hugh_hutcheson

<p>I've used them for several years and always had good service: certainly quick as well. Pricing seems about average. They've been around for years so I think you should be fine.</p>

<p>I'd check out www.apug.com for this...</p>

<p>Nick - that sounds a bit weird that they can't do one particular film: maybe it's something to do with the film itself? I don't use Kodak anymore so I don't have any results to compare. An alternative to Peak is The Darkroom UK in Cheltenham. They've been processing and scanning my work for a couple of years now and I'm always impressed with their quality and turn around time.</p>

 

<p>There's one just up the road from you in Cheltenham as an alternative to Peak<br>

<a href="www.the-darkroom.co.uk">The Darkroom UK Ltd</a> . They can hand process or do a set of prints by post. They sell Ilford products too.</p>

<p>We don't see reticulation these days because emulsion is physically very thin: T-grain technology has allowed this. The ADOX film must be using older style technology with REAL silver in the film, which is interesting and would allow experiments that don't work with modern film. So thanks Derek for putting us on to this!</p>

<p>Ask them if they have an ICC profile you can work to but failing that you should tell them what space you have been using - you've already guessed Adobe 98 v sRGB is a potential problem and it is. Since most of the PC world is sRGB then it's much safer to use that. I used to use Adobe but it caused me too many problems: it was fine if I was ordering big Epson prints but smaller photo-prints were different every lab I tried. It was <a href="http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk">The Darkroom UK Ltd</a> that put me wise to the problem and I've stuck with them since.</p>

<p>Kodak EPR was always the best. It uses an older style of emulsion that reacts more strongly than modern ones - over-exposed and push processed gives some great results. Grab it if you can still find stock!</p>

I'm not sure how old your batch is but you may be aware that both PlusX and TriX are now coated onto the same

film base as Tmax? I dare say you know this but the drying characteristics are sure to be different. So far as I

know film batches are made once a year (ish) and still made in the USA. That doesn't explain your scrunched negs

- maybe it was a one off? I hope so!

Any E6 film can be pushed one to two stops but inevitably the is a price to pay in terms of contrast as Craig suggests. Remember too that it is colour balanced for halogen lights not ordinary domestic tungsten lighting, which is much more red.

I've been using <a href="http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk">The Darkroom UK Ltd</a> for some years for colour and BW

film processing with

very good results and they have a postal service. Another one you could look at is Peak Imaging - I've read some

good reports on them too.

I've been using The Darkroom UK Ltd <a href="http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk"></a> for some years for colour and BW

film processing with

very good results and they have a postal service. Another one you could look at is Peak Imaging - I've read some

good reports on them too.

Sorry to hear you tale Harry, but Boots, like many high street operations, contract out their slide processing and everything will be done on the cheap to keep the costs down, including postage. I can't explain how any business can have the cheek to take so long but they'll probably turn up eventually. Treat it as an experience and use a lab that specialises in slide processing - you'll have to pay a bit more but have your film back in 3 or 4 days.

I'd agree with Scott in that the machine makes a best guess at exposure but the operator can then make fine

adjustments so that instead of NNNN you may see -2NN+3, which in this combination means -2 units of yellow, No

adj to Magenta, No adj to Cyan, +3 units of density. There are often further adjustment symbols but that gets

into colour saturation, sharpening etc.<br>

 

The other point is economics - on automatic a film can be scanned through and sent to print in around 20 seconds

but WITH the operator adjustments you could be looking at 3 or 4 minutes as each image is adjusted. Time = money.

What many companies fail to realise is that people are always prepared to pay for quality but instead they get

frightened that Jo's Snaps down the street are doing prints for 10p each so they cut their prices to match.

Pretty soon both companies go bust....<br>

 

Look for a company that doesn't do the cheapest prints, have a talk to them first, give them a couple of films

and see how you go. If you don't like the results, have another friendly chat - "Is it me or can you guys improve

on these?" Don't get angry, just ask for help or advice - maybe your exposures are crap and this really is thee

best they can do... A good lab will take your comments seriously and offer to have another look at them. If they

are unreasonable or rude go somewhere else. But you must expect to pay a bit more for good quality as good prints

always take longer to do and time = money.<br>

 

Happy photography! That's why I use <a href="http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk">The Darkroom UK Ltd</a>

Just had an email today from the Fuji Choosefilm.com website saying they are now going to sell film direct, with no minimum order. That will include all types of Fuji film ... in the UK ( sorry USA ). That's got to be a good thing, but I expect some wholesalers like 7dayshop will undercut their prices.

If you exposed at 40asa, which is around 2/3rd under then you can easily have the process adjusted to compensate.

The contrast will increase slightly and if the artwork has a lot of highlight detail you may find it more

difficult to retain it from a scan. Pushing the film 2/3rds is a fairly modest speed change and most labs will

make the adjustment free of charge.

Try a toy camera, like Holga, use out of date film and maybe take abrasive paper to the surface. This often happens to students work even when they are trying for something good!! The fun part is to try a few different techniques and see which you like and then stick with that rather than trying to match these results. Good luck!

In the UK I use <a href="http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk"> The Darkroom UK Ltd </a> based in Cheltenham but they run a postal service. I have tried Peak Imaging and the results were fine too. Stick with a lab you know seems the best advice

"As a professional chemist : Toxicity is nil unless you drink it."

As a chemist Laurent can you explain the toxicity a bit more - if I am instructing students I make the comparison

that the patches smoker use to quit, allow nicotene to be adsorbed through the skin, so do some diabetic

treatments I think. Since photographic emulsion is structurally not dissimilar to skin, containing gelatin, and

photographic chemicals are designed to be quickly adsorbed into emulsion, surely photographic chemicals can be

readily adsorbed too? Plus that if you work with developer and fixers and don't wear gloves, your fingers stink

of the stuff even after scrubbing them clean.

As for everyone's contributions about Rodinal, I feel really fired up to try some now! Thanks for the

info....guess I'll be wearing my gloves though ;-)

Do you need 'real' photographic prints or giclee/inkjet prints. If photo then try Metro Imaging in London who are very reliable. If inkjet then choose a lab that specialises in photographs as opposed to 'graphics'.

Your could try One Vision, The Darkroom UK Ltd or Peak Imaging may do stuff that big. Phone them up and speak them first and you'll get an idea of who you're dealing with.

I've always had good results from The Darkroom Uk Ltd for 120 and 35mm film and they will write to CD etc.

I'd vote for the Darkroom in Cheltenham, who I've been using for years. The service is always quick and if you need to phone them they are always very personable.

http://www.the-darkroom.co.uk