I am in the process of setting up a black and white(of course) darkroom. I have bought a Meopta Opemus II enlarger second hand. I would be very interested if anyone knows anything about this enlarger I know they were made between 1960-9. Also it has a spiratone lens with "anastigmat" printed aroung the face. I would be interested to know excatly what this means and if this lens is good or if i should look into buying a new one as i know the importance of a good enlarging lens. Finally i would like to know about chemical combinations. I think I will use t-max film should I use the recommended chemicals made for the film or is it better to mix and match? Which paper is best which chemicals for paper? I am a university student and money is tight so cheaper options would be appreciated. thankyou for your time, sorry this has been a long question. Any answers would be gratfully received. Miss Sacha Petersen

-- Sacha Petersen (speterse@tassie.net.au), July 02, 1998

Answers

I don't know anything about this lens, but it may be disappointing. OK to start out with, but plan on upgrading later, to an El-Nikkor or something.

There is no "best" for film dev, paper or paper dev. What works for me may not work for you. Browse through the entries in these B&W conferences, and just choose something. Then shoot plenty of film, print plenty of prints, and get to know your materials.

One major decision for you is whether to use RC paper or fibre. I suggest you start with RC, because it is more forgiving. At some stage, get some fibre paper and try it out. Another decision is whether to use multigrade or fixed grade paper.

We all use different combinations of chemicals. If we could agree on a magic "best" combination, we would all use it. The truth is, we work in different ways, and look for different features. I suggest you pick one film developer (such as T-Max, Xtol, Pyro, or whatever), and one paper dev, and get to know them.

-- Alan Gibson (gibson.al@mail.dec.com), July 03, 1998.