Photographic developers containing a developing agent of the ascorbic acid type and an accelerator

An aqueous developer solution for the development of photographic silver halides, comprising a first silver halide developing agent that is an ascorbic acid, an auxiliary developing agent that is 1-phenyl-3-pyrazolidinone, and at least one development accelerator,

• wherein:
• (I) said auxiliary developing agent has the formula:
• ##STR17## wherein R.sup.1 to R.sup.7 in formula (I) each separately represent hydrogen, an alkyl group, a substituted or non-substituted alkoxy group, substituted or non-substituted aryloxy group, or a group represented by the formula:
• (X).sub.p --A-(Sol)
• wherein p is 0 or 1;
• X represents a divalent group chosen from
• --O--, --S--, and --NR.sup.8 --
• wherein R.sup.8 is H, an alkyl or A-(Sol);
• A represents a divalent group chosen from ##STR18## wherein q is between 0 and 5, and y is between 1 and 3;
• (Sol) is a solubilizing group chosen from:
• CO.sub.2 H, SO.sub.3 H, NHSO.sub.2 R.sup.10, SO.sub.2 NH.sub.2, SO.sub.2 NHR.sup.10, polyhydroxyalkyl, ##STR19## wherein R.sup.10 is an alkyl or aryl, R.sup.11 is OH, an alkyl or aryl, and R.sup.12 is hydrogen, an alkyl or aryl;
• with the additional conditions that
• (a) at least one of the radicals R.sup.1 to R.sup.7 must contain a (SOL) group, and
• (b) A can represent a covalent bond, and
• (II) said development accelerator is selected from the class consisting of:
• (a) thioethers having at least one ammonium group
• (b) triazolium thiolates, and
• (c) substituted thioalkanes.