOM LIGHT at 20C

STEP 7 – Fill the tank with tap water and empty 7 times and empty.
STEP 8 – In a tray – Photo-Flo 1 minute (agitate for 1 min in tray of DH20 + few drops of Photo-Flo)
STEP 9 – Hang to dry

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