JackStantler Posted June 20, 2014 Share #1 Posted June 20, 2014 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hey! Im wondering how photography pros or enthusiasts generally go about processing their film's in this day and age. Do they use scanners to get the digitally ? Or let it print then scan them ? And do ppl go to the shop to get the negatives ? or mix some chemicals themselves ? I like the look of film but have no idea how i should go about processing them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted June 20, 2014 Posted June 20, 2014 Hi JackStantler, Take a look here How do ppl who shoot film generally process the film ?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
TomB_tx Posted June 20, 2014 Share #2 Posted June 20, 2014 There are still lots of options, depending on how much you want to do yourself. Although there are fewer local shops who do film processing and printing, that has directed more business to the mail-order shops, so you can still just mail the film off and get back the negatives, optionally with prints and/or scanned to a CD. If you are in the USA Dwayne's Photo is reasonable and generally reliable, but there are higher-quality "pro" labs. Home processing, especially for black and white, is still easy, with chemistry and supplies available from the larger on-line suppliers. For film only processing (to scan negatives) you don't even need a darkroom: just a light-tight "changing bag" to open the film cassette and load onto a reel and into the processing tank. Then the tank can be used on counter top to pour chemicals in and out through the light-trap so you can see what you are doing. If you have a spare bath that can be set up as a darkroom, you can set up an enlarger and trays and learn to print "real" prints. (Something magic about watching a print slowly appear in the developer tray!) (Enlargers are quite cheap on the used market.) However, there are many home scanners to scan negatives into a PC where they become digital images to do with as you like. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdriceman Posted June 20, 2014 Share #3 Posted June 20, 2014 I only rarely process my own negatives any more. Although I sort of enjoy doing it, it is too time consuming for me to justify at this point in my life. I will do it from time to time, but by the time I process and scan it has taken a big chunk of time. I have found that sending the film in to one of a couple of fine film processors I get nice clean negatives and very nice scans at high resolution. The cost does add up though and there is a time lag of usually a week to do this. We have a local pro lab that has reasonable pricing on the processing, but the scanning is very expensive. If I need the negatives or the scans tomorrow i will go here. Otherwise it is off to a mail order processor. I have found 2 that I like (US) because of the quality of their work and the fact that they will make the scans available for download on their website so you can get them shortly after they are processed/scanned: The Darkroom (Film Developing at The Darkroom | Develop Film by Mail for $10 ) and Ilford Lab US ( Welcome to the ILFORD Lab Direct US website - Black and white photo prints | Silver Gelatin prints | Black and white film processing prints | Black and White Prints from Film | Black and White Prints from Digital | Ilford Lab | Film processing lab ). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sblitz Posted June 20, 2014 Share #4 Posted June 20, 2014 While doing the processing and scanning myself is a wonderful notion, it is not realistic for me to find that time (still hoping to at least process BW at home). Living in NYC i have the advantage of any number of places who do a professional level of work and I just drop it off there and pick it up in a day or two. Most big cities with large media industries in residence have this (NY, London, LA, for example). If you live far away, there are mail order options. I used to buy Kodak slides with the mailer for processing and that it is how I did it for years. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wclark5179 Posted June 20, 2014 Share #5 Posted June 20, 2014 For me, film photography stays as film and darkroom prints. I develop my own film, 100% B&W, print with my chemical darkroom. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted June 20, 2014 Share #6 Posted June 20, 2014 I develop at the kitchen sink. It is very easy, all developing guides will be bewildering at first, but get some chemicals in front of you and you will see how it all goes together, and it's far better than worrying about it and thinking it's only for techies. So, do the easiest things first. Get a Paterson developing tank (yes I know somebody will say something else is better) because it is a known quantity with a lot of people using them, hence a depth of knowledge. Get a good stock developer, like ID-11 or D-76, again because there is again a depth of knowledge behind the choice. Some Stop Bath, and some Fix. Choose the chemicals that are the most widely understood and known about, and ignore (for the time being) anybody who says they have a killer variant or a wacky backy solution. Only go by known datum points to start with, so manufactures guides, and ignore 'I've never had a problem with......' types of advice. So you just need a plan of what you want to try to emulate, the effect you want, the film you want to start out with etc. After you understand the basic's, and the need for datum points of consistency in the processing, you can start to explore refinements which can be even more exciting. Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spydrxx Posted June 20, 2014 Share #7 Posted June 20, 2014 Advertisement (gone after registration) As a kid I was fascinated by the mystique of the darkroom, and once I had somebody run thru the basics with me, it became a lifetime adventure. Some stuff (color and chromogenic B&W films) I still send off, but most get processed in my bathroom or kitchen. For many years I used a Leitz/Rondinax daylight tank, but last year switched to a Paterson when I needed to develop some medium format film....those adjustable reels are a lifesaver, as are Paterson's wind-on mechanism for getting the film properly wound on the reels. Enjoy learning the "black sciences" of film development. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
erl Posted June 20, 2014 Share #8 Posted June 20, 2014 Steve's advice above is spot on! Just do it. For literally a few dollars you can have some reel fun (pun intended) and consider it as cheap entertainment as well as being productive. The process can be quite addictive and you have a feeling of being an artisan producing something tangible. That feeling does not come with digital photography. The cheapest form of intense pleasure you will be ever likely to have (no replies please ). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gberger Posted June 21, 2014 Share #9 Posted June 21, 2014 I shoot transparencies and send them to a lab. They are returned, mounted in plastic, and I use a portable light table and a 6x Schneider loupe to select and cull. I use a Leica projector and a large matte screen for viewing. Nothing like it! As a New Zealand friend of mine noted: The film is the sensor, and what you put on it IS the final outcome. It doesn't require hours on a computer for post processing. Before you press the shutter release, you've established what you'll get. You've "post-processed" by determining composition and lighting before you take the picture. It's called photography - - - not digital picture making. If you decide you want a print, the lab does it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
becker Posted June 21, 2014 Share #10 Posted June 21, 2014 " Just do it " satisfaction guaranteed The Patterson works well, my newest toy is an Agfa Rodinax it works well with only 150 ml of developer and You can use it even on Mothers finest dammast tablecloth:) while the others have coffee… I scan with a Nikon and PP with CS 4. I mostly take Rodinal for developing and always the same Film. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted June 21, 2014 Share #11 Posted June 21, 2014 I shoot transparencies and send them to a lab. They are returned, mounted in plastic, and I use a portable light table and a 6x Schneider loupe to select and cull. I use a Leica projector and a large matte screen for viewing. Nothing like it! Good for you! There is nothing like it - until you shoot medium format transparencies and view with a good MF projector. It just blew me away and still would. You really have put me to thinking of reviving the projector. . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJH Posted June 21, 2014 Share #12 Posted June 21, 2014 I am still to take up home based development, I can still remember the stress level the first couple of times in the pitch black years ago trying to get the film started into the reel. It seemed really easy by the 3rd time but I bet I will be sweating when I try it again soon. I am going to try either Ilford DD-X or Adox FX-39 so I don't have to mix up a stock solution. As I side point I found a local traditional darkroom via the map thing Ilford have done (thanks Ilford), I am yet to ring them up but I really fancy getting a bit of hands on tuition in a proper darkroom again. Local Darkroom - Registration Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB_tx Posted June 21, 2014 Share #13 Posted June 21, 2014 As a New Zealand friend of mine noted: The film is the sensor, and what you put on it IS the final outcome. It doesn't require hours on a computer for post processing. Before you press the shutter release, you've established what you'll get. You've "post-processed" by determining composition and lighting before you take the picture. It's called photography - - - not digital picture making. Yes - that reminds me of my college photography class in the 1960s, where the emphasis was on capturing the image you want. "Final exam" was to shoot a 20-exposure roll of slides and show all of them to the class for critique. There's nothing like a 10 ft. wide "magic lantern" glowing image. Time to dust off my Pradovit! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdriceman Posted June 21, 2014 Share #14 Posted June 21, 2014 I am still to take up home based development, I can still remember the stress level the first couple of times in the pitch black years ago trying to get the film started into the reel. It seemed really easy by the 3rd time but I bet I will be sweating when I try it again soon. I am going to try either Ilford DD-X or Adox FX-39 so I don't have to mix up a stock solution. As I side point I found a local traditional darkroom via the map thing Ilford have done (thanks Ilford), I am yet to ring them up but I really fancy getting a bit of hands on tuition in a proper darkroom again. Local Darkroom - Registration I recently helped my daughter get started developing. We just took a roll of film and practiced spooling the reel in the light, eyes open; then eyes closed; then in the changing bag. It took about 10 attempts - just a few minutes for her to get the hang of it, but it was worth the $4.00 roll of film to do it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdriceman Posted June 21, 2014 Share #15 Posted June 21, 2014 A couple weeks ago I went on a trip to SW Colorado. In addition to my digital camera I brought along my Mamiya 6 and shot 7 rolls along with hundreds of digital pics. The keeper rate of the film was significantly higher. It is apparent that while shooting film I am more patient, compose better and end up with better images overall (I'm not talking about actual image quality, but composition and subject matter). While shooting digital one must take care not to let the sense that you have almost unlimited shots lull you into the mindset that if you just take more, one of them will turn out good. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
erl Posted June 22, 2014 Share #16 Posted June 22, 2014 A couple weeks ago I went on a trip to SW Colorado. In addition to my digital camera I brought along my Mamiya 6 and shot 7 rolls along with hundreds of digital pics. The keeper rate of the film was significantly higher. It is apparent that while shooting film I am more patient, compose better and end up with better images overall (I'm not talking about actual image quality, but composition and subject matter). While shooting digital one must take care not to let the sense that you have almost unlimited shots lull you into the mindset that if you just take more, one of them will turn out good. I do agree with you and similar motivations happen to me but, the flip side can also be true. I remember some years ago (many) I was travelling in Turkey and had to budget myself to 2 rolls of film per day (I carried 60 rolls), just so I could 'cover' the entire trip. I know I missed some deserving images simply because of budgetary restraints. Mind you, those years of frugality have trained my eye and reflexes to 'act critically' which now carries over into my digital work. Sort of 'win/win' if you like. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bull40 Posted June 24, 2014 Share #17 Posted June 24, 2014 This is a timely topic for me, as I've just given up on digital and gone film 100%. Again. ;-) Unfortunately, I'm not yet at 100% analog in pp. Presently, I have both my black & white and color print film processed and (high res) scanned by a lab in California. Although I can develop b&w at home, I'm not fully set up to print, yet. The lab I use charges extra to scan pre-processed negatives, so it costs me the same to have them process and scan. I have a complete wet darkroom set-up packed up and ready to go, and I hope to convert a spare, smaller room to a dedicated darkroom by the year's end. I shoot predominately b&w, anyway. Depending on type of film that was scanned, I use three labs to print from digital files. For color, I prefer files from Kodak C-41 to be printed on Kodak papers, and the Fuji printed on Fuji. I'm still sampling the b&w printing with Ilford's lab as well as the other labs I use. While there are a few local drugstore minilabs nearby that still develop and scan/print, their quality is very poor, and not much cheaper. I definitely miss my neighborhood camera shop and lab. They knew me well, and how I wanted my work finished. Dropped it off, picked it up in a day or two, and hung out and chatted with the regulars. Those days are gone for good, I'm afraid. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archiver Posted June 24, 2014 Share #18 Posted June 24, 2014 I drop my colour film at the local lab. They develop, scan on a Fuji Frontier, colour correct and print if I want. Four YEARS ago I bought a bottle of Ilfosol 3, Rapid Fixer, a dev tank with plastic reels, and some neg sleeves with the full intention of developing my own black and white film. Still hasn't happened yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
erl Posted June 24, 2014 Share #19 Posted June 24, 2014 Don't know about Ilfosol 3, but if you had bought Rodinal, it would still be 100% OK! Give it a go! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leica Fanatic Posted June 24, 2014 Share #20 Posted June 24, 2014 I self process the film in Rodinal, then scan them as I only post the images online, though I keep telling myself to start making prints again. One day. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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