Film processing

[Baz94]

Hi folks.

Absolutely loving film!! Ilford HP5+ 400ISO is defiantely my fav.

I have decided to do all my own film... I think it would be good practise.
I will leave prints for when I am at collage but I think I will definately get into processing the film myself.

SO...
I obviously want a couple of spools,Developer, Stop, Fix, Developing Tank, Thermometer, Filp Clips, Wetting Agent and the measuring canisters for each chemical and one of those black backs to put the film on the spool.

Could anyone tell me what kinda price I will be looking at for this?

[Zou]

£50 ish I think is what my stuff ran to. More if I include the changing bag.

I have:

Calumet changing bag - £17 ish
Paterson universal tank - £20 ish
two measuring beakers (a biggie and a wee one) - under £10
Thermometer - under £10

DD-X, Ilfostop, Rapid fixer. Not that dear, maybe £15 to £20 for the three.

Given that you can easily spend £7-£10 getting a single film done 'professionally' it soon pays for itself.

[Wheelu]

I have bought quite a bit of developing stuff from Ebay, there's not much can go wrong with a developing tank, and provided that you know what you are looking for you can get most of the stuff at bargain prices.

If you are living in the UK Argos does a good digital kitchen timer, while Wilkinsons are good for a plastic jug and funnel.

I use separate measuring cylinders (called graduates these days it appears!) for developer and stop/fixer and you need to have quite precise cylinders for mixing liquid developer. I would recommend a 45 ml cylinder for metering concentrated developers like DD-X and a 300ml cylinder for the mixed developer. If you are going to use Rodinal (crosses himself and eats garlic) a 5ml medical syringe will be needed, obtainable for a few quid from the chemists.

Clothes pegs make sort of suitable film clips, but after you have dumped a couple of films on the floor you will want to buy proper kit.

Don't buy or use a film squeegee.

Once upon a time your friendly neighbourhood chemist would give you an empty brown glass bottle or three, but now you have to buy photographic concertina bottles - unless anyone out there knows a better solution. Don't, under any circumstances, use drinks bottles.

You do need a good accurate easy to read thermometer, spend your money on that.

[ermintrude]

Agggghhhhh! I just gave away a big box of all my dev stuff for free literally about 3 days ago!

[Baz94]

Sods law erm lol.
Nevermind.

Thanks for the replys folks.Will definately keep an eye open then. I will most likely use ID11... Seems to give a good result so will go with that one.

Im gonna keep an eye open on fleabay and see what I can get.
Definately wont use a squigee
Have seen a few deals so think I'll give it a couple of weeks and thenbuy it

Thanks again for the replys!

[Benchmark]

Once upon a time your friendly neighbourhood chemist would give you an empty brown glass bottle or three, but now you have to buy photographic concertina bottles - unless anyone out there knows a better solution. Don't, under any circumstances, use drinks bottles.

You do need a good accurate easy to read thermometer, spend your money on that.

Try a laboratory equipment supplier. They stock all sorts of bottles, and they are decent quality too with proper caps. Most are available singly, or in packs of six.

If you plan to use Blix (bleach fix) for colour films, choose wide necked bottles that are easy to clean.

Other chemistry is sensitive to oxygen, so use narrow necked bottles with good caps.

[nimbus]

Film processing equipment and enlargers frequently turn up in car boot sales and local general auctions, at very low prices. For some reason they are not popular nowadays!

[Baz94]

Again, thanks for the replies.

Nimbus, thanks for that, I did toy with that idea. I am doing a boot fair easter (I do 1 a year) and while I'm there, I am going to have a look around while I am there.

[taxor]

Film processing equipment and enlargers frequently turn up in car boot sales and local general auctions, at very low prices. For some reason they are not popular nowadays!

I wish I knew where these car boot sales where. Round where I live, nobody will give you the steam of their s**t!!

[zx9]

Film processing equipment and enlargers frequently turn up in car boot sales and local general auctions, at very low prices. For some reason they are not popular nowadays!

I wish I knew where these car boot sales where. Round where I live, nobody will give you the steam of their s**t!!

It's the same with charity shops, up in York my dad recently bought a Pentax KX with 50mm f1.7? and ER case for less than a tenner, down in London there is nothing to be had, only over priced ornaments and toot.

[spinno]

Film processing equipment and enlargers frequently turn up in car boot sales and local general auctions, at very low prices. For some reason they are not popular nowadays!

I wish I knew where these car boot sales where. Round where I live, nobody will give you the steam of their s**t!!

It's the same with charity shops, up in York my dad recently bought a Pentax KX with 50mm f1.7? and ER case for less than a tenner, down in London there is nothing to be had, only over priced ornaments and toot.

a lot of charity shops use experts and they trawl the donations for likely items that may be worth a few bob. Never spotted any myself.....but you never know.

[Zou]

I got my Brownie for £8 in Oxfam, works perfectly. Another charity shop down the road has a selection of junk film compact cameras ('Nokina' etc) in the window with a sign "cameras £20 each." Funnily enough they haven't shifted much.

[Rhys]

I got my Brownie for £8 in Oxfam, works perfectly. Another charity shop down the road has a selection of junk film compact cameras ('Nokina' etc) in the window with a sign "cameras £20 each." Funnily enough they haven't shifted much.

I've found that as well, now charity shop staff think they are all photographic experts and put silly prices on camera gear then wonder why it doesn't sell. I bought most of my CZJ lenses for my spottie from charity shops for a fiver a piece.
Once bought a brand new Patterson tank from a boot sake for 50p (they didn't know what it was).
Don't use washing up liquid as a wetting agent either. Also as said don't use a squeegee - if it has a bit of grit on it your film will have a nice looooong scratch on it..

Once over Jessops used to do a kits for developing and printing. Also I used to use a bulk film loader and load my own. That way you save money on film and if you want to go out and only shoot say 12 shots you can load up 12 shots. Jessies used to do their own film as well for bulk loaders which was pretty good - not sure if they still do it.

As for chemical bottles, the concertina ones are the best as you can squeeze all the air out before putting the lid on.

Brings back memories, thinks I used to use ID11 and Microphen for devving.

[Wheelu]

You hear of the odd occasion when someone has picked up a Leica for a few pounds due to the ignorance of the seller, but how many people would actually take advantage of this?

You can never really know how you would react in that situation, but if I saw an ubelievable bargain in a genuine charity shop I hope that I would bring myself to tell the staff that they should be charging more. Now, if it were a car boot sale, the same might not apply!

[Manofolympus]

Certainly car boot sales are worth a try- I have picked up paterson tanks for 20p (to get rid of it mate!) and aforementioned brown chemists bottles (4 for a quid "as I don't want to take them home"). My experience of ebay is that anything branded can be bid up to silly prices so keep an eye on the new price of whatever your interested in.

[Roy5051]

Have you ever been to a Camera Fair - there is one at Frome in Somerset this Sunday 5 April 2009. Admission £2 after 0930. See www.wessexcameraclub.org.uk for more information.

[PhotoCharlie]

Once upon a time your friendly neighbourhood chemist would give you an empty brown glass bottle or three, but now you have to buy photographic concertina bottles - unless anyone out there knows a better solution.

I bought some brown glass bottles from Boots - 500ml, I think they were about 60p each. I asked at the pharmacy counter! But 500ml is quite small.