Black and white film processing and scanning in Canada

[Brooktaw]

Recent frustrations with home developing and scanning have prompted me to start thinking about getting this done professionally. I live on Vancouver Island and would like to use a company in Canada simply to avoid border delays with customs and exchange rate costs.

Does anyone have experience with a company handling mail-in processing that they can recommend?

Thanks.

Chris

 

[Andy Kibber]

Hello from the other side of Canada. There's is one film processing and scanning store in Halifax (that I'm aware of). They do C-41 processing and scanning in-house. They also offer B&W processing, but they send it out. If you ask, they may tell you where they send the B&W film.

I've used them and the results were good. It ain't cheap though!

https://www.atlanticphotosupply.com/film-services

 

[taemo]

ABC Photo - Traditional - ABC Photo
The Lab Vancouver - Film Processing – Professional Digital Lab | The Lab Vancouver, Canada

I use Neat Film Lab locally in Calgary for my 120 C-41 - Neat Film Lab

What seems to be the issue with your film dev and scanning at home though?
I've been developing with HC-110 for years and never had issues.
Scanning Im scanning film with micro four-third system and getting amazing result for both B&W and color.

 

[Evergreen States]

So I'm an American who's never used any of the following labs, but I did some cursory Google searching and found these:
Where to Develop Film in Vancouver - Analog Café
5 Best Places for Film Developing in Vancouver, BC - Lens Lurker
Canadian Film Lab (Hope, B.C.)

London Drugs is mentioned in both the first two lists but I'd be inclined to skip them if they're anything like the big box store minilabs here in the States. You don't want to entrust your film to minimum wage employees pushing buttons on a machine. Send it to professionals who specialize in photography. I hope these are helpful. Good luck, my friend!

 

[Brooktaw]

Thanks for the suggestions.

Andy.

but they send it out

I'm hoping to cut out the middle man with the attendant delays and added costs. Cheap, or at least inexpensive, is a consideration too!!

Taemo.
I'll check out Neat Film Lab.

What seems to be the issue with your film dev and scanning at home though

I've put up another thread in the forum entitled Spots Before My Eyes which shows the problem I've been having with home development and I've had several useful suggestions. As far as scanning goes I'm using an old Nikon LS40 cool Scan which seems to be getting increasingly temperamental about accepting negatives into its automated feed. It is also periodically not aligning the frames correctly. I have a tremor associated with Parkinson's Disease so my reduced manual dexterity in coaxing the film into the receiver is adding to the frustration. I'm tempted to get set up to scan using a macro lense on a digital camera with a backlight but if I can find a good scanning service I can avoid that expense.

Judge Holden
Thanks for the list of suggestions. Having Vancouver nearby as a creative centre means there are several services around which wouldn't be found in other comparable sized cities. I'm just hoping I can find a forum member with that all important personal recommendation that will make me feel confident putting my film in the post.

Chris

 

[OlivierAOP]

Downtown Camera in Toronto does an excellent job at processing and scanning my C-41 rolls. Haven't used them for B&W or mail-in but I can assume those services are performed equally well.

 

[taemo]

Thanks for the suggestions.
Taemo.
I'll check out Neat Film Lab.

I've put up another thread in the forum entitled Spots Before My Eyes which shows the problem I've been having with home development and I've had several useful suggestions. As far as scanning goes I'm using an old Nikon LS40 cool Scan which seems to be getting increasingly temperamental about accepting negatives into its automated feed. It is also periodically not aligning the frames correctly. I have a tremor associated with Parkinson's Disease so my reduced manual dexterity in coaxing the film into the receiver is adding to the frustration. I'm tempted to get set up to scan using a macro lense on a digital camera with a backlight but if I can find a good scanning service I can avoid that expense.

Judge Holden
Thanks for the list of suggestions. Having Vancouver nearby as a creative centre means there are several services around which wouldn't be found in other comparable sized cities. I'm just hoping I can find a forum member with that all important personal recommendation that will make me feel confident putting my film in the post.

Chris

Just saw your other thread, not sure if that's dust or chemical reaction, have you tried using a different developer? I've been using HC-110 for years now and not getting those but I think I was getting those some white spots on either Rodinal or Tmax Developer. HC-110 last forever and only need small amount to develop film.
also after the fixer, I personally thoroughly rinse the film and either use photoflo or just hand soap and water to clean the negative before hanging it.
having a lab do the processing and scanning definitely will save you the hassle of dealing with those issues but ran into the problem of slow turn around and 2-3 weeks to see your images.

I've used Neat Film Lab because he's local here in Calgary so no worries of losing my film, busy guy so he only process and scan on weekends.
I've heard of Canadian Film Lab before and was planning to use them but back then I wasnt shooting enough 120 to warrant sending to them.

Have you heard of Prism Imaging in Victoria?
Prism Imaging. 791 Fort St, Victoria, BC
could go check them out or send a test roll

 

[DownUnder]

It will be a sad situation indeed if someone on the Pacific Coast has to send their films to the Atlantic Coast to be processed and scanned. But then we live in a digital age, and obviously in many places (here in Australia as well as in North America or, to a lesser extent, Europe) this is now a necessity.

We have the same problem in Melbourne. My friends often ask me if I will do "D&P" for them, but after too many bad experiences in this area, I now politely refuse with regrets and thanks. They have too many unrealistic expectations about the results, and I've had enough of all the yap-yap and kit-kit from perfection seekers...

Our few remaining prolabs tend to charge like angry water buffalos for their services - but then what do we expect in an era when a head of iceberg lettuce from the supermarket now costs AUD$12??

Anyway, to put a positive note on all this, It may be good for us to continue this thread or even to start a new thread (if one doesn't already exist) listing those labs that still do B&W and color film processing, wherever we are.

My humble contribution to all this.