Lets See Your Darkroom

[bob carnie]

I know Harmon makes paper 50 inch x100 ft. it is the size I use and we cut down the roll with a table saw in safelight.
I am pretty sure Kodak or Ilford or Agfa did make oversize paper in the past and I am sure you can trust his integrety about the size of print.
Today there is very little interest in these monster wet prints , basically because of the price we have to charge, 30x40 is my preferred size as it is as easy to make as 16x20 or 20x24.
Most of my clients are amatuers with passion and specific knowledge of topics of interest and dedicate long term projects recording on film what they know best.
For most labs the professional photographers are no longer a source of income, *Wedding * excepted.

I didn,t know that paper came in that size thats huge , the lecturer was the principle photographer in Adelaides festival theater for 20 yrs and so I assume he had a lot of integrety my contact with him was a WEA photography course My best remembered quote of his in regards to amatuers vs pros ( don,t ever put your selves down as amatuers it,s passion that creates great Photographs)

[bob carnie]

I think they feel that way on most days, they work very hard and can handle multiple tasks. We are blessed with a few good workers.

Is that a chain gang helping you out?

[photojunkie99@live.com]

wow, a lab that owns 2 lambdas !! one for smaller prints and one for larger prints is definitely not small potatoes.
wonder if you do tours around your lab and your darkroom so that one can see your
sophiscated set up with the 2 lambdas working side by side
are you the only lab in toronto that prints without using a paper processor ?
sure would love to see hand processing 48"x72" prints at work !!!

[bob carnie]

You did not read my post correctly

We have a 30 inch Lambda, for a job with a real budget attached we would use a sister lab to expose the paper on their 50 inch lambda for digital fiber or we would use our 8x10 durst for enlarger murals.

Where are you located? we do tours of the lab all the time.
We do use a RA4 paper processor for colour work and a Cannon 60inch for inkjet

48x72 inch prints hand processed is difficult and requires lots of chemicals as you can well imagine.

wow, a lab that owns 2 lambdas !! one for smaller prints and one for larger prints is definitely not small potatoes.
wonder if you do tours around your lab and your darkroom so that one can see your
sophiscated set up with the 2 lambdas working side by side
are you the only lab in toronto that prints without using a paper processor ?
sure would love to see hand processing 48"x72" prints at work !!!

[thart2009]

Darkroom under construction. The Saunders enlarger was free from a kind soul that saved it from the dumpster...! I had to drive from Ohio to Boston t pick it up, but I was happy to do that. Need to add sink and frame in the 8' x 17' room. Decide what to do, if anything, with the block walls. Can't wait to complete.

Just an update.. SLOWLY moving towards completion of my darkroom. My job seems to be getting in the way of construction and photography time. I am thankful for that though. Three recessed lights and 7 extra outlets added. Plumbing would have been complete except for the gaskets I missed (wet spot on the left). I need to finish up the insulation, add ventalation, then can start on the drywall.

[Bazz8]

yep it,s slow allright,
I just did the clear finish on my woodwork and a window one more coat of clear after a sand and then paint time,which was a bonus a painter 2 doors down decided to buy some paint at trade etc.
He declares how much do you want so yours truly walks out with 3x10 litre cans of paint left over from a job all are 3/4 full the best is one can is the top coat that goes over the thermopanel after it has been rendered and the colour is reasonable.
The other cans are kids room yellow (undercoat) the last a slightly darkish brown/grey so walls and cieling of the darkroom.
when done photo,s to come.
Darkroom layout I have maneged to fit in my 4mtr x11.9 mtr darkroom the following:
1.6x500x400deep stainless sink
1.8x450x140 low sink to be made and fibreglassed
1/ 12" paper processor 1.5 min duration for wet to dry print
1/ 20" processor 4.5 min wet to dry enlarger
1: durst 138s 5x7
1: durst D659 enlarger
Small bar fridge with my ilford anylser on it
took 2.5 hrs and many texta maks on the floor but I have managed to keep a 600mm walk space between both sides of the galley darkroom( or i have to go to jenny caig and loose 5-10kg
One more day then back to work then it will be real slow

[Bazz8]

Completed Painting Now to the fitout and plumbing as I have maked out all the locations the benches will be basic, then fit the wastes and underfloor plumbing
a advantage the room is 600 high above ground so bit of commando crawling to connect the pipes and I will be very happy.

[Louie Powell]

Here are a couple of shots of my space.

This is actually my third darkroom. The two earlier facilities were in our previous home. One was a tiny space tucked under the eaves in the attic, while the other was a much more spacious facility in the basement. When we built the new house (our 'retirement home'), I promised myself that I would have a nice space for my 'golden years'. But as my doctor says, the only thing golden about being a senior citizen is the color of your urine.

The counters are inexpensive commercial cabinetry from the home center. The enlarger station is framed into the corner to provide more structural strength. The ceiling in most of the darkroom is fairly low to work around a support beam, but the area over the enlarger is recessed to allow the head to move all the way to the top of the column.

The wet side sink is recycled from darkroom #2 and is made of wood covered with epoxy paint. Because the house drain is above the basement floor level, the sink drains into a reservoir that has a pump to move the gray water up to the ceiling level where it can flow down into the house drain.

I splurged on a film drying cabinet. It's made of MDF with a plexiglass insert in the door. There is a fan that moves air through a filter and into the cabinet, and a 200w incandescent light throws off enough heat to elevate the temperature in the cabinet enough to dry film in 15-20 minutes.

The entire space has positive pressure ventilation. I have a fan mounted in a box constructed between a couple of floor joists. Air is drawn into the box through a filter, and then the fan blows it into the darkroom. It enters above the enlarger, and there is a vent over the wet side sink to allow air to flow out. The beauty of that arrangement is that is I get a good exchange of air, and it is almost totally silent in the darkroom.

[Bazz8]

Nice setup Louie the film dryer is a beauty

[Paul O]

Not EXACTLY mine but a stock photo of my inflatable darkroom tent!