Is a Darkroom Really Needed for LF?

[ike k]

Hello,

 

 

I'm about to start my large format as i'm expecting my camera is on

it's way so questions guys, do you guys do your own developing and

print for B&W? i don't have a dark room but i might be setting one

soon with a friend of mine who's interesting also in LF, we just have

to figure the space first at my or her place.Anyway since i check

around pro lab here ( i live in orange county, california) who does

4x5 and it turns that they only do slide processing and for others

like B&W i have to go to A&I in LA and that's the closest one i

found.So here's my dilemma, do you think it is practical to send out

(mail processing and develop)film for B&W ? do you guys think it's a

must to have a dark room for a LF photogarphy? consider the cost

(either do your own or get pro lab at A&I to do it) i don't know if i

could get to B&W yet.Well any opinion will be appreciated.

 

 

Ike

[Troll]

The Photo Factory in San Diego has done a great job for me, and their prices seem quite reasonable.

[alex_hawley]

Ike,

 

Welcome to LF. Do yourself a favor and set up your own B&W darkroom. Doesn't have to be anything fancy. Most people make do with whatever inventive (or is it makeshift)setup they can come up with.

 

Since I don't have a 4x5 enlarger yet, I'm doing 4x5 contact prints. If you want to go the contact print route, you can get by with a standard incandescent light bulb for your exposure source.

 

Cheers,

Alex

[david_lazarus]

Well I would say to start out with a Jobo system if you don't have room for a darkroom as doing your own B+W is nice. As for color a lab is the best way if you don't spend a lot color chems and extras. But A lot of LF guys do there own. The only problem sending out to a lab is the chance they won't get it right and thats one more thing to go wrong. As for the OC area there are some good labs there, but I can't remember where. I am sure some of the others can help.

David.

[j._salty]

There's Photomation Photo Lab in Anaheim and according to their website "We offer professional E-6,C-41, and Black and White film processing of 35mm, 120, 4x5" and 8x10� film, available in three hours every working day."

I've never personally used them, but they were highly recommended by a friend a few years back.

[john_kasaian1]

Ike, Welcome to LF! I don't have a darkroom, but I can make my 4 year old daughter's bathroom dark enough. Developing B+W film isn't rocket science, unless you want it to be. Like most things LF, you can get as esoteric as your heart desires---and that really is part of the fun. Check out http://www.largeformatphotography.info/unicolor/ for a great article on using the unicolor drum for B&W film processing. I got one with the base, a couple of drums, a spare gasket, and a box full of goodies for $40 on ebay. It simplifies developing sheet film but you could just as easily get a set of $12.00 plastic trays and have at it---it all depends on how much time you like to spend in the dark(or you could shoot ortho and work under a red light) Contact prints are pretty straightforeward, but then again you might want to explore more exotic alternative processes some day---it all depends on your tastes. If you want to enlarge, the old Omega D series are a very economical entry into 4x5 enlarging. I don't shoot much 4x5, but I found an old $70 D-II that was too good of a deal to pass up(and I wasn't even looking for it!) so it pays to keep your eyes open. I think dark room equiptment is pretty cheap now that most people are turning to digital and dumping traditional wet dark room equiptment---all the better for us! I fear that someday all this equiptment will become scarce as hen's teeth and the cost of used stuff might be prohibitive (and new stuff might be even a more rare commodity) so if you can get good gear cheap, I'd say jump on it! My 2-cents----------Cheers!

[domenico_foschi]

A&I charges $ 2.70 a sheet for 4 x 5 .

I were you i would set a board over your bath tub and develop the

negatives yourself .

Next step , i would seriously think about building a darkroom .

Large format is a bigger commitment to photography than 35

mm. and you need your haven where you can be creative .

Here in whittier there is Photographer space , which has very

reasonable rates for a professional darkroom .

If you are not too far from here , you might want to consider this

option .

Are you a student ? What about schools ?

[robert_a._zeichner1]

I think it was a quote out of Aaron Suskind's "The Amateur Photographer's Handbook" that read "Taking photographs and not having a darkroom is a bit like owning a leash without the puppy". Something like that, anyway. You get the point. Being able to control the process beyond exposing the film is easily half if not more of the total picture. Perhaps it would be a bit ambitious to plan on enlarging right away, as this can cost some money, but the business of processing your own film (b&w) is fairly simple, cheap and will help you in learning how to capture the raw information needed to make successful prints later on. A darkened bathroom might be all you need except of course, for some trays, chemicals, bottles and a few other incidental items that should be cheap to procure.

[john_kasaian1]

Hello Ike, ....then again, theres Polaroid Type 55 P/N!

[don_wallace1]

One of the main reasons I got into 4x5 was so I could develop each negative differently, if necessary. I think that developing your own is an essential part of the experience. At present, I don't have a permanent darkroom so I use a small bathroom. For 4x5 negatives, I use a Jobo processor, a CPE-2 with lift that I bought second hand for about 200 bucks. WELL worth the investment. For prints, I cover the small window and hang a black curtain over the door. Easy.

 

I actually prefer tray development and when I get my own darkroom built, I will probably go back to that method. Also, my Jobo cannot handle 8x10 negs and the one that can is a lot more expensive. So for 8x10 negs, I darken the room and develop in trays. I still use the Jobo but just for keeping the chemicals at the right temperature.

 

Don Wallace

[bill_howell2]

When I lived in the city of Orange about five years ago there was a fellow who had a lab on Collins Avenue near Main Street call the Black and White Lab. His name was Bob McIntosh and he did very good work at reasonable prices. Look in the yellow pages.

Bill

[john_gerndt1]

I worked in a community darkroom when I was out that way. It was run by the county recreation department. Maybe there is one still around.

 

If you make do with a bathroom as darkroom be sure to use the exhaust fan (earplugs) and test its light tight nature by sitting in "perfect" darkness for a good 10 minutes. You can print 4x5 contacts on 5x7 paper easily and cheaply. It is a great way to start!

 

Shooting othochromatic film might be nifty if you are unfamiliar with working in total darkness (you can use a dim light during development). It is funny how many thoughts you have with no light at all hitting your eyes. It is the opposite of falling asleep. Welcome to LF work.

[lbi115l]

I do B&W 8x10 in either Jobo or tanks. I also just got started in LF. I think it might be a bit tedious to learn B&W darkroom work starting with LF. But good luck. Also, when you get into LF and more advanced work, darkroom design matters a lot. Hopefully I'll have a site up soon showing some pics of mine. If not, I'll take some soon and provide them for anyone who needs them.

[claire_curran1]

I live in Orange County. I highly recommend Two Fifteen located at 215 North Broadway in Santa Ana. Tel: 714 664-0215. This is a hand line lab for B&W and E-6. They do an excellent job. The man doing the film processing is one of the original people who put A&I together.