Darkroom paint color?

[stradibarrius]

I have finally got the darkroom project to the point I am ready to paint it. I have worked in darkrooms that were black and darkrooms that were a "normal" color like eggshell or off white. I was not able to tell any difference in the the enlargement results. Do you think the color makes a major difference?

[John Layton]

For my current darkroom...I've painted the walls and ceiling area on the "dry" (enlarger) side flat black (very important that its truly flat!) - to absorb any stray enlarger light and/or baseboard light, while the "wet" side is flat white - to help spread and enhance the effects of my safelights, while allowing me to point these lights upwards so that their light can remain indirect.

[Aerial]

If you use a safelight a light color might make it more effective. Or less safe. Only times I've ever noticed a difference is when the enlarger is not designed well and leaks light out of the negative stage. I go with a pleasing color rather than something technically correct.

[bob carnie]

Matt black around the enlargers... nice white in the wet areas..

[John Layton]

....sorry that I did not answer your question about color. While I have not run any experiments - I did make the mistake, a few years back, of painting the inside of my darkroom sink blue - which, turned a rich black under the reddish amber of my safelights, making it really difficult to see anything. I do think the flat black over and around the enlarger bench is worthwhile, and that white over and around the sink enhances the better effects of safelights, so long as they are the "correct" ones for the specific light-sensitive materials that you are using.

I need to channel Fred Picker here (sorry Fred!) and say that to me, the idea of painting a darkroom in any way other than I've mentioned above does not make sense. Any color but white over the wet side would prove increasingly deleterious to safelight effectiveness as you moved from red towards blue on the paint spectrum, and any color but black over the enlarger area would, again going from red to blue on the spectrum, place an increasing amount of risk to your photo paper, unless your enlargers are completely light tight, and even then, a bright image on your easel can reflect around a bit.

I suppose you could paint your entire darkroom to match your safelight color...but then if you decided to change to photosensitive materials for which your current safelight spectra might be dangerous, you'd then need to repaint!

[John Layton]

...and my apologies to Bob and Aerial who posted in the interim while I was lost in thought...

[Mooncreek]

My comments echo John and Bob's; in my larger darkroom the dry side houses several enlargers in a cubicle fashion all painted flat back. The wet side is more of a white satin finish. In the smaller darkroom I used mostly flat black.

[stradibarrius]

Thanks for the info!

[Petzval Paul]

Mine is painted a 'popcorn' yellow which is nice and bright and reflects both my deep red and amber safe lights well. I don't enlarge but if I did, I would go with a very matt black by the machine, too.

[Jim Noel]

I have finally got the darkroom project to the point I am ready to paint it. I have worked in darkrooms that were black and darkrooms that were a "normal" color like eggshell or off white. I was not able to tell any difference in the the enlargement results. Do you think the color makes a major difference?

NO I don't think it makes a difference. Mine is eggshell with flat black behind the enlarger.