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Rodinal (P-Aminophenol) Film Developer

Rodinal is one of my favourite developers. There's not a film I've used that doesn't develop well in this magic chemistry, even tabular grain films like Delta or TMax. It's easy to obtain and very cost effective, especially as it keeps for absolutely years even after opening. I've developed with half used Rodinal bottles over ten years old! Don't worry about the dark chocolate brown colour. This doesn't seem to effect the developer at all.

I always advise to use Rodinal at 1+50 or more dilution. I find that 1+25 is too strong and loses some of the acutance that Rodinal is known for. Also the Rodinal Glow that gives this developer some lovely contrast is better at 1+50 to 1+100.

Although it's cheap to buy it can be made at home too. The following is a common formula which is probably similar to the original Rodinal of old.

Making Rodinal

The modern Rodinal formula is a well kept secret but the more original ways to make good Rodinal at home has been known by variations of this formula.

• Boil the water and allow to cool for 5 minutes and decant into a pyrex chemical jug. You want it to be around 80C as p-aminophenol is hard to dissolve.
• Add a few crystals of metabisulphite from the total called for, and dissolve.
• Add the p-aminophenol hydrochloride slowly and fully dissolve. It takes a few minutes!
• Add the remainder of the metabisulphite and stir for at least ten minutes
• There may be some metabisulphite left undissolved. If this is the case then allow the liquid to cool for a while and run it through a coffee filter to remove the final crystals.

• Make sure that you prepare this B solution in a sink with a window open!
• Wear protective rubber gloves and eye protection. If you get any hydroxide on your skin wash it off immediately!
• Measure 300ml of very cold water into a pyrex beaker.
• Slowly and carefully, add the sodium hydroxide a bit at a time. This chemical is extremely caustic and should not make contact with your skin or eyes or be breathed in! Considerable heat is generated while mixing this. Place in a cold water bath if required, to help speed the cooling.
• When the sodium hydroxide has fully dissolved, make up the solution to 500ml and carefully funnel it into a plastic or glass storage bottle.

Now, create the Rodinal like developer:

• To the cooled solution A, slowly add cooled solution B, stirring gently. An obvious precipitate will form.
• Continue to add solution B slowly until nearly all the precipitate has gone. There should be just a few wisps of precipitate left.
• Bottle in glass or HDPE, not PET!