developing film

[elizabeth_swarm]

<p>I live in viginia, in the mclean; falls church area. I am looking to use my antique camera, but before i buy the film I would like to know of a decent, affordable shop where I can have the film developed. Any suggestions?</p>

[cliffmanley]

Your Bathroom!

[riffeym]

<p><em>Your Bathroom!</em></p>

<p>I second that!</p>

<p>Mike : D</p>

[cliffmanley]

It's the cheapest place around with the BEST SERVICE ! Fast turn around too! Then get a cheap film scanner.

[mark_medin]

<p>What size film does your antique camera take? Also, if the lens is equally antique, I wouldn't shoot anything but black and white film.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>If you shoot color (C-41 negative film is advised, more latitude and ability to make it into B&W if you desire), take it to any surviving Walgreens or such that still have an in-store development service. Larger than 35mm is a problem. Look for a camera store that supplies student photography programs.</p>

<p>If B&W, you need to buy a "changing bag", some "daylight tanks", developer, stop and fixer and do it yourself. Any kind of local service will be done the same way and probably be very expensive.<br /> You'll need to either get a film scanner of some kind or have the above store make CDs or DVDs from your film in either case.</p>

<p>By the way, film (and the tasks associated with it) is not cheap now, and never has been really cheap, if you take inflation into account.</p>

[david_smith110]

<p>Or you can develop film with instant coffee, washing soda and vitamen C. Im not joking.</p>

<p><a href="http://caffenol.blogspot.com/">http://caffenol.blogspot.com/</a></p>

[Rick_van_Nooij]

<p>I saw that a few weeks ago. Coffee Developer sounds interesting....is there also a common-household-item fixer formula?</p>

 

[matthew_rusbarsky]

<p><a href="http://www.dodgechrome.com/">Dodge/Chrome</a> over by Sibley Hospital is one of the best labs in the East. A friend of mine drives from Baltimore to get all of his color large format stuff developed there. For cheap, try the local Wamart and INSIST that they send the film out. Walmart sends the Film to Fuji on their dime. </p>

[User_4525289]

<p>Elizabeth,<br>

C41 can be developed everywhere in Costco or CVS. I know for sure that in McLean VA you can find ones. Target also does C41. B/W silver processing is better to do yourself, as a matter of fact it is a very fun stuff to do. Although I am very positive that between downtown DC, Montgomery county MD and Northern Virginia you can get darkroom processing lab. Price may be very high.... </p>

[darin_cozine]

<p>CHEAP Color film processing will be kind of a roulette. Some places are not good about changing their chemicals or servicing their equipment. CVS, Rite-Aid, Target, Cosco, etc..<br>

Keep trying until you get one that you get good results from.<br>

If you have film that is important to you, like a wedding, etc, take the film to a local camera shop and have them develop it (they usually deal directly with a pro lab) .</p>

 

[Argenticien]

<p>Over 20 years ago, I used to visit Fuller & d'Albert in Fairfax, a proper independent old-school photo store. Incredibly, they seem to be still in business (simplistic assumption based on them having a web site). I no longer live near them and do not know if they even offer processing services at this point--my last visit having been perhaps 5 years ago, just looking for used kit--but it might be worth a look. I do second the suggestions above for developing in the sink at home and scanning, though.</p>

[cliffmanley]

*CVS, Rite-Aid, Target, Cosco, etc (None of them do 120 film)

** take the film to a local camera shop (there are few of them left anymore, local might be 100's of miles away or even in the next state!)

 

If you look at all of the old posts of Ms. Swarm, they all are talking about 120 cameras, so telling her to go to CVS or Wally World wont do her any good.

 

Simply learn to do them yourself! These color shots I developed at home C41. Now why don't YOU try it!<div></div>

[matthew_rusbarsky]

<p>Wally World does do 120, they just don't know it. Insist that they mail it out. It goes to Fuji. They know what to do with it.</p>

[cliffmanley]

<p>Kinda sounds like Orwellian double think. Wally World does Not Do it. They can mail it out, but so can you. Why do you need to take it to a middle man to put it in the mail for you? Insist they mail it out, <em><strong>but then in your mind Think that They do it!</strong></em></p>

[ken_l2]

<p>Try <a href="http://www.penncamera.com/locations.html">Penn Camera</a> - there's a store in the Tysons Corner area.</p>

[matthew_rusbarsky]

<p>"They can mail it out, but so can you. Why do you need to take it to a middle man to put it in the mail for you?"<br>

"Cause the middle man (Wally) pays the postage.</p>

[elizabeth_swarm]

<p>Thanks everybody! Maybe i should try it by myself, would it be hard and expensive to start though? just wondering</p>

[User_4525289]

<p>To start BW yourself just for development would be around $75-100, may be $30-50 if you opted for cheaper components. That includes tank, developer, fixer ( mandatory); stop bath , rinse solution and archival solution (optional). But OK scanner would be $350+, if you opted for projection prints and your own dark room that goes much higher.</p>

[cliffmanley]

To do B&W the developer is about $6 to make a gallon, the fixer is $5. If you go to the pool store you can get chlorine reducer enough to make a gallon of fixer for about .69 cents. and as mentioned above you can develop with coffee combos. The tank and reels I have seen at yard sales for 50 cents or a buck. A brand new stainless steel tank with two 35mm reels is about $24.00 and the 120 reel is 6 or 7 bucks. But you can find them at yard sales and flea markets for nothing. I just bought an Epson 3170 scanner that will do slides, 35mm film and 120 medium format negatives as well as prints at a yard sale for $1.00. Works perfectly. So you can do it very cheap if you look around, a little more if you go ebay, and even more if you buy new stuff.

 

There might even be someone on here that would give you a can and reel just to see you do it and have some fun.

[elizabeth_swarm]

<p>i would have to learn how first</p>

[cliffmanley]

With a responce like that, obviously you never will. Call around some of the camera stores and find out who can develop or mail out your film. I'm really not sure you will ever even do that. What camera did you end up buying?

[elizabeth_swarm]

<p>Well actually i am trying to find a class that teaches me about the darkroom and how to develop film and i am looking to use my camera. So i think you are getting the wrong idea about me but in your defense i just dont know hoe long it will take</p>

[cliffmanley]

You don't need a class to do film. You just need a can, a spool, some chemicals, and a clock. You pour the chemicals in the can for X amount of time and pour it back out. You don't need a class for that, do you? You posted several posts last year about cameras that you were going to buy, but we don't know what you got. If you only have the one that was broken that you emailed me about fixing, then you still don't have a working camera. Those were your last posts from over a year ago. So how far off am I ? You don't seem motivated enough to go to any trouble learning anything, but I might be wrong. If you really want to learn, then this is the place to do it. You don't need any other class other than the lessons you will learn here. Go to the film processing forum and find out how to do it, then do it. Ask your camera questions here and we can help. All of that depends on your motivation and input. We can't do much more than that.