I wrote a how-to for B&W film processing

Bill, thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!

I've been looking for this site since WELL before you wrote it - especially after the discussion on b&w films and scanning that we had a few weeks back.

Not having anyone to show me, this helps me to "visualise" what's going on in the dark - and a lot less daunting.

Now I've been told no more photographic purchases until the new year (apart from film and developing - hey, maybe I can sneak it in that way...) but next year I'm definitely going down this road.

Cheers,
Steve
 
You are all very welcome! I am glad to be of service, and feel free to share the link wherever you like, I just like to feel like I am making a contribution of in some small way. If you can think of a way I can make it better, please feel free to let me know that as well.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
I've been only shooting color and occasionally converting it to black and white in Photoshop. (I *never* want to print in a darkroom again! I shoot film and then scan.) But lately I've been thinking about shooting black and white for available light. Maybe it's the crowd I've been hanging out with here at RFF. After following the TLR thread here I brought my Pearl River TLR down off the shelf, cleaned it up, and shot a test roll of Fuji NPH. (And started watching Minolta Autocord auctions on eBay!) It's great for portraits. But, for some reason, it only seems right to shoot black and white in a TLR. This how to is another sign. Now I have to figure out which black and white. At least I don't need a darkroom. I still have a film changing bag.
 
Gordon Coale said:
I've been only shooting color and occasionally converting it to black and white in Photoshop. (I *never* want to print in a darkroom again! I shoot film and then scan.) But lately I've been thinking about shooting black and white for available light. Maybe it's the crowd I've been hanging out with here at RFF. After following the TLR thread here I brought my Pearl River TLR down off the shelf, cleaned it up, and shot a test roll of Fuji NPH. (And started watching Minolta Autocord auctions on eBay!) It's great for portraits. But, for some reason, it only seems right to shoot black and white in a TLR. This how to is another sign. Now I have to figure out which black and white. At least I don't need a darkroom. I still have a film changing bag.
Click to expand...

Hey, Gordon!

Funny you should say that - that same thread got me digging out and cleaning up my Yashica 635. Mine has the inferior Yashikor lens, not the nice Yashinon, but the 35mm kit is trippy - here's a shot I took with 35mm film in it and developed and scanned just today...

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
Last edited:
Here's an image that matches your article, Bill.

Looked in the archives and found this shot my wife Marion took in 1974 of me developing a roll or two of film in the old-style Paterson tank. Thirty years later I still use that tank and all the stuff on the counter, including the wonderful old red windup Kodak timer. I now own three Paterson tanks includng a tall one for developing up to five rolls at a time. I only occasionally get that far behind but it's happened.

Gene
.
 
Nice work Bill! That's a great guide. In response to the question earlier about whether heat will speed up chemical degredation the answer is yes. Basically, as things are heated, the molecules move faster and so anything they tend to do just sitting around in there and bumping into each other (like becoming useless for developing) will speed up if it is hotter. The same goes for light -- certain chemicals will degrade faster if they are hit by visible light and other good things coming from the sun.

Bill, as for your article -- I would say two things: 1. There is a third option to a dark space and a changing bag....a portable changing room. http://www.calumetphotographic.com/resources/images/products/RM1000-2.jpg
They fold up into a disk and take up almost no space and they are rigid, so they don't collapse like a bag. They are a good compromise. I don't have a closet or anywhere that can get truly dark, so it was perfect for me.
2. You might add the bathroom as another alternative to the kitchen. I do my processing in my bathtub. I would rather have the chemicals on my feet than on my dishes, so the bathroom works out well in this regard. Then I take a bit of speakerwire and run it from the shower head to the curtain rod and take some clothespins and it gives a perfect place to dry the negatives.
Another secret is to turn the shower on really hot right before you hang up your negatives. The steam will take all the dust out of the air when it dissipates. Then you can be sure that your negatives will not dry with a bunch of dust embedded in them.
 
Stuart,

Lovely suggestions, thanks! I'll try to get them incorporated into the webpage in the next day or so, if you don't mind my taking liberties with your ideas!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
Oh, and one last thing that it might be nice to add: don't dump fix down the drain. Developer, stop, hypo clear and photo flo are ok (not great, but ok), but fix is BAD NEWS. Just reuse it for a couple months until it is dead and then bring it to the local photo lab or recycling center for silver reclamation and proper disposal. Big labs often like it (Specialty Photo, the lab here in Santa Barbara reclaims big chunks of silver every year...hundreds of dollars worth) because you are basically giving them a little bit of money...

As for the ideas, feel free to use them! The shower one is what the local Brooks students told me when I was just starting out. It works pretty well...
 
Stuart,

I didn't know that about fixer. Is it bad or just wasteful to put it down the drain? I can reuse it as you say, but I have nowhere to take it. Small town, there is not even a chail like Wolfe Camera around here. The closest camera shop is Raleigh, an hour's drive away, and the shops there are pretty much crap - they don't even sell chemistry anymore to the best of my knowledge. I doubt they'd know what to do with it.

Anyway, thanks for the info, I appreciate it!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
Bill, ionic silver is highly toxic and not stuff to be dumped down the drain -- it seeps into the groundwater and can be dangerous to people, animals and particularly to fish and shellfish. The best place to learn about photo chemical safety is here:
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/service/faqs/faq5023

If you have a septic system (which you probably do if you are in rural NC), then you should be particularly careful, as the chemicals need oxygen to breakdown, something that is absent from septic systems.

http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/environment/kes/educators/septicDisposal.jhtml

I was looking at the rapid fixer data sheet, and it will keep "indefinitely" in a stoppered bottle. It handles something like 120 tanks worth of film. You can buy a little fixer tester that will tell you when it is spent. When that happens you can get a small cartridge that will remove the silver and then you can dispose of the rest down the drain, with your cereal, or however else you normally get rid of your chemicals.
 
StuartR said:
Bill, ionic silver is highly toxic and not stuff to be dumped down the drain -- it seeps into the groundwater and can be dangerous to people, animals and particularly to fish and shellfish. The best place to learn about photo chemical safety is here:
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/service/faqs/faq5023
Click to expand...

Gotcha. Well, thanks for telling me - I've been dumping it down the drain for years, I didn't know!

If you have a septic system (which you probably do if you are in rural NC), then you should be particularly careful, as the chemicals need oxygen to breakdown, something that is absent from septic systems.
Click to expand...

No, we're on city water. This is a small town, but it has its own power plant and its own water treatment facility.
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/environment/kes/educators/septicDisposal.jhtml

I was looking at the rapid fixer data sheet, and it will keep "indefinitely" in a stoppered bottle. It handles something like 120 tanks worth of film. You can buy a little fixer tester that will tell you when it is spent. When that happens you can get a small cartridge that will remove the silver and then you can dispose of the rest down the drain, with your cereal, or however else you normally get rid of your chemicals.
Click to expand...

OK, I'll find out how to get the cartridge that removes the silver, thank you!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
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