Dumb question from newbie

[John Kasaian]

Have you used the dark room yet? Maybe it's not as bad as you think. If the person in charge runs a tight ship they might be offended by your prejudicial conclusions about the equipment.
Just sayin...

[1stormcat]

Great advice everybody. Thank you. I will be starting class at the end of January and will be make a point speaking with the dark room keeper. I have never aligned an enlarger but will make a point of asking the for instructions on how to do it.

[Mark Sawyer]

Great advice everybody. Thank you. I will be starting class at the end of January and will be make a point speaking with the dark room keeper. I have never aligned an enlarger but will make a point of asking the for instructions on how to do it.

I'd recommend googling the subject beforehand so you'll have a basic understanding of aligning an enlarger. Short version: there are three planes that must be parallel: the film plane, the lens plane, and the paper plane. You can buy fancy laser alignment tools, and the college may already have one. I always made do with levels. I always made my final check with a piece of clear glass, gridded with a Sharpie, inserted where the negative carrier goes, making sure all the corners come into focus on the paper plane at once with the lens wide open. In an open darkroom, I'd suggest starting every printing session with that quick focus check.

Printing with an enlarger without knowing if it's aligned is like shooting with a view cameras without knowing where the movements are set.