Bellini Euro HC - an alternative to Kodak HC110

 Ah, sweet Kodak HC110, how I shall miss thee! When I began developing B&W film in 2020, I was advised by several chums that Kodak HC110 was a great developer for all my B&W film. Not being one to ignore that advice, I invested in a 1 litre bottle of it and five years later, I have finished the bottle. Sadly, that particular syrup is no longer available as Kodak changed their recipe and switched suppliers, and it left me wondering if a good alternative was available.

After some research and a few questions to the right people, thanks Richard at Nik & Trick, I decided to give Bellini Euro HC a try. This is said by the manufacturer, BelliniFoto based in Italy, to be a direct replacement for Kodak HC110 and the same times and dilutions can be used. Much like the new recipe of Kodak HC110, Bellini Euro HC is thinner than the old HC110 syrup and the longevity is said to be the same, if not better. I took a leap of faith and bought a 500ml bottle from Nik & Trick here in the UK.

I shot a roll of Ilford's finest HP5+ 400 with my Olympus OM-2 to test this new developer. I have always strived to be consistent with my photography and Kodak HC110 gave me that over the course of five years. There will of course be variations in temperature and humidity through the year, but Kodak HC110 did the business for me time and again. I have seen the results others have achieved with Bellini Euro HC, but you never really know until you see for yourself.

My OM-2 has excellent light metering in Aperture Priority mode. I rarely use it in manual mode these days as I know aperture priority gives me consistently good results and it really is a very nice camera to use. I walked along the new path through the woodland near my home, happy snapping things along the way and mostly the path itself as it snaked through the woodland. Old habits die hard and there's a lot to be said for taking photos "in the moment".

With the new layer of Shell Grip over the asphalt, the path has taken on a different characteristic. It's brighter and ensures folk with restricted mobility wont slip as they enjoy their walk. I enjoyed myself immensely, despite the light being flatter than a billiard table, and it didn't take me long to shoot a roll of film with my OM-2. I rewound it and headed home for a well earned brewski. 

I developed my film in Bellini Euro HC 1+31 dilution B for 5 minutes at 20 celcius, stopped it with Ilfostop for one minute, fixed it with Fotospeed FX30 for 5 minutes at a dilution of 1+9 and soon had it hanging to dry in my bathroom. First impressions on hanging my developed film to dry were very encouraging. My film was nicely developed and had a good density to it without looking overcooked. I digitised my film with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, K&F Tripod, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Photo 2.

As soon as I began processing my RAW files I could see that I had made a good choice by giving Bellini Euro HC a try. I am a believer in getting exposures right in camera, which makes my life easier. A well exposed film in fresh developer will always shine, it shows in the ease at which I was able to get each shot looking great with minimal faff.

I don't enjoy spending hours at my PC rescuing badly shot and/or processed film. One thing I learned with this roll of film was that Bellini Euro HC is a great alternative to Kodak HC110. I was quite impressed with my first use of this developer, it pairs up beautifully with Ilford's finest HP5+ 400, my favourite black and white film, and I was able to use minimal adjustments in Affinity Photo 2 to achieve my results. Kudos to Bellini for making a viable alternative to the legendary Kodak HC110.

I have no doubt Bellini Euro HC will be a part of my developing kit for many years to come. If you are in the UK and hunting for an excellent all round developer for your favourite B&W films, you can purchase Bellini Euro HC via the link below. This is not an affiliate link, nor am I sponsored by anyone, I just appreciate great service.

Here's a few favourites shot with my OM-2 on Ilford HP5 and developed in Bellini Euro HC. As always I have placed them and more in an album on Flickr you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Buy Bellini Euro HC 
A Walk Along A New Path