Method for processing silver halide color photographic material containing tabular silver iodobromide grains using a processing solution having a bleaching ability containing an iron (III) complex salt

A method for processing an imagewise exposed silver halide color photographic material comprising a support having thereon at least one silver halide emulsion layer, which comprises color developing in a color developing solution containing a color developing agent, and then processing with a processing solution having a bleaching ability, characterized by

• a) said silver halide emulsion layer containing silver halide grains having a composition in which tabular silver iodobromide grains having an aspect ratio of not lower than 3 account for at least 50% of the entire projected area of said silver halide grains, and
• b) said processing solution having a bleaching ability contains an iron (III) complex salt of a compound represented by the following general formula (I) as a bleaching agent at a concentration of 0.01 to 0.17 mol/liter:
• ##STR16## wherein Y.sub.1 represents a non-metallic atomic group required for forming an arylene group;
• R represents a substituent group selected from the group consisting of an alkyl group, an aralkyl group, an alkenyl group, an alkynyl group, an aryl group, a sulfonamide group, a ureido group, a urethane group, an aryloxy group, a sulfamoyl group, an alkylthio group, an arylthio group, a sulfonyl group, a sulfinyl group, an acyl group, a hydroxy group, a halogen atom, a cyano group, a sulfo group, a carboxyl group, a phosphono group, an aryloxycarbonyl group, an alkoxycarbonyl group;
• an acyloxy group, a nitro group and a hydroxamic acid group;
• n represents 0 or an integer of 1 to 4, provided that when n is 2 to 4, two or more R groups may be the same or different;
• X.sub.1 represents a hydrogen atom or --L.sub.1 --A.sub.2 ;
• X.sub.2 represents a substituent selected from the group consisting of --L.sub.2 --A.sub.3 and a group of the following formula ##STR17## X.sub.3 represents a hydrogen atom, or a substituent selected from the group consisting of a hydroxyalkyl group and --L.sub.4 --A.sub.4 ;
• A.sub.1 and A.sub.5 each represents a hydrogen atom, or a substituent selected from the group consisting of a carboxyl group, a sulfo group, an alkylthio group and S--L.sub.5 --COOH;
• A.sub.2 represents a substituent selected from the group consisting of a carboxyl group and a sulfo group;
• A.sub.3 and A.sub.4 each represents a carboxyl group;
• L.sub.2, L.sub.4 and L.sub.5 each represents an alkylene group;
• L.sub.1 and L.sub.3 each represents a substituent selected from the group consisting of an alkylene group and an arylene group;
• and
• W.sub.1 represents a bivalent bonding group represented by the following general formula (W) ##STR18## wherein W.sub.2 and W.sub.3 each represents an alkylene group;
• c represents an integer of 0 to 3;
• X represents --O--, --S-- or --N(R.sub.3)--;
• and R.sub.3 represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group or an aryl group.