Will do ��
Will do ��
I had been sending my negatives out to a lab--35mm, 120, 4x5 for years. Then I simply grew tired of the 10 day turn around. I was a bit intimidated by processing but after watching a couple of Youtube videos and some advice here I decided it wsn't that hard. I bought a Stearman SP-445 which is VERY easy to use and almost foolproof. I bought some HC-110 developer and Ilford Rapid Fixer, and a big graduate cylinder to mix in. It really is easy--like making pancakes. I processed four sheets of Ilford FP4+ just tonight that I shot yesterday afternoon, and then two Lane dry plates. They came out great! Haven't tried color yet as I don't shoot much, but I do have all the stuff to do it now. No reason not to process your own b&w, especially with the SP-445 so easy to use.
Kent in SD
In contento ed allegria
Notte e di vogliam passar!
By all means, do it yourself. You’ll mess up at first but think of it this way, they’re not mistakes. They’re tests. And you’ll do a lot of tests but in six months you’ll laugh at your first attempts anyway. It’s only photography, enjoy it.
Mixing pancakes is easy flipping them is a challenge��
“ DIY it is actually easy” said Tin Can. Being dependent on a lab feels uneasy and can become complicated (not if but) when the results are not good and uninterpretable, lab results are not stable.
You can spend lots of money preparing to develop film efficiently, or improvise almost everything you need to produce the same quality LF negatives. Google "Edward Weston's darkroom" to see how a master made it simple for the film and paper of his time. In a B&W darkroom, maintaining the darkroom at an appropriate temperature for the chemistry you use, and store the chemicals and a supply of wash water in it. If you develop in open trays, keep any light from falling on the film developing tray. A faintly illuminated clock positioned where its dial is visible only from your position is safe enough for some films. Trays intended for developing film and paper are a little more convenient than improvised trays. It took me a few years to accumulate enough better trays, but the others worked well enough. Cardboard trays lined with a plastic sheet would do in a pinch. A minimum of three trays can get you started, including one for water to hold the negatives or prints until you are ready to wash them. It is better to also have a tray for stop bath. I usually use six trays for film, including a prewash and a second water tray. When the film is ready to be moved from fix to water bath, light from a safe light instead of full room light maintains most of your night vision if more film is to be developed. Clothespins strung on a wire are often used for hanging sheet and roll film for drying. The countless You Tube darkroom videos can give you many more tips. Sometimes better is to consider the basic requirements of each step in processing, and adapt whatever you have at hand to satisfy those requirements.
I'll echo what others have said and give the Stearman Press SP-445 a try. I'm pretty new to LF and wanted to develop my own black & white negatives and without a good space for a darkroom the SP-445 seemed like the easiest way. The thought of it was a bit intimidating at first, but after reading a lot here and watching some videos it seemed easy enough. Decide what developer you want to use and check out Massive Dev Chart and pick a time. The first time I developed I wrote all of the steps down along with the times so I wouldn't get confused along the way. I've been using D76 1:1 and it worked well the first time so that's what I used each time after. Just ran out of it so now I'm going to give HC-110 a try. I'm now tempted to shoot some color film and develop it myself.
I'll second (third? Fourth?) the SP-445. Patterson tank + 6 sheet reel from 20th Century Camera is also nice, and pairs well with a grafmatic.
I use an app called "Film Developer Pro", available for Android and iOS for timing. It's a little fiddly the first time you use it, but once you figure it out, it's very easy to set up a full processing chain that you can re-use later.
Learn to compound your own Developers, such as D23 or D76, stop baths from vinegar, plane fixers to more modern types, and HCL.
This is simple, though you'll have to invest in Chemicals at the start, but many can be had off the supermarkets shelves, like, Borax 20 Mule, Baking soda, Pool additives, and many others.
Beer/wine making shops/supply houses also carry important chemicals that can be had for a song, and the rest you can buy from Photographers Formulary, Aircraft Chemicals, etc.
By the way, Photographer's Formulary will be taking several weeks off, starting at the end of 26 march, 2021, if I read the message they sent out, correctly, but their materials are also sold at Amazon, Freestyle Cameras, etc.
One advantage of mixing your own D76 is, unlike the prepackaged Kodak stuff, there are no preservatives in the mix, and generally, the resulting negatives are 'better', at least in some of our estimates.
A Lee Pricision gunpowder beam scale will give down to one tenth of a single grain (there are 7000 grains to a U.S. pound measure) but some do no like the "cheap" look and materials.
Personally, I use a RCBS beam powder scale, which has the same one tenth grain limitation, but is no much bother at all.
You may find or already have, one of these or a digital that can get into the smallest amounts of a gram or, the even smaller grain, so pay attention to the tare function and if possible, have a small, standard weight set to double check the accuracy before using and during set-ups.
If you can find one of the later addition of the Morgan & Morgan binders, grab it, as it has much for you to learn about Analog Photography Chemistry, of past days.
I suggest you first learn D76 for film, and Ansco 130, regular for FB Prints, etc, as you may like the results so well, you do no want to try alternatives for your work.
Best of Luck and Godspeed to you and all,
Eli
its easy enough to DIY!
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