If a practitioner regularly processes film using a water stop bath (no acid stop bath, just three water changes), what harm, if any, would result from moving the film directly from the developer to the first of the fixing baths???
None at all. The thing stop does is stop the developing process quickly, which makes consistancy easier. There can be some development that continues once it's in the rinse, but as long as it's consistent you can account for it. As I understand it, stop also helps preserve the fix by not lowering it's ph with any developer carryover that may occur (but with a good rinse, it shouldn't be much of an issue). But then again there are also alkaline fixers, I'm sure someone who who understands the chemistry in more detail will help out with facts about that part.
I've eschewed a stop bath whilst devving films for years, and have never had a problem. Just make sure you fill the tank with water to catch all the dev, agitate the tank, and you'll be fine.
As Erik says, going from dev to fix without rinsing will contaminate and exhaust the fixer quickly.
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Kevin McCully - Northamptonshire, England.
Thanks, Reinhold, for the link...it was interesting! I have been using a water stop for negs for 30 years...nice to know why my negs still look as good after so many years.
Vaughn
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At least with LF landscape, a bad day of photography can be a good day of exercise.
... what harm, if any, would result from moving the
film directly from the developer to the first of
the fixing baths???
I regularly take film and paper from the developer
directly to the fix. My fix in both cases is very dilute
and used one-shot. A very dilute one-shot fix becomes
VERY little loaded with silver. Washing is quick and
a single bath give best possible results. Dan
Dan, if this is your procedure and you have no problems in either bleaching or toning afterward, I'd like to hear more. What is "very dilute"? With papers, do you monitor for silver in solution?
Bear in mind, the damage to fixer is primarily if you use an acid fixing bath. An alkaline fixer is not affected by the alkalinity of developing agents, but a water bath or rinse is still wise.
I no longer use a stop bath for film processing (I use a 60-second running water bath instead) because I use an alkaline fix, but I use acid fix for printing so I do use a stop bath there.
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Jim MacKenzie - Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Stop bath--omission 
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