I had zero expectations from the particular roll of HP5 where these prints originate form. It’s been sat in my OM-1 for the best part of two months and I just knew that it would be problematic to spool. Eventually I persuaded it to go onto the reel without too much frustration, even though it was ridiculously curly.
Despite the stubbornness, it’s a significant milestone in my photography journey and marks the first time where I have developed negatives using chemicals independently procured and mixed by me, using a recipe for Kodak D23 from a copy of the recently gifted book called “The Darkroom Cookbook” by Steve Anchell.
Admittedly, this particular recipe is perhaps one of the easiest out there, only requiring Metol, Sodium Sulphite and Water but non the less, to be able to produce such awesome results from something I have made myself feels extremely rewarding and I am really proud of myself!
Where this gets even more interesting for me is, there are so many other recipes in the book that are within my ability to mix, with the minimum of effort.
I’m so impressed with the results of D23, I will be adding this to my arsenal of choice developers for the future and I am also planning to try out a homemade version of 510 Pyro, an alkaline fixer and also a stop bath for and hopefully paper developer for Silver Gelatine Prints! 2023 is starting to shape up extremely exciting for me! All I need now is a bigger darkroom - watch this space!
