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View Poll Results: Do you develop your own film?
No 1419.44%
Not yet, but loooking to do so 912.50%
B&W only 3447.22%
Color only   00%
B&W and color 1520.83%
Voters: 72. You may not vote on this poll

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09-04-2015, 04:14 PM   #1
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Do you develop your own film?

I started developing B&W in April, but send color to the lab.

09-04-2015, 04:46 PM - 1 Like   #2
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Nope, too lazy. I'd rather be outside shooting film than indoors developing, printing or scanning it.

I have a great lab close by that does E6, C41 and B&W processing, mounting, printing and scanning. I'd rather pay them and use my saved time elsewhere.

Phil.
09-04-2015, 04:58 PM   #3
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Once things have settled down a bit with work, me and a mate are looking to try our hands at developing and printing - B&W first.
09-04-2015, 05:51 PM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by gofour3 Quote
Nope, too lazy. I'd rather be outside shooting film than indoors developing, printing or scanning it.

Phil.
Me too, Phil. That's why I develop mine during times I'm not out taking pictures. I can take pictures that day, develop and post them that night which is a sweet deal.

09-04-2015, 06:14 PM   #5
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I do all my own b&w (35mm and MF) and have done b&w printing. I have a couple of kits for C41 and E6 that I will try soon!
09-04-2015, 07:15 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by gofour3 Quote
Nope, too lazy. I'd rather be outside shooting film than indoors developing, printing or scanning it.

I have a great lab close by that does E6, C41 and B&W processing, mounting, printing and scanning. I'd rather pay them and use my saved time elsewhere.

Phil.
Yes it's time consuming to develop, scan, and post process. But I got tired of paying lab fees and shipping both ways and waiting about 2 weeks to see my photos. There's one place that does E6 and B&W in Houston but they're only open when I'm working, they're on the side of town where there's heavy traffic, and they take 3-4 days, so that means 2 trips there. I don't print just develop B&W negs. If I want a print I upload the digital file to Walgreens or Adorama and let them do it.
09-04-2015, 07:58 PM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by TheLens Quote
I started developing B&W in April, but send color to the lab.
I started developing B&W 46 years ago; and stopped 30 years ago.
I miss it.

09-05-2015, 12:46 AM   #8
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Yep I too have done it in the past but haven't done it for 20 years. I miss it too.
09-05-2015, 05:25 AM   #9
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I started processing about 1960, and always had a darkroom from the mid 60s to about 1990. Finally set up again a couple years ago after I retired. Had to re-do a guest bathroom last year due to a pipe leak under the concrete floor, so made it much friendlier for enlarger and printing. It's still fun.
09-05-2015, 06:17 AM   #10
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I also started developing in the last days, yesterday I finally got ALL the exposures out of two films.

Perhaps later I'll learn how to do colour as well, the price for developing film is becoming silly.
09-05-2015, 07:20 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by TheLens Quote
Yes it's time consuming to develop, scan, and post process. But I got tired of paying lab fees and shipping both ways and waiting about 2 weeks to see my photos. There's one place that does E6 and B&W in Houston but they're only open when I'm working, they're on the side of town where there's heavy traffic, and they take 3-4 days, so that means 2 trips there. I don't print just develop B&W negs. If I want a print I upload the digital file to Walgreens or Adorama and let them do it.
Yeah I guess I might be singing a different tune if I did not have such a good lab lose to me. For a five minute drive and $9.50CDN for E6 processing ($7.50 mounting), I just couldn't be bothered to do it myself. (B&W/C41 is $6.50) I also still mostly shoot slide film, so I don't relish ever processing my own E6 and then doing my own mounting.

This lab also has a film drop-off mail slot with order write-up envelops, so I can come by any time when they are closed and leave my film. Mounted E6 turnaround is in before 11:00 and out later that same day.

Phil.
09-05-2015, 07:20 AM   #12
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I used to do black and white and color developing 20 years ago.
I prefer b/w developing, I would send the color off because it took much longer, I did a few times myself and then just had someone else do it.

I did printing of both and also like b/w better, but printing color teaches you about color correction so well that I am glad I did it, even though I didn't enjoy it as much.
09-05-2015, 08:13 AM - 1 Like   #13
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The art work is strange. Today, in general, a digital photographer's work is more valued from one that makes his own prints as if that's the photograph's final vision. But yet the same people would give little to no consideration to the photographer that develops their own film as part of the complete vision from taking the picture to final print.

Perhaps that is because people think it's a process with little human intervention. That may be more true for C-41 and E-6 but BW there are lots of things you can do alter the outcome of the developing the negative that enhances or fulfills your vision when taking the picture that maybe you would not otherwise get from average developing from someone else. It's all about full control and those who labor for the love of it.
09-05-2015, 08:18 AM   #14
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I develop my own black&white negatives and want to try printing, too, one day. Right now I develop and scan myself, then print some shots I like at the next drugstore. Not too professional, but I like the "cheap and dirty"-diy aspect of what I'm doing.

Before I started, I was worried about the chemical's shelf times and if I would really do it often enough to justify the costs of the chemicals. This held me back for some time, then I decided to stop worrying and to start trying instead and bought an already expired bottle of Ilford Ilfotec HC at a discount. The stuff is still working and thanks to the discovery of the water stop bath technique, there's one thing less to worry about. Rodinal or Adonal will be next, I guess. I like the amount of freedom you get with doing your own stuff at your own terms. No more paying 7€ just for developing and doubtful looks from the guy behind the counter when I show up with another roll of HP5+ or Tri-X that I want to have pushed to ISO 3200.
I can only recommend at least to try developing your own black and white negatives, as it doesn't really take that much time and in my eyes there is not so much that can go wrong if you start out basic with a combination of forgiving films and developers. There are so many instructions and possibilities floating around the web, I'm sure there's something for everybody in it.

Color film, which I shoot from time to time, I drop off at the local drugstore and ask for the negatives only. It cost's like € 2,50, which I think is very cheap. The only reason I might start to experiment with color chemicals is that I would love to try push processing color film or cross processing slide film on my own. Did you ever try push processing color film? I remember seeing some shots on flickr which looked rally great.
09-05-2015, 09:08 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Arvid Quote
...I was worried about the chemical's shelf times and if I would really do it often enough to justify the costs of the chemicals. This held me back for some time...
Yes, you can get developers with very long shelf lifes and learn them. HC-110 also stores a long time and you can mix it up in very small working batches. Use water for a stop bath and then you only have to stock, monitor and replace the fixer which is not too bad. That is my process.

Now if you use Rodinal and small format, you can make developing even less of a burden. Learn to do 1-hour stand development with Rodinal. It is easy, yields superb results and lets you get other things done while the film develops. The stop and fix process goes pretty fast after that. And don't worry if you space-out and develop the film for, say, 1.5 hours instead. No problem. Anyway it is a process worth exploring.

Last edited by tuco; 09-05-2015 at 09:31 AM. Reason: Clarify
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