Developing Your Own Photographic Film And Prints Instructions and advice.

[chiiyo 0]

Actually this came from the Film Vs Digital thread but I opened a new topic because there's a lot to talk about here.M^E, would you like to share your experiences?For me, I took darkroom techniques when I was 15, and we learnt how to develop our own black and white films, as well as print them. My darkroom techniques are a little rusty, but what you need for a black and white darkroom is a place that is1. Air-conditioned, or similarly temperature-controllable, because the chemicals need to be at a certain temperature.2. Dark. Duh. No white light should be allowed, and for Black and White printing only Infra-Red light can be present. Not just any red bulb, but an Infra-Red bulb.3. Hopefully with a sink and running water.4. Some kind of timer, maybe something that ticks loudly? A clock might not be very visible under the infra-red light.5. Maybe a humidity controller. Dehumidifier is essential in humid areas like Singapore!6. Radio if you work alone in the darkroom most of the time, I find it eerie to work in silence...7. Fridge would be good, to store ice or something in bringing down the temperature of chemicals.8. A line or something to hang the prints and film to dry.The equipment you need in a black and white darkroom,1. Thermometer, to measure the temperatures of the chemicals.2. At least three large rectangular shallow pans, to agitate the prints when developing.3. Tweezers, big ones with rubber grips at the end to hold the prints.4. Clips with padded ends to hang the prints and film5. Darkbag for transferring the film to the film developing container.6. Film developing container (I don't know the actual name, it's like a small bucket that you put the spool of film in and then you pour the chemicals and you agitate...)7. Film spools 8. Film picker (to get the end of the film from the film roll out)9. Enlarger (enables you to "enlarge" the image on the film to a suitable large size to print on paper by projecting light through it and adjusting the distance between the film and the paper)10. Photographic paper (black and white), some brands are Ilford, Kodak, comes in different sizes, surfaces, textures. Keep in a dark place when not in use. If exposed to light you might as well throw it away or use it to train your chemical skills...11. Chemicals. Two sets of chemicals, one for film, one for paper. Both sets include a Developer, a Stopbath, and a Fixer. The Developer sets off chemical reactions in the film or paper and you can see your "image" appear on the paper or film. The Stopbath stops the chemical reactions so you won't have overdevelopment, and the Fixer fixes the image on the paper.12. Of course, some black and white roll that you have shot (though you can play around with objects with the enlarger first...) Be sure to get the true black and white film roll, not the C-41 ones, which have to be developed by the "colour film" development that hopefully M^E will talk about.... Will talk about procedures later. still have homework to do. Please add on whatever you think is necessary, my darkroom is a bit rusty and this is all off the top of my head and what I remember from my two years of being darkroom i/c.

[ignition 0]

Dark room photography is awesome. I went to a 3 week program over the summer specializing in lab sciences, but we took an "off day" one of the days to do some black and white photography. We developed the prints ourselves in the lab, though I don't remember the exact process for it. It started with like putting the negatives onto the silver-sided photopaper, then putting it in some chemical...then drying it and sliding it around in another chemical.. :DIt was awesome seeing the actual photograph just appear out of nowhere onto the paper though in around 10 seconds. It was a fun experience, I'm looking into taking a couple classes on photography at my school.We only get 2 electives, but I'll probably take a photography class - developing the photos yourself is so fun :DCheers,ignition

[chiiyo 0]

Procedure for developing your own black and white film rolls:(Note: there are books written on this, I'm just recounting and describing the rough process from what I remember)1. Firstly you have to prepare the chemicals that go into the developing container. You would have the Developer, the Stopbath and the Fixer. Each of them have certain requirements such as concentration of the chemical (how much water to mix in) as well as, very importantly, the temperature of the chemical. The requirements would depend on what brand and type of chemical you buy, so you should always check the label on the bottle for the specs. Use ice from the fridge if you have to to lower the temperature of the chemical, and always check the temperature of the chemical with a thermometer. Make sure the Fixer and the Stopbath are still at the optimum temperature by the time you pour them in.2. Prepare your film roll. The roll would have had pictures on it (used roll), so you would want to prevent light from falling on your undeveloped film before developing it, as much as possible. Using a darkbag, or working with the lights off, use a screwdriver to force the film canister open, so you have access to the actual film. Make sure you're wearing gloves, so you won't leave fingerprints all over the film. Slot the film onto the film roll, and continue to wrap the rest of the film around the roll. Put the roll into the developing canister and shut the canister so that no light can get to the film. Now you can take the developing canister out of the darkbag / switch on the lights.3. Following the instructions on the chemical bottles, pour in the Developer and start timing. Agitate the developing canister by turning it upside down to allow the chemicals to reach the film, and then setting it down the right side up, turning it clockwise by ninety degrees, and then repeating the process. The duration of the agitation depends on how long the chemicals are supposed to be used, and that would depend on the chemical instructions on the labels.4. After pouring away the Developer (usually it is not advisable to reuse the film chemicals), pour in the Stopbath and repeat the instructions for the Developer. Do the same for the Fixer. After pouring away the Fixer, run water into the developing canister for a while, and then remove the film from the developing canister, rinse with water, and hang it up to dry. Using a squeegee whilst the film is still slightly wet would prevent water stains on the film when it is dry.5. When the film is completely dry, cut it into strips of five or six (up to your own preference) and keep in film strip holders. Make sure you don't leave them around to be scratched. (Like I did... >_< all my black and white films are now scratched and dirty... takes me absolutely ages to repair it in photoshop, and it's not the same anymore...)

[Soleq 0]

Boy, this brings back memories. I took a photolab class in college, and then started developing my own b+w prints prior to my digital SLR. What's written down here is a good primer, but the best way to learn is just trying. Be prepared to spend quite a bit on the setup, and a fair bit more on the inevitable goof-ups. I personally fubar'd quite a bit of film before I got the knack of rolling it myself.Personally, I love the experience of developing my own film. There's something about it that digital can't quite seem to duplicate. Although, I mainly shot color slides, b+w negatives were fun to experiment with.Here's my suggestions for proper darkroom work-age.1) Use quality materials. Don't buy cheap chemicals, or plastic film rollers. Invest in quality stuff to produce consistant photos.2) Use an amber safelight instead of the infa-red light. It's easier on the eyes.3) When beginning, start out with Kodak TriMax 400 film. It's an easy film to work with, and has nice grain. The 100 is better (in my opinion), but the slower speed makes it less versatile. Later, once you get the hang of developing this film, you can go on to better Kodak films, or Ilford films (my fav). Fuji and Agfa also make b+w film, but I'd stick with Ilford.4) When buying paper, buy 8x10 first. Sure, you may want to buy a bag of each size, but with the proper paper trimmer, an 8x10 will give you 2 5x7 sheets. Saves you money. The Kodak RCIV paper is a good starter. I personally like the Satin finish. Again, when you gain experience with this paper, switch over to something higher end, like the Ilford RC Pearl.5) Don't spend all day in a darkroom. If you do, you'll come out blind like a bat, smelling of high heavens. "Ack! The light! My eyes!"6) Music is good. However, it's best to always bring a cordless phone into the darkroom to prevent those awkward "the paper's in the tray, need 30 more seconds, and the phone is ringing!" moments.7) Place a sign on the outside door saying "darkroom in use." That will prevent the majority of spousal darkroom-related incidents.8) Indiglo is not darkroom friendly.9) I'm running out of things to say, but always remember to have fun. You'll make mistakes. Film won't properly be developed (a.k.a. ruined), and sooner or later you'll want to give up. But fear not, as we all go through this. Practice does indeed make perfect.

[Cassandra1405241487 0]

Just some of my own experiences:

 

Don't buy cheap chemicals, or plastic film rollers.

I think that this one's a matter of taste. I found the ratchet-type plastic ones much easier to work with (in near darkness) than the metal ones.

 

 

Use an amber safelight instead of the infa-red light.

I would never trust any light which wasn't marketed especially as a safelight. As I remember, ours was greenish.

 

Don't spend all day in a darkroom. If you do, you'll come out blind like a bat, smelling of high heavens. "Ack! The light! My eyes!"

And nauseous from the smell of the stop bath.

 

However, it's best to always bring a cordless phone into the darkroom to prevent those awkward "the paper's in the tray, need 30 more seconds, and the phone is ringing!" moments.

If you've trained yourself never to answer a phone unless you're sure that you damn well feel like it, that's not a problem.

 

Place a sign on the outside door saying "darkroom in use." That will prevent the majority of spousal darkroom-related incidents.

I'm not exactly sure what a "spousal darkroom-related incident" is, but if it means the spouse destroying your film by suddenly opening the darkroom door to light, these two ideas might help:

1. Set up a red warning light above the darkroom door which turns on automatically when the light un-safe light in the darkroom is turned off. Very easy to do.

2. Build a light-lock based on a second blackout curtain.

 

Thanks.

Cassy.