OK, I admit it. Im addicted to the sharpness and lack of grain I get with TMX and XTOL (1:1). At the same time it seems like the combination has little latitude and many shots have poor (if any) separation in the highlights.(posted 8920 days ago)I recently noticed that the fully exposed leader of the film didnt seem to have much of a Dmax. Measurement showed it at 1.70. This is low compared with 2.40 for Plus-X with normal XTOL development. Development time is reasonable (I think), as normal scenes print on normal paper.
For reference, #2 paper is said (by Kodak) to match a density range of 1.00 to 1.20. Subtracting base+fog and the worst of the shoulder and toe, TMX+XTOL appears to have a usable density range as low as 1.2!
Thus, two conclusions: First, a normal scene has little exposure latitude, as any over exposure will compress the highlights. Second, the combination simply wont record a high brightness range no matter how you adjust the development time. Reduce development and the Dmax falls below whats required to produce a full range print on normal paper, regardless of the brightness range of the original scene!
It seems that the best metering strategy for this combination might be to meter the highlights and let everything else fall where it may. So much for expose for the shadows and develop for the highlights.
Am I completely missing something in this admittedly casual analysis, or is it consistent with what others have found?
Thanks, and Happy New Year to Mason & everybody!