Still have the darkroom?

<p>I'm curious. How many here still have their darkroom, still love the wet process, still read the film and printing forums, but have to admit that almost everything they do now is digital? I have this vision of using my classic cameras, from 16mm to 4x5, and getting back to the darkroom someday, but I also know it's entirely possible it will never happen. Anybody else a member of this club?</p>

<p>Nope. Being in a generation given little exposure (no pun intended) to film, I almost feel surprised that I now do almost everything in my color darkroom (I scan for proofing negatives for focus and content larger than contacts). My school has a B+W darkroom which I use when I choose to. Digital gave me the feeling of harsh boring electronics, while using which I seemed to take thousands of terrible pictures for the few good shots. With film I feel like everything is moving comfortably, without rush. I take one picture and look ahead to the next. The look of fresh chromes on the light table after a semester of B+W work was really what got me hooked. I took a stab in the dark building my own color darkroom and I haven't stopped since.</p>

<p>Me neither. I just finished using my darkroom, too. Only B&W - I don't think I could be exacting enough to do my own color. </p>

<p>Yes, I have a darkroom. I develop and scan - no wet printing. 35 mm and 4x5. B&W and C-41 (although chemicals are getting harder to obtain). A darkroom is easy to set up if you live in one of those parts of the world where houses have basements.</p>

<p>Never....spent too many hours in the dark, smelly room. Never would go back to the chains of film.</p>

<p>Yes. I keep HC-110, D-76, and Rodinal for film. I use Dektol and sometimes Ilford Multigrade. I develop and print 35mm, 120, and 4x5. Most use RC paper, but I do have an electric print dryer for the occasional fiber base paper. A couple of commercial jobs per year pays to replenish darkroom supplies so my own personal work is essentially free. I am retired so I have plenty of time. I take photo jobs on my own time.</p>

<p>Yes, just haven't had much time for the wet processing lately, other than a little 4x5 tri-x on some Ilford MG paper.</p>

<p>Happily developing and printing away. The nice film scanners mean that I don't have to look at contact sheets with a loupe anymore, and the little prints I do on an inkjet. For 8x10's and 11x14s I love the enlarger. Dodging and burning seems to be more effective in a wet darkroom than with photoshop. Also, while grain aliasing is not a problem for 4x6's, for bigger prints the wet process is the best way to escape that problem.</p>

<p>I love my film cameras and love using my darkroom kit. I have had a similar problem with digital lately; it hasn't been the digicams, but the web publishing that I have found to be very time consuming. Over the past month, I have worked on building up my own little online store to help market my photographs. The website that's open to the public now is a basic version that I made a few weeks ago. Since then, I've had maybe four distinct subsequent versions pushed through the computer. I got the page load times down to a third of what the basic version had. I ended up having to hack out many computer application conflicts and specifics that required additional coordination. Maybe in a few weeks I'll be ready to really get it out there and do a better job of competing.</p>

<p>So, yes, I, too, am missing the darkroom. At one point I had to go in there and make a few prints just to work on something else. It's very easy to burn ten hours hacking on this ridiculous keyboard. But, if it's not done, that's just one more avenue to the customer that will remain closed. </p>

<p>If only we could just make the print, package it, and hand it to King Midas, the client. If that ever happens, my concierge will let you know. </p>

<p>Good luck to you. I have found, though, that when the darkroom gets bogged down there are only two cures: cleanup the lab space and develop another roll of film. Mix up and store some solution is one way to prep for a later session. Something, anything, in the direction of the objective is better than no progress at all. Good luck. J.</p>

<p>Used to have a full color darkroom. Now what little B&W developing I do is with a changing bag and some daylight tanks. Everything after personal or commercial (for color negs) developing is scanned and digital from that point on.</p>

<p>Full wet system with 2 Beselers. 120 & 35mm</p>

<p>I think photo shop is where I buy my film and psper</p><div></div>

<p>I do my own B&W development with a dark bag but I do have a walk in closet and an Omega enlarger 8mm-4x5 that I still use from time to time. mostly just scan with an Epson 4490 because the Walk in can only be used at night at the moment because of light leaks. I just moved into here from a house that I had a full darkroom in but in the divorce I just got the walk in..:(</p>

<p>I do use all types of B&W film and developers. only send out my color mostly Slides...</p>

<p>Call me old school but that is me.</p>

<p>No, I do practically no digital photography. I still use film and suspect I always will do. Increasingly my photography is medium format, using mainly Mamiya TLRs.</p>

<p>Still have and use my b&w darkroom; and I use color film (negatives/slides) which I send to a pro lab for processing and printing. I do not have a digital camera nor do I plan to buy one any time in the near future. </p>

<p>Still use the darkroom. All B&W prints are done through the wet process. I shoot a few color rolls a year (4-5) out of the 50+ rolls I do a year, and those are processed elsewhere and scanned by me. If color prints are needed, I turn elsewhere. I scan B&W negatives for proofing and web viewing as the Internet is a tool to show many people the same image without making hundreds of prints. I dislike scanning as it leaves me in front of the computer too long. More automated scanners cost more money, and it's not worth it for me at the moment. I treasure my B&W prints made in the darkroom.</p>

<p>On a good week, I'll spend 3-4 days in the darkroom. Length varies, but at least an hour. If I'm busy, 1-2 days and it's usually me tidying up or sitting in there looking at negatives, thinking about ideas for pictures.</p>

<p>Conrad, by digital do you scanning or do you mean a digital camera? I think you mean the latter. I do not own any functional digital cameras.</p>

<p>I still have and use my darkroom. No digital stuff yet, and no plans for a DSLR either. I do see a something like the Canon G10 coming soon though.</p>

<p>Yes, I am a darkroom rat. I have my Darkroom Cookbook and all the little bottles of chems to keep me happy. I do very little digital; in fact I do not own a digital camera and have barely used one. It just isn't my thing. When I do a wedding, the lab burns a CD from the film and that is what is handed to the bride & groom. B&W images from film are done on a contact sheet for the B&G. I do some scanning for magazines, but virtually no digital. I guess you could say I'm just at the fringe of being a hybrid. I am very happy to load my 35's and Bronica and Rollei with FILM and go out shooting. Love my K-64 as well! Digital? Never! They'll never take me alive!</p>

<p>Relax Jim you are with friends.</p>

<p>I still shoot/develop 6x7, then go digital for printing. Guess you could say I have a semi-darkroom.</p>

<p>Have a darkroom setup which I got AFTER my first DSLR. It is enjoyable, but I find myself not having enough time, and the disposal of chemicals is a problem because our house is on a leach field, so I store everything to dispose of it the one day a year that we have a hazardous waste collection. Anybody has a suggestion, I am open. I am considering just getting rid of the enlargers (Durst 1200 and Beseler 23) and jut developing film and scanning....</p>

<p>I have build a new darkroom again one year ago after moving out to another home. I added some new equipment, like a Jobo processor, to develope my own chromes as it is done everytime fewer (and worse!) by the commercial labs in Spain. I do BW printing on RC and fiber paper (Ilford VC) with my Durst M805 and some Ilfochrome. Though Ilfochrome paper and chemicals are hard to find the here, as it is not imported to Spain anymore. I scan my chromes or negatives for previewing and sending to family and friends by email or putting them on the web (though very few). I like film and do not consider changing to digital. I am a hobbyist, so time is not really an issue to me. Additionalyy, I have the impression that people do not worry to wait a bit before getting their photos.</p>

<p>Ben</p>

<p>Everything except fixer can go down the drain with a septic system.... To get rid of the fixer put a piece of steel wool in the bottom of the bucket drain of the liquid and just save the sludge at the bottom for Haz Mat.</p>

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<p>Like Peter Dalton, I process B+W, C-41 & E-6 from 35mm to 4x5, then scan and print digitally. I have a fridge in the garage that is dedicated to film storage!</p>

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<p>I am still using a wet darkroom. I am part of a group where there are several of us. We refer to our prints, jokingly, as "real" photographs.</p>