I tried this combination and was very pleased with the results. But one thing confused me:

I do street work with an old Leica with no meter. My guesstimates are often off by 1 stop or sometimes more. This time, every frame was virtually right on the money. I'm not THAT good.

I wonder whether the longer processing time with a dilute solution results in a convergence, diminishing the effects of under or overexposure.

Anyone experience this?

Many thanks, Bruce Feldman

-- Bruce Feldman (oibfm@chulkn.car.chula.ac.th), December 17, 1997

Answers

Well, that's the old Leica magic for you.

Sure, it sounds as if perhaps the films might have been under-developed, giving a lower contrast and thus greater latitude. Another possibility lies in the lenses. Are you used to them, or are they new to you? I use some old screw-thread Lieca lenses, and they have much lower contrast than my newer Nikon SLR lenses. One effect of these old lenses is to spread a bit of light all over the image. This has hardly any effect on the hightlights, but raises the tone in totally dark shadows equivalant to about one stop. This means, I suppose, that it is more tolerant of a little under-exposure.

Another possibility is that you are better than you think.

-- Alan Gibson (gibson.al@mail.dec.com), December 18, 1997.