Anyone still work in the darkroom?

[photo_chick]

I finally had to deal with my chemicals yesterday that have been sitting since a few months after I got my DSLR at the end of 2005. Pondering the question...do I keep it set up? The one thing that makes me really want to is my Holga 120. It is a fun toy. Oh and then there is the pinhole camera I made...it is fun too. And the case of b&w 35mm film in my freezer!!!!

Does anyone here still actually use their darkroom?

 

[tinksdad]

Darkroom? What's a darkroom????

Did as a young adult then got out of it. Just took the film to a processing place. I like digital these days!! Just SOO much eaiser and faster.


But, as I ponder your question I have to admit to being in the dark a lot........... feel like a mushroom at times

 

[PhotobearSam]

I really wished I had one. I am thinking of adding one in my basement especially for enlargements. I might leave the film prcessing to the labs.

 

[AndrewWG]

Darkroom? What's a darkroom????

That makes me laugh because just today, I asked the girl at the local CVS photo dept. if I could send out slide film to be developed and she had no idea what I was talking about. I said "slides" "transparencies" "positives" anything I could think of for her to understand, but to no avail. I meant to ask how old she was cuz it wasn't all that long ago that slides were cool.... was it?

Andy

 

[boBQuincy]

I shut down my darkroom in 2001, when I bought my Canon D30 and turned away from film for good. In four moves across three states I had always had a darkroom since the 1970's but the digital world couldn't come soon enough for me. No more dodge & burn, only to see the results either minutes or many minutes later, depending on if I was working in B&W or color.
This was real *power*, enabling me to finally edit my images the way I had always dreamed of.

But I still miss the smell of the chemicals...

 

[photo_chick]

I don't miss my cat stepping into the fixer! That happened when i was working on my final project for a class. The cat was promptly and unhappily thrown into the wash!

I am one of the strange people who actually likes to process film. I have been called a freak by just about everyone I went to school with for this.


Now come on, who does not love waving a tiny dot on the end of a bamboo skewer around to dodge something???? Then setting the skewer down and forgetting about it until you are in total darkness again and it stabs your hand!

I went out and got some more film for my Holga so I will be still using my darkroom for a while longer!

 

[0bli0]

i still develop several rolls of film per month in my laundryroom (or living room - when i feel like it). i've made it so i can black out the upstairs bathroom for loading, but i also have a small loading tent and i often use rondinax daylight loading tanks anyway (for both 35mm and 120) if i'm not using a paterson (depends on how i'm agitating and if i'm pushing).

i don't enlarge them, however - i scan directly to .TIF files and import into Aperture. i can then print them out or send them to the lab as required. although it's not nearly as nice as printing, i'm still very happy with the quality.

 

[cryssi]

speaking of darkroom...does photo paper have a shelf life? I have a lot, and it's all about 7 years old...that sounds like a long time, but it doesn't really seem like it's been that long since my photography class...lol

 

[photo_chick]

It does have a shelf life. Though I did stop working in the darkroom when I was pregnant and did not get to do anything for about 3 years. My paper was fine still. Not sure of actual shelf life timelines though. I had some at that time that was at least 5 years old that I had no problems with. It was Kodak polycontrast.