Beginner Questions

[dahamsta7]

I'm new to all this and about to start a class but had some questions that I hoped could get answered.

1) Can I take the negatives from already developed film and go to a darkroom and enlarge them?

2) Can I enlarge color film negatives to black and white?

3) Can APS film be developed in a darkroom?

4) With darkrooms, is the purpose to develop and enlarge mainly? Or do more people develop to standard 4x6?

Any help would be much appreciated! Thank.s

[j.e.simmons]

Here are brief answers:
1. Yes, provided the enlarger will accept the film size - for instance, you couldn't enlarge 4x5 negatives in a 35mm enlarger.
2. Yes, but the grays may not exactly match the contrast you'd expect. Keeping it simple, the paper does not see color the same way the eye does, so the contrast will be a bit different. But generally, you should get a recognizable image.
3. I have no idea - never shot APS.
4. 4x6 is generally a standard size for 35mm film - it is enlarged. Most folks use a darkroom for enlarging, although many of us here make contact prints from large negatives.
juan

[dahamsta7]

Thanks for the answers! Much appreciated.

QUestion on when you say "you couldn't enlarge 4x5 negatives in a 35mm enlarger."

Aren't negatives all 35mm? Like when you buy film for an SLR is 35mm. And then you take it somewhere to get developed and they give you negatives. And then from there you can determine how large to develop it to? I guess your wording just seems backwards to me.

[Nick_3536]

http://www.fineartphotosupply.com/Fine%20Art%20Pan%20Sheet%20Film.htm

The second picture is one corner of a piece of sheet film. The smallest sheet film is much bigger then 35mm negatives. A 4x5 is basically 4"x5"

[Louie Powell]

Aren't negatives all 35mm? .

Not at all!

The standard film used in 35mm SLR's is 35mm film, and the camera produces a negative that is about 1 x 1.5". But there are many other formats, ranging from the Minox subminiature format all the way up to 20x24". The 6x6 cm format (so-called "roll film") was very popular with fashion photographers until the advent of digital, while the 4x5" format is still very popular with art/landscape photographers. Juan's point is that the design of the enlarger determines which format can be enlarged. A 35mm enlarger can work with negatives that are 35mm (1x1.5") and smaller. If you are producing larger negatives, then you will need a different enlarger.

[dahamsta7]

ooh icic that makes sense.

so if i take a roll of 35mm film into the darkroom to develop, i can make negatives 1x1.5 or 20x24?

what is the benefit of this? I would assume that would a 20x24 it would allow for a clearer and mroe crisp enlargement?

[Oren Grad]

If you have exposed a roll of 35mm film, it will still be 35mm after you develop it into negatives. It is possible, though, to project a 35mm negative on to a larger piece of film and make an enlarged copy negative (or positive, depending on the type of chemical processing), just as you would project it on to a piece of paper and make an enlarged print.

The participants in this web forum use large cameras and special lenses to make exposures directly on to large individual sheets of film - for example, 4x5", 5x7" or 8x10". That's what is meant by the term "large format" in the name of this forum. If you click on the "LF Home Page" link at the top, you will find much more information about the ins and outs of this kind of photography.

There are many benefits of working with these big cameras, but one of the most important benefits is indeed that the larger negative allows for more detail, more tonal subtlety, and overall greater clarity in the prints.

[j.e.simmons]

Just to be sure you are clear on this, there are many film sizes besides 35mm. Different cameras take different sizes of film. You asked about enlargement in the darkroom - assuming 35mm film, I think it would be safe to say that all the prints you have seen have been enlargements.

People on this forum have cameras that use film much larger than 35mm. You might find better answers if you look over forums such as photo.net and apug.org. These forums deal with 35mm.

Good luck with your photography.
juan

[dahamsta7]

Thanks for all the help everyone. Much appreciated.