View allAll Photos Tagged selenium
Fomatone 532-II in Lith and Pyrocatechol.
Left MT1 Selenium toner 1+20 3 minutes.
Right MT1 Selenium followed by MT10 Gold (11th print in 450ml) 4 minutes.
Canon EOS 30
EF 50mm f/1.8
Kodak Tri-X (@200)
Kodak HC-110 B (@800)
Fomabrom variant 112
Ilford Multigrade dev.
Adox Selenium toner
Rolleiflex sl 66, Delta 400, DDX
Ilford multigrade fb classic 1k 24x30cm/ 20x20cm
PQ universal
stop bath water
Alkaline Fixer
Selenium toner 1+19 2min
I would like to prepare a photo exhibition.
If you would like to help me with this project, you can write to me.
The silver print is looking for a new home. ;-)
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Hasselblad SWC 903 with Kodak Tri-X 400 developed in Pyrocat-HD.
Two trays lith development
Selenium toned
Left:
Printed on Brovira 111
Right:
Printed on Sterling
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Kallitype toned in Selenium. Original image made with Intrepid MKII 8x10 with Intrepid MK2 8x10 with Fujinon f/6.7 W 250 and Fomapan 100 (ASA 50) developed in Rodinal 1:50.
Digital negative made with Pictorico Transparency Film printed on Epson R3000. Contact printed on Hahnemuhle Platinum Rag under Edwards Engineering 18x20 UV lightbox for four minutes.
A little Minolta rangefinder that has been in the cupboard awaiting some TLC. It just needed a good clean and some new light seals. Even the old selenium light meter is working and appears accurate much to my surprise. A test roll of film sometime in the near future will back this up hopefully!
An interesting shutter design on these cameras as detailed below.
© Dominic Scott 2025
From Wikipedia:
In 1960 Chiyoda (after 1962, Minolta) launched its Uniomat series of rangefinder cameras with coupled match-needle selenium meter. This camera joined the many other early "automatic exposure" cameras with built-in exposure meters that were released to the market in the 1959/1960 period.
Minolta's approach to automatic exposure permitted only certain shutter/aperture combinations, an early sort of "programmed" exposure. This fixed combination of shutter speeds and aperture values also permitted a very unusual characteristic of the Citizen shutter: there is no separate aperture diaphragm in this camera. The shutter leaves are used for both the shutter as well as for aperture control. At shutter speeds of 1/100 second and slower, the shutter opens fully as normal and the shutter speed varies according to the exposure value selected (which is automatically set by adjusting the match-needle metering). At these lower shutter speeds the full f/2.8 aperture is always used. At shutter speeds above 1/100 second, the shutter leaves open only partially, with an opening size that varies according to exposure values. In this manner the effective shutter speed and the matching aperture are both controlled by the variable shutter leaf opening. The smaller the opening, the faster the effective shutter speed and the higher the aperture value. This clever design also allows for a very unusual top shutter speed of 1/1000 second, a very high shutter speed for a leaf shutter.
Holga 120N, Delta 400 @ISO 640 in Finol.
Select VC in SE2 Warm.
Left Selenium toned (MT1 1+10 1 minute.
Right MT4 Siena (polysulfide) toner 1+20 1 minute and Sodium sulfite (10%) stop bath 2 minutes.
Isolette, Plus-x in efd,
print negative onto Arista Litho by reversal development,
Kallitype onto Bergger Cot-320
developer sodium acetate
clearing bath citric acid
ATS fixer
MT14 Selenium Toner 1+100 2 minutes, followed by
MT7 Iron Blue Toner 2+2+4+2+600ml 1 minute
Efke IR820 rated at 6 ASA, Finol 1+1+100
Kallitype on Hahnemühle Platinum Rag, sodium acetate developer.
Bleached on the left and redeveloped with SE6 Blue. This produces larger silver crystals, which has the advantage of not having to fear the fading that usually occurs when toning with selenium (made for silver gelatine). The hue is cooler than before.
Middle: MT1 Selenium toner 1+30 45 seconds.
Right: If a cooler shade is desired, it can be toned again in Iron Blue Toner (5+5+10+5+400ml one minute). Because of the combination with selenium, the resulting colour is initially on the greenish side. A post-treatment with lead acetate (2.5% solution 20 seconds) shifts the colour to a cooler blue.
Leica II elmar 5 cm 3.5 1934
papier baryte orwo procédé lith /Virage sélénium
apx 100 /Ilfotec lc29 (1/19)
agrandisseur focomat 1C /Focotar 50
Fomatone 132
Lith&Catechol
MT1 Selenium toner 1+20 45 seconds
Schleiervermeidung bei Zweibad-Lith
Die beiden speziellen Entwicklerkonzentrate (Siena und Catechol) für farbigere Bildtöne nach Lith sind angesäuert um sie für Jahre haltbar zu machen. Sie benötigen also wie der Lithentwickler ein Alkali, um sie zu aktivieren, wobei dann noch keine sonderlich farbige Entwicklung stattfindet. Erst der Zusatz von Ammoniumchlorid verursacht eine höhere Farbigkeit als die, die schon im Lithentwickler entsteht. Bei der Mischung der drei Komponenten sollte ein pH-Wert zwischen 9.5 und 10 erreicht werden. Bei einer gegebenen Menge von Entwicklerkonzentrat (z.B. Pyrocatechol 20ml auf 800-1000ml Wasser) werden etwa 10-15ml Lith B zur Aktivierung benötigt. Wird auch Ammoniumchlorid zugesetzt, sollte die Menge zunächst nur bei etwa 10ml (oder weniger) liegen wobei der Bedarf an Alkali dann auf 20-30ml steigt. Das Mischungsverhältnis und die Verdünnung mit Wasser ist für jedes Papier leicht durch eigene Versuche zu ermitteln. Bei einem ersten Versuch sollte besonderes Augenmerk auf einen eventuell vorhandenen Schleier beim unbelichteten Bildrand gerichtet werden. Ein leichter Schleier mag tolerabel sein, oder wird nicht unbedingt sofort erkannt. Ist jedoch eine Selen-, Gold- oder Schwefeltonung vorgesehen, kann es zu einer bösen Überraschung kommen, denn diese Toner verstärken gnadenlos jeden noch so schwachen Schleier. Bei einer zu hohen Menge von Ammoniumchlorid und Alkali nimmt der weiße Bildrand eine schwach gelbliche Farbe an. Sollte dies der Fall sein, ist ein Zusatz von Antischleiermittel erforderlich. Von Lith D (1+4 verdünnt) werden dann 0,5 ml bis 3 ml pro Liter Entwickler benötigt um den Schleier zu unterdrücken.
Preventing fogging with two-bath lith process
The two special developer concentrates (Siena and Catechol) for more colourful image tones after lith development are acidified to make them last for years. Like the lith developer, they require an alkali to activate them, although no particularly colourful development takes place at this stage. Only the addition of ammonium chloride causes a higher colour intensity than that already produced in the lith developer. When mixing the three components, a pH value between 9.5 and 10 should be achieved. For a given amount of developer concentrate (e.g. 20 ml of pyrocatechol in 800-1000 ml of water), approximately 10-15 ml of Lith B is required for activation. If ammonium chloride is also added, the amount should initially be only about 10 ml (or less), in which case the alkali requirement increases to 20-30 ml. The mixing ratio and dilution with water can be easily determined for each paper by conducting your own tests. During the first test, particular attention should be paid to any fogging that may be present at the unexposed edge of the image. A slight fogging may be tolerable or may not be immediately noticeable. However, if selenium, gold or sulphur toning is planned, this can lead to an unpleasant surprise, as these toners mercilessly intensify even the slightest fogging. If the amount of ammonium chloride and alkali is too high, the white image edge takes on a faint yellowish colour. If this is the case, an anti-fogging agent must be added. Lith D (diluted 1+4) is then required in quantities of 0.5 ml to 3 ml per litre of developer to eliminate the fogging.
Selenium toned Kallitype on HPR.
The print negative was made from a scanned Lumen Print.
In order to be able to use the normal selenium toner without the disadvantage of fading, the Kallitype (developed in sodium acetate) was first bleached and re-developed with SE6 Blue.
After that MT1 Selenium toner 1+25 30 seconds.
Photograph scanned from an original hand-printed, selenium-toned print made with Ilford MG FB Classic paper
Became surprised how this paper behaved in selenium toner.
A beautiful sepia tone after one minute.
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Leica M6 & Summicron 50+Y.
Ilford HP5 developed in HC110h.
Print on old Ilfobrom in Moersch SE6 Blue. Hard to get blackness in the roof with this paper so I put it in a tray with Selenium to get som punch, but I got some very lovely varm tone.
Rolleiflex sl 66, Hp5, D76 1+1
Ilford multigrade fb classic 1k 24x30cm/ 20x20cm
PQ universal
stop bath water
Alkaline Fixer
Selenium toner 1+9 2min
Sepia toner.
I would like to prepare a photo exhibition.
If you would like to help me with this project, you can write to me.
The silver print is looking for a new home. ;-)
Flower.
Another flower from the accidental photo shoot in the garden centre on the phone. It’s a bright yellow flower. Honest :)
The crop is everything in the composition I think. But, knowing me, you will guess that I took it originally slap-bang in the middle of the frame. How the two halves of my brain struggled with placing the flower off centre in the processing... cold sweat and shaking ensued.
So this was about one-quarter of the frame of the phone’s jpeg (not very good quality but good enough for a grainy treatment like this). Better to have used a raw image from the phone but I didn’t know about that then….
For the Thursday Monochrome group.
Thank you for taking the time to look. I hope you enjoy the image :) Happy Monochrome Thursday!
[Handheld in daylight on a breezy day.
From the Jpeg in Affinity first used curves to increase the colour contrast, and get the luminance range across the image.
Inpainted to get rid of the spots and blemishes on the flower petals that are inevitable with outdoor plants.
Converted with Nik Silver Efex trying to get an even balance of tones with not too dark a flower centre and a little texture on the petals. Darkened borders to give a box vignette and draw us into the image. My favourite Selenium toning and we were done.]
Taken on Kodak HIE, xtol. Nikon F100 with 20mm lens. Foma 133 Paper devd in Moersch 4812, finished in Moersch Selenium. Taken in 2015 and printed recently
Beavertail State Park, Jamestown, Rhode Island
The plan was to catch a sunset at Beavertail State Park after work. There wasn't an interesting cloud in the sky, but I stuck around to look for a composition for next time, and noticed some nice highlights reflecting off the rocks, some bits of snow left over from an early April storm, and the west side of Beavertail Light. With an eye towards B&W I threw on the gold-n-blue polarizer for contrast and pop, a grad ND to knock down the sky, and a standard ND to calm the waters. (The color version with the gold-n-blue filter was ghastly.) This was my first deep dive into Silver Efex Pro. That's some powerful stuff. "Selenium" refers to the tone used in SEP.
I'm pretty happy with the Nik Collection. It's relatively straightforward, and I find a little fiddling goes a long way. It's also now free; I was shocked and pleasantly surprised when I noticed an unsolicited refund on my credit card last week!
Filters: gold-n-blue polarizer, 2-stop soft-edge GND, 6-stop ND
Taken recently on a walk.
Hasselblad XPan, Green filter, Foma 100 devd in Rodinal. Ilford MG paper devd in Afga Neutol. Finished in Moersch Selenium
Rolleiflex Sl 66, Delta 400, DDX
Ilford multigrade fb classic 1k 24x30cm/ 20x20cm
PQ universal
stop bath water
Alkaline Fixer
Selenium toner 1+19 2min.
I would like to prepare a photo exhibition.
If you would like to help me with this project, you can write to me.
The silver print is looking for a new home. ;-)
TriX in Jobo Alpha
Polychromeprint (though in this case it is more an Oligo-, but it get's more flesh anyway) onto Kodak Bromide + selenium
An older negative printed only now. Certainly something for the lith grain fetishist ;)
I much prefer this lith print over my original upload which was simply a direct negative scan. This print has such a heavy, dramatic look to it and fits the subject much better, I believe.
Fomaspeed Variant 313 in Moersch Easy Lith 1+10
Briefly toned in selenium: Moersch MT 1 1+10
Nikon F3 + Sigma 24mm f2.8 Super Wide II + Kodak T400CN
C-41 processing by an external lab
Print scanned on a Heidelberg/Linotype-Hell Saphir Ultra II using Vuescan.
Photograph scanned from an original hand-printed, selenium-toned print made with Ilford MG FB Classic paper
Sailboat moored off Babson Island. Same foggy morning - we were en route to the loop hiking trail.
Interestingly enough, Michael suggested trying the selenium toning during the processing. This is different from his usual practice of yellow split-toning, and I think it does evoke the blue in the morning fog.
Taken Jan 2015, printed recently.
Nikon F100 with 24-70, red. Kodak HIE film @ 800 devd in Xtol stock for 11.5min. Paper is Ilford MG devd in Moersch 4812. Moersch Selenium, Moersch Siena, sodium sulphite.
Taken in a valley in Northern Iceland.
Mamiya 645, 80mm lens. APX100 in XTOL.
MGWT in WT, MT3/selenium
Hasselblad 501CM, Planar 100 with extension tube, yellow filter.
Delta 400 in Pyro 48.
Paper Select Ivory (PW17)
Developer Meritol 1+10 3 minutes.
Right toned version:
Mt1 Selenium Toner 1+10 1 minute for the shades and MT7 Iron Blue Toner for midrange and lights 5+5+10+5+500 ml 40 seconds, followed by Lead acetate 2,5% sol. 20 seconds.
Rolleiflex sl 66,delta 400, D76 1+1
Ilford multigrade fb classic 5k
Ilford Multigrade develop
24x30cm/ 20x20
stop bath water
Alkaline Fixer
Split toning selenium sepia
Darkroom print of 6x6 fomapan 400 negative on Agfa Brovira grade 2 matt, using Compard warm tone developer. Toned in selenium and just a touch of sepia.
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Hasselblad 501 C/M with Kodak Tri-X 400 developed in Pyrocat-HD
Printed on Foma 542 II
Developed in Catechol/Sepia
Toned in Selenium / MT3
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In August I was wandering around St John’s College in Cambridge (you will perhaps recall the chapel and the stained glass window wobblies). And there I was, clicking away with the camera…
The college is one of the richest in the University (and, by implication, one of the richest in the world). The buildings are grand and imposing.
But the place was a disappointment to me. The green spaces were just grass and there seemed to be no love of flowers or soft aesthetics. All power and intimidation and little heart or soul. Or perhaps it was just me .
This was one of the several cloistered walkways I came across. All very photogenic in a cliched sort of way.
To make this image different I lowered the viewpoint and took it off-centre. Then, in Silver Efex (that tool of wonder), I created a dark and moody version to add atmosphere. The day was really bright and hot so it didn’t really look like that. The image was lightly selenium toned to give it a subtle coldness to match my mood.
I’ll post the in-camera version in the first comment so that you can see how I played.
Thank you for taking the time to look. I hope you enjoy the image. Happy Monochrome Thursday :)