The B&W Film Alchemist Book - Tim Layton Fine Art

The First Book Designed Specifically for Hybrid B&W Film Photographers

The B&W Film Alchemist by Tim Layton - www.timlaytonfineart.com

If you shoot black and white film and use digital tools to scan, edit, and print, this book was written for you.

15 films × 35 developer recipes from XTOL to ABC Pyro. Exposure → Scan → Print, fully calibrated.

For years, resources for B&W photographers have catered to darkroom workflows, ignoring the reality of today’s hybrid workflow. So I created what didn’t exist: The first in-depth guide built entirely around the needs of black and white film photographers who scan their negatives.

This isn’t about nostalgia. It’s a technical, practical, and creative guide to mastering B&W film for hybrid output—whether you’re scanning to share on social or making gallery-quality inkjet prints.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find another resource that goes this deep into the hybrid black-and-white film, scan, and edit workflow—written for working photographers.

You’ll learn:

Master B&W end-to-end—15 films, 35 developer recipes, proven exposure, development, scanning, printing.
How to expose film for maximum digital latitude
Why developer choices change when your end goal is a scan, rather than printing in the darkroom.
Tonality, grain, and contrast explained for optimized scanned negatives
How to mix and match emulsions with developers for superior results

You’ll get immediate access to the book in PDF format (154 pages) to view on any device, and you get free updates for life.

If you work hybrid, this is the handbook I wish I’d had—practical, repeatable, and deeper than anything I’ve seen elsewhere.

Limited-Time Bonus:
Order now and you’ll also receive a free bonus copy of my B&W Developer Formula Book ($49 value)—a comprehensive companion reference packed with verified chemical recipes, usage notes, and developer profiles optimized for hybrid workflows.

Buy Now $79 (Immediate Access) + Free Lifetime Updates

What are Photographers Saying?

“I have not had this quality information available since Fred Picker!” – Dr. Bruce Moskowitz, M.D.

“If you shoot film and want to digitize your photos, Tim Layton’s The B&W Film Alchemist is the ultimate guide to achieving outstanding results in a hybrid workflow. – Robert Flores, Nice, France

“As a long-time analog photographer, my experience has primarily focused on a fully analog process, culminating in traditional darkroom prints. However, incorporating a hybrid workflow introduces the added complexity of digitizing your negatives—and what works in the darkroom doesn’t always translate digitally.

This in-depth book explores effective strategies for selecting the right film, film format, and developer to produce optimal results specifically for hybrid workflows. Are you aiming for sharpness, extended tonality, high contrast, or planning to push your film? Tim walks you through the decisions that will help you reach your creative goals—saving you hours of trial and error.

This is not a light read; it’s a thoroughly detailed manual that presents a complete, systematic approach for achieving the look you want. I consider it the Bible for hybrid film-to-digital photographers. Thank you, Tim, for sharing such a wealth of knowledge. This is a must-buy for anyone working in a hybrid film workflow.” Robert Flores, Nice, France

“I have had a passion for photography for over 55 years. I can say with certainty that this is the best time to be a photographer, thanks to the excellent choices we have today to make images. Most people thought that analog was dead after the introduction of digital. Still, people started noticing that the analog world can give you some fantastic images through a myriad of techniques that are not possible in the pure digital world. What has emerged is a beautiful hybrid of analog and digital, giving photographers more options than ever before in the history of photography to create unique, personal images.

The downside to this new hybrid world is that it requires not only a working knowledge of the analog process but also the ability to mold and blend it effectively in the digital realm. What I find fascinating is that no one has tackled this issue in its entirety. You will see articles or videos addressing parts of this process but not the entire process, probably because it is such a complex and huge undertaking that no one has done it until now.

Tim’s new book on analog and digital hybrid photography is simply brilliant. He takes the reader through every aspect of the analog world and then goes into detail about what you need to do to make it the best image for the digital realm. He provides the science of analog photography not through regurgitating other people’s writings on the topic but through decades of working in the analog field and his research into the characteristics of the film, paper, and chemistry. He then delves into the various aspects of the digital world and explains what you need to do to make it work for you.

If you are serious about your photography and working in a hybrid process, then this book is a must-have. This is a complex and detailed book that will take a little time to comprehend and put into practice entirely, but this is what makes this book so valuable. In the end, this book will save you a lot of time, money, and grief.” – Michael Wellman, Austin, Texas

Table of Contents Overview

Part I — The Hybrid Mindset
Chapter 1: Why Shoot B&W Film in a Digital Age?
Chapter 2: Exposure Strategies for Scanning
Chapter 3: Metering for Detail and Dynamic Range
Chapter 4: Choosing Film for Hybrid Output

Part II — Emulsion Behavior
Chapter 5: Grain: Perception, Size, and Digital Amplification
Chapter 6: Tonality and Curve Profiles
Chapter 7: Contrast Characteristics in a Scanning Workflow
Chapter 8: Curl, Flatness, and Handling for Scanners

Part III — Developer Chemistry
Chapter 9: Developer Categories and How They Shape Negatives
Chapter 10: Solvent vs. Acutance Developers for Scanning
Chapter 11: Push Strategies and Developer Choices
Chapter 12: Two-Bath and Compensating Approaches
Chapter 13: Pyro Developers: Are They Worth It for Scanning?

Part IV — Film Profiles (Scan-Optimized)

– Ilford Pan F Plus 50
– Ilford Delta 100
– Ilford FP4 Plus 125
– Ilford HP5 Plus 400
– Ilford Delta 400
– Ilford Delta 3200
– Kodak T-Max 100
– Kodak T-Max 400
– Kodak Tri-X 400
– Kodak T-Max P3200
– Fuji Acros 100II
– Kentmere Pan 100
– Kentmere Pan 400
– Kentmere Pan 200
– Foma Fomapan Classic 100

Part V — Advanced Techniques
Chapter 15: Push and Pull Development for Scanning
Chapter 16: Stand and Semi-Stand for Tonality Control
Chapter 17: Managing Grain Through Chemistry
Chapter 18: Mixing Custom Developer Dilutions

Appendices
Appendix A: Developer Cheat Sheet (Dilutions, Times, Temperatures)
Appendix B: Histograms for Film/Developer Combos
Appendix C: Film Curl/Flatness Index
Appendix D: Developing Pairing Index by Film
Appendix E: Recommended Development Times for Scan-Optimized Negatives
Appendix F: Glossary of Terms

Bonus: B&W Film Developer Formulas
31 pages of detailed black and white film developer formulas, guidance, and tips on optimizing your film and developer combination to meet your creative and technical goals.

Why This Book is Different

Created specifically for photographers who scan—not print in a darkroom
Covers 15 popular black and white films and 35 developers used today
Prioritizes repeatability, flexibility, and image quality in digital output
Based on decades of analog photography and chemistry experience

What You Get

154-page professionally written and formatted 8.5 x 11 PDF
Tables, charts, film profiles, and chemistry breakdowns
Designed to help you create negatives that scan beautifully and edit cleanly

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I wrote The B&W Film Alchemist and The Art of Storytelling as companion works, to provide photographers a complete set of tools—one to master the technical craft, and the other to bring images to life through meaningful storytelling.

Explore my extensive library of analog photography guides, workbooks, and video workshops.