Developed my first film in 25 years!

[David_Manning]

Hi Everyone,

I've been doing a bit of low-volume optical enlarging and printing for about six months now, but have been taking my b&w film to a pro-lab at $6/each to develop the film only.

Well, after my Leica M6 purchase, decided the only way to make this thing truly sing was a complete optical workflow, under my own control. I just developed my first roll of b&w film in 25 years, and I'm pretty happy, and amazed, and enthusiastic once again about photography. 😀

 

[David_Manning]

BTW, dark closet and Hefty garbage bag for film loading, guest bathroom for developing. My little daughters were amazed...I might have introduced the next generation to b&w photography.

 

[shadowfox]

Good for you and your daughters.

I know mine will grow up knowing something special that most of her friends won't 😉

 

[gilpen123]

Been shooting for 30+ years and just started processing on my own as I get a lot of messed up negs i.e scratches, low and over contrast, etc. In other words the consistency and control is not there. I had some experience in my teens assisting my uncle who is into the hobby and btw gave me my 1st real camera. a Nikon F. Also, I've been shooting less B&W as color film and slide was the fad when I started to take up the hobby seriously and then digital came. Now I'm back to B&W which is 95% of what I do now and decided to give it a try a few months ago. 1st try went very well and now I'm addicted. The hardest part for me is spooling the film to the reel so I use plastic reels whih are so easy to use and a large changing bag.. Once you get the hang of it, you can try experimenting. There are tons of information in the web and forums like RFF which we have a local RF forum iin my country (Philipines) as well that helped shorten the learning curve.

 

[payasam]

How easy or difficult was it, David? Will someone who hasn't developed film for 33 years swim or will he drown in acetic acid?

 

[David_Manning]

Mukul, I had not developed film in 25 years when I did this roll last week. The hard part is not really hard, just a bit stressful...spooling the film. I used a Paterson system 4 reel and tank. Really no problems...I sacrificed an old roll of 24-exp color print film to pop the lid off and spool in the daylight three times to get the feel. The last time, I did it with my eyes closed. Unfortunately, the roll of Tri-X was 36 exposures, so the film was more curly towards the end. I ended up having to spool it three times in the dark, which made me sweat and get nervous. The other mistake I made, after I got into the closet with my "home-made" changing bag, was I left my wristwatch on, which has a luminous dial. So, after I opened the canister and pulled the spool of film out, I remembered the watch, cursed, and removed it with one hand (so I didn't let go of the tightly-spooled film). I was afraid I might have fogged a couple of the first frames, but everything was fine.

Sorry about all the stupid details, but this is exactly what happened. Once the daylight tank was shut, stress level dropped tremendously, and did everything else in the light of the guest bathroom.

What helped a lot was watching videos on YouTube of b&w processing...they were all a little bit different (usually about agitation) but the highlights were covered well, and I was confident I could do it.

Sorry about the lame-o play-by-play, but I thought it was exciting. You'll do fine after an absence of 33 years. Just take your watch off!

 

[payasam]

My Paterson tank's reel has spring-loaded balls which grip the film and make everything clickety-click easy. Is that the kind you mean?

 

[Roger Hicks]

. . . Sorry about all the stupid details, but this is exactly what happened. Once the daylight tank was shut, stress level dropped tremendously, and did everything else in the light of the guest bathroom. . .

Dear David,

No, not stupid detail. Valuable insight!

Cheers,

R.

 

[danmitch]

Hi David

I have also taken up developing again after a similar length "break". As Roger has said, it is little bits of commentary like this that are most helpful!

I am really enjoying this aspect of photography now and am really pleasantly surprised by the results I am getting. Members of this forum are so generous with their advice it makes it easy. I am constantly amazed by the generosity of people like Roger who share such valuable resources and lessons.

Feel free to take a look at my latest efforts on Flickr, I now only wish I had space and time to print again!

Best - Daniel

 

[David_Manning]

Oops...sorry about missing this thread for a week!

Mukul, yep...that's exactly the reel I used. Years ago I used the basic steel wire reels...talk about real stress. I never got confident using those. The Paterson ones (and Omega...same deal) are great for a guy with ten thumbs, like me.

Daniel, nice FP4 shots on your Flickr site. Scanning never does justice to b&w film...it just never responds organically to the film's silver magic. Do you think the beautiful shot of your wife and daughter near the water (sorry, I assume that's who they are!) would have more punch if the highlights were just a BIT hotter, and the blacks were just a bit blacker? Just a personal flavor, and please disregard if your results are what you were looking for. It looks like it was perfectly metered, and would probably print perfectly. I have such a love/hate relationship with scanners!

 

[danmitch]

David - my wife and youngest son actually (but he is only one and needs a haircut!) Thank you for the constructive comments, I think you are absolutely right regarding highlights and black. I try not to make pictures too contrasty but some adjustments have improved the picture. Many years ago I did my own printing; scanning / inkjet printing is a huge compromise, but I don't have space for an enlarger now. Now I get some favourites printed "properly" and the difference is clear.

 

[David_Manning]

Dan, sorry about calling your son, your "daughter." I've never been any good at those details on little kids. I usually go by clothing color, but in b&w...

At least I haven't asked any women "when are you due?" yet...the absolute kiss of death...

 

[batterytypehah!]

David, how's the plastic reel and garbage bag combo been working for you? I use the Paterson 4 system as well but I've found that the reel only works when it's bone dry. As soon as I get the slightest bit of humidity on it (it's amazing how quickly one's hands start sweating in those bags), the film binds. Which raises the stress level, which produces more sweat... Not fun and I've given up on plastic bags. I now wait until after dark before I head into my not-quite-sealed closet.

I should add that my experience is mostly with 127 film, meaning the reel is on a different setting and the curl is worse than with 35mm. This may account for some of my problems.

 

[David_Manning]

I've found the plastic reel no problem, but you have to manage properly! I bought a second reel, so I can develop two rolls at once. Last week, I only had one reel and four rolls to develop. After a roll went through, I'd rinse it, run down to my wife's bathroom counter, and run her hair blowdryer on it for about three or four minutes, along with the center spindle. Totally dry and worked like a charm.