Colour Film Processing @ Home

[Raffay]

Hello All,

First, I would like to thank all forum members for their support and guidance on numerous issues that I have faced and facing while I continue to shoot LF - and LF I will

Ever since I started exploring film, I was told that B&W film can be developed at home but Colour will not be possible as the process involves more chemicals (which will be hard to find in Pakistan) and more importantly the temperature cannot be maintained without proper equipment. I was quite put off, as back at that time I thought without colour there is no photography. But, I guess due to the limitation, I started B&W and now I have realised that nothing can beat B&W

However, I still feel that there are times when you want to shoot in colour, hence this post. I would appreciate if anyone out there can guide me on this and if there is hope for me then I would like to know about it. I know this is too early for me to explore colour, as I am currently struggling to have a single decent picture taken in B&W (not my fault mostly, more to do foggy film that I have). In all probability, I will come around testing colour after a few months of successfully shooting B&W, but just wanted to know if it would be possible or not; and if somebody, other than an expert or with unlimited resources, has done it in some simple fashion at home that I can replicate.

Cheers
Raffay

[EOTS]

Hello Raffay,

for color processing, good solutions are for example a Jobo CPE2 (cheaper and smaller) or Jobo CPP2 (larger and more accurate),
which measure/control the configurable temperature (normally 38°).
They should be available on the used market (Ebay etc.).

You put the LF film in drums (for example 25xx drums) in darkness and can then process using daylight with this machines.
The machines will automatically rotate the drums, but you will have to start/stop the rotation and put in / put out chemicals at the right time.

Chemical processes are called E6 (for transparencies) and C41 (for color negatives).
Regarding chemicals, the simplest solutions are the Tetenal Kits (3-bath).
For C41, the Fuji Hunt X-Press Kit is also recommendable (advantage is seperate Bleach / Fix).
For E6, the Fuji 3-bath Kit is no longer available (but an excellent 6-bath Kit is available).

I'm have no knowledge about Pakistan, perhaps you can order the Kits somewhere in the region
or import it somehow, for example from Russia or EU?

Best regards,
Martin

[vinny]

Flickr.com do it yourself color group. All the images there have been processed by the people who shot the film. Q&a there too.

[polyglot]

There are lots of threads about this on APUG. C41 (negative) is very easy and forgiving, actually and kits are very readily available; E6 (chromes) is a bit more difficult and requires better temperature control.

There's a set of instructions/explanations in the FAQ in my signature; that should give you an idea of what you need to get.

[EOTS]

Here's a video where you can see how the CPE2 works:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr3KFa0pLbI

There are other YouTube videos, showing how C41 can also be rolled "by hand",
but honestly I would prefer at least the CPE2 ...

[Light Guru]

Color film is actually just about as easy to process at home as B&W. You just need to pay attention to temperature at all steps not just the developer.

Number of different chemicals does not need to be more then b&w this kit is a three chemical set up.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...s_Kit_for.html

You also do not need a expensive jobo to develop color film. Here is an arrival about an easy and inexpensive way to keep all the chemicals at the proper temperature.
http://www.lamarlamb.com/On-Film/Fil...5069&k=3S3mGWP
He has more types of chemicals but not all color processing kits require that many.

[algarzai]

i have just finished developing my first E6 batch. 10 slides of 4x5 in Fuji Hunt chrome 6x kit. i have found the process loose as opposed to B&W. what i mean by this is that you are not given a certain time for a certain temp. you are just given 6-8 minutes @ 37-39 degrees or something around those lines. so i used 6:30 @ 38 deg cel.
1
My CPP turned out to be defective or not able to heat up to 38 or above. it does not heat water. so i started the process with the screen saying 39 and ended with it saying 34! but it all went well. although it was an out of control process.

what i am let down by is the Jobo. it only heats water but not cool it. you have to provide it cold water. I would assume that Islamabad is hotter than Riyadh. water comes out of the tab above 40 degrees in summer. Jobo is useless in such conditions. i had to connect it to a water cooler (similar to the ones you see at mosques of you have ever been to Saudi) the water cooler supplies @ 10 degrees. you need a big one to run a black and white process and keep it at 20.

I would recommend buying a smallest Jobo unit that can carry an expert drum. use it only for agitation. Use a temperature controlled faucet to control the water bath. keep your eyes on few mercury thermometer. the first developer and the color developer are very temp critical so put them in those bottles.

if you don't mind hand agitation you don't need a Jobo at all.

[photobymike]

Hello Raffay

two words..... TETENAL!!!! They are big in Europe ... easy easy easy..... oops three words..... dont forget to use distilled water for best results......

[Jim Andrada]

Yes - my biggest complaint about the Jobo is the lack of a cooler. Water in Tucson in Summer is very warm - maybe not 40 degrees but still too warm for B&W (Maybe almost right for color though)

The advice I got for this problem was to fill one or two plastic bottles with water and freeze them and then put them in the Jobo - the heater will heat the otherwise cooled water to the correct temperature and the temperature should be good for the relatively short period needed. And you could have a few extra bottles frozen and swap them out if they melt too fast.

[Ari]

The Tetenal C-41 kit can be ordered from B&H and other suppliers, and it is as easy as B&W.
You need three containers, a thermometer and a stirring rod.
You can use any method of developing that you like: trays, rotary, tank, etc.
The instructions are clear and easy to follow.