Still have the darkroom?

<p>I agree with Larry, bury me with at least a roll of film. If the camera is still working, then find some kid who's interested and give it to him along with anything else that may keep one more person going. Goodness sakes don't waste them in my grave.</p>

<p>MB</p>

<p>I have never understood why it is said that only the image matters, the process to the final image is not important. For me, nothing could be further from the truth. Which would you be willing to lay down the big bucks for: an Adams print done completely digital, or one that was hand printed by Adams himself. The whole journey to the creation of the work matters a great deal to me. I enjoy the interaction with my film, from loading it in the camera to processing and finally the hours spent tweaking literally by hand, my final product. I can be proud of these hand made prints. Working with film seems so much more "genuine", if you know what I mean. Much more so than if i had created it with pretty much the same process which i use to make a spread-sheet. It seems we have gradually and almost completely removed the human element from making a photograph. How do we take a photo with a film camera? You cradle the camera in your hands and bring it to your face. You can smell the film if it is just freshly loaded, and you can actively participate in every frame, if you have a manual film advance. How do we photograph with a digital? You hold it at arms length in front of you, literally and metaphorically removing yourself from the photograph. This is only my opinion folks. It's not that I'm anti-digital, rather that I am pro-film. When I can no longer get film and chemicals and paper to create something with my hands, I will give up photography.</p>

<p>All I run now is some film. I have everything for printing ready to go, but haven't printed in a while. Eventually when I'm ready, I'll do a big printing. All HP5 in HC-110 from the Hasselblads.</p>

<p>Part of me is in great sympathy with Bill. There is great joy in creating something physical, be it via woodworking, metal working, or wet process photography. Digital techniques have taken over just about everything. I can design a part with a CAD system then have it go through a CAM system and on to a machine. With very little human interaction, a part pops out the other end. I enjoy that, but I also enjoy turning the cranks on the machine and actually using skill and experience to make something. You get to hold and heft the raw materials, and the finished part has more value (at least to the person who made it) than the same part produced entirely by automated processes. The hand made part contains more abstract "work" than the automated part, thus the greater value. I can make a really nice inkjet print, one you'd be hard pressed to tell from a fiber wet process print from a few inches away. If it fell on the floor and got stepped on I wouldn't care a bit. I'd just print another one. Nor would I ever pay much for an inkjet print. OTOH, when something happens to one of my fiber prints, that's a whole 'nuther story. Especially if the materials used to print it are no longer available. Or worse, if the negative is no longer exists- oddly, of the two or three negs I've lost over the years, those were the ones I valued the most. I have no digital files that I consider of equal value to my better negs (not that I have all that many).</p>

<p>About three years ago, I finished off the bonus room above the garage into a hobby studio, and I decided I was going to incorporate a darkroom. I had access to a darkroom in high school and college, and after 25 years, I realized I missed it.</p>

<p>I recently bought a film scanner with the intent of being able to upload pictures onto the web, submit photos electronically for contests, etc. However, I have found that it is a fantastic tool for proofing negatives. This allows one to discover problems with the negative (e.g., out of focus images, scratches, pinholes, etc.) and also play with cropping without wasting a lot of time (and paper) in the darkroom.</p>

<p>Never had it, mainly because of space constraints. In my old days I had access to a friend's one. Then I stick to a professional lab, where I can speak with people, tell them exactly what I need and get it done. I enjoy a lot the process of shooting, but I prefer to have the developing and printing done by somebody who can do better than me. This is one of the reasons I never moved to digital as well (please don't take this as a film to digital statement), I am an hobbist photographer and I prefer to spend the time I dedicate to my hobby lugging around with a camera, nowadays giving a chance of life to old gear, than doing processing of my pictures (either wet or digital). This is the reason why I shoot mainly slides.</p>

<p>Yes, I still have a darkroom, and do everything from 16mm (Minolta 16) up to 11x14. My most recent work on it has been to get inexpensive temperature control equipment on E-bay so I can develop my own large format color negatives.</p>

<p>Have recently (five years ago) gotten back into photography after a twenty five year absence. For me, there was no real choice but do a darkroom. Too old, too busy and just not interested enough in digital to go through the learning curve and the expense. With a Pentax 67 and an Omega Dll I can do anything I have the urge to do. I haven't gone to color work, strictly B&W, and I do 5x7s of the grandkids for my wife's albums, and 16x20s for the all the other stuff. Occasionally I do film for friends in need, as I recently developed and printed some 30 year old Verichrome Pan, and some 35mm from time to time, but by and large it is the MF in black and white. Someone, I'm not sure who, once said "the heart and soul of black and white photography is in the darkroom." I totally agree.</p>

<p><em>"the heart and soul of black and white photography is in the darkroom." I totally agree.</em><br>

I agree as well. I shoot mainly slides, and B&W once in a while, therefore I can live with a pro lab and without a darkroom. Should I become more serious in B&W I believe there is no better way than to control the whole process yourself, from the picture taking to the actual print.</p>

<p>Yes, I still have a darkroom and I use it every so often.</p>

<p>At yesterdays gig I took an old Rolleiflex camera (from the 1950's) to exercise it and ran Pan F through it. It's an option I present to each client that hires me.</p>

<p><br /> I use an old Omega B22 my parents gave me when I was in high school back in the early 1960's. I subsequently (in the 1970's) bought a Dichro color head that I use for vari contrast B&W papers. I only print B&W in my darkroom anymore and the max size I do is 16x20.</p>

<p>Yes, and it's because of the digital revolution that I do. I have been doing B&W for 32 years, but until I bought a house, I had nowhere to put a darkroom. After I bought the house, I found a Beseler 23C with two heads (both condenser and diffusion) on the Bay for the princely sum of $50. I now shoot 100 rolls a year (using old folders and view cameras) and print them myself. Sheer joy!<br>

And unlike many of my film user friends, I don't hate digital. In fact I use it all the time. But there is nothing that compares to a well-made B&W print on fiber based paper. And if you make it yourself, it becomes a work of art as unique as a snowflake - no two prints are ever quite the same. If you ever get the chance, go to a show of prints by the masters (Adams, Weston etc.) where they have multiple prints of the same image. Each print is completely individual and they always look better than the prints you'll see in a book.</p>

<p>Yes. I spend nearly all day in front of the computer at work and can't stand spending my free time there also. I love moving around in the darkroom and the "retro" feel of working with a medium that goes against the trend. Mt only worry is that film and printing papers will be harder to obtain in the future.</p>

<p>Yes indeed. Still do B&W and Colour. Rather mess around in darkroom<br>

than sit in front of computer screen. Guess its about 50 years in<br>

the darkroom for me now, ha !<br>

Best regards,<br>

/Clay</p>

<p>My darkroom, measuring a comfortable 8x6 feet, is in my garage and I develop black and white film weekly and make prints weekly with my wonderful Saunders 670 MXL dichroic enlarger as well, still. It is such a joy to still be indulging in these processes!</p>

A few years ago the university I once worked for surplused all of it's darkroom stuff. I got all the old gear I used for many years and love it. Still shoot about a half dozen film cameras and have more film than food in my freezer. In a different room is a computer dedicated mostly to photoshop use and I get much mileage out of that and a couple of printers. A separate camera bag holds 3 digital bodies. I hope my next purchase will be an RB67 and a 180 to go on it. Right tool for the right job. I'm just glad I enjoy it all. Rick H.

<p>FWIW, all these wonderful responses have motivated me to clean off the darkroom counter so I can actually use it again. There's film in the fridge, makings for developer in the chemical bottles and cameras on the shelf! My printing paper is probably toast, but the RIT campus store isn't that far away.</p>

<p>You go Conrad...... now go get wet. as for the Paper you can try it but I bet it is toast....</p>

<p>A couple of weeks ago I posted that my beloved Darkroom which I had installed in a large walk-in closet in my home was going away. I was moving to a new place where they didn't have large walk in closets. It was really painful taking my darkroom apart an putting everything in boxes. It took me 5 years to set up that darkroom where evrything was at my finger tips.<br>

However, the place where I moved to is larger than where I use to live. I plan to set up my darkroom in one of the bedrooms that has the smaller window. Actually now I have much more room and don't have to be cramped in an air less closet.<br>

All I have to do is find some way to block out the sole window in that room and I'm good to go. There is a bathroom close by that I can use for water. Two large desks is all I need . One to place the enlarger on and the other for the trays or processor.</p>

 

<p>I moved from a house with my darkroom in the basement to an area of the country that doesn't have basements. The ground is just too hard and would require lots of dynamite and a lot of upset neighbors.</p>

<p>I bought a house about 8 months ago and drove my wife absolutely nuts. I wouldn't buy a house that didn't have a space for my darkroom. The house we bought had a huge spa bathroom and a small laundry room. My wife hated the spa bathtub so I made the bathroom small and the laundry room larger. Put in plumbing and built a darkroom sink and countertop. Here's a pic of contact prints drying over the sink I built. <a href=" </p>

<p>I hope I never have to go digital with photography.</p>