Shooting and Developing Kodak Double-X (Eastman 5222) Film

Kodak Double-X (otherwise known as Eastman Double-X 5222) is a reliable black-and-white cinema film adapted to suit the 35 mm camera frame size. This film is considerably ‘rare’, and not commonly stocked.

Double-X excels in outdoor low-light situations, even when shot at native 200 ISO (ASA), allowing for excellent portraits at f/2.8. Double-X film shows beautiful contrast and is very forgiving in its highlights and dark shadows.

I developed this roll myself and took note of my development and processing steps, noticing a lack of clear and concise processing information for Ilfosol 3 chemicals on the Internet. I have shared the information below.

Film: Kodak Double-X (Eastman 5222) 200 ISO
Developer: Ilfosol 3
Dilution Ratio: 1:9
Time: 6:30 seconds (Slowly agitated for 60 seconds, then 10 seconds every minute)
Temperature: 20 C (68 F)
Stop: Water
Fixer: Ilford Rapid Fixer (Slowly agitated for 10 seconds every minute)
Wetting Agent: Ilford Ilfotol

I recommend developing Kodak-Double X pushed to 400 ISO in Ilfosol 3 for 7:45 seconds. Feel free to use the Contact form if you have any questions about developing Kodak Double-X (or any other black-and-white films) and I will do my best to help you.

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Bryce Wilson is a photographer, filmmaker, and freelance photojournalist from Melbourne, Australia.