Developing Colour Film for Beginners?

Hello all. I am interested in developing colour film sometime soon next year. I will be moving into an apartment with a 1/3rd(sp?) bath (just a sink and toilet) and want to know what types of equipment would one suggest I buy? I've never developed film before so any advice is good. This bathroom would be totally free and available for photographic processing as well.

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Originally Posted by jesilangdale

Hello all. I am interested in developing colour film sometime soon next year. I will be moving into an apartment with a 1/3rd(sp?) bath (just a sink and toilet) and want to know what types of equipment would one suggest I buy? I've never developed film before so any advice is good. This bathroom would be totally free and available for photographic processing as well.

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How should I say it - this seems like a really bad idea. Colour negative film development requires chemicals that are dandgerous for the environment, they require really really close temperature control and agitation. It is so much easier to just send it off to a lab and let a machine do it. The process is completely standard and there is absolutely no added value in doing it yourself.

Colour slide film is worse and the process is more complex.

Home processing has real added value with black-and-white film:

- the process is much more tolerant of temperature and agitation errors
- the treatment is not standard at all. Each black-and-white film requires a specific development time/temperature
- there are a wide variety of developers to get different effects

When it comes to printing it's the same thing. Black-and-white is much simpler.

To develop a black-and-white film you need:

- a completely dark room to load the film
- pair of scissors to cut the film
- a developing tank with film reels
- developer
- stop bath
- fixer
- accurate thermometer designed for photography
- stop watch
- source of cold water to wash the film for 10 minutes
- clips to hold the film top and bottom
- a space about 4 feet high with NO DUST to hang the film while it dries
- envelope to store the dried, cut film

To make a black-and-white print you need:

- a completely dark room
- a red light specifically designed for a darkroom
- an enlarger + lens (50mm) preferably with variable contrast filters
- focus magnifier (to check the focus of your enlargement)
- print developer + tray + print tongs
- stop bath + tray + print tongs
- print fixer + tray + print tongs
- source of running water + tray (to wash print for 10 minutes)
- stop watch
- photography thermometer
- photography paper (either variable contrast or several grades of fixed-contrast paper)
- a place to lay your prints for a few hours while they dry

For Printing you need a completely dark room. However for just film developing, you can use a change bag and a tent, I also recomend powderless disposable gloves for handling the film in the bag...trust me on this one.

As for colour film, you can do that just as easy as b/w these days. Yes, you need to watch the temperatures much closer, but if you get a Tetnal or Unicolour kit from Freestyle or B&H it's a simple three step process, just like B&W.

Check out: Film Photography Project | An Internet Radio Show & On-Line Resource for Film Shooters Worldwide for more details and a great supportive community for film :)

Good advice for beginners!

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Hmm behalf of my thinking it is really a awesome as well as Useful Advice for that, who wants to Start a Work on Developing Color Film.

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Developing color film as a beginner involves mastering a few key techniques. Start by understanding the necessary chemicals and their proper handling. Follow a ghost mannequin photo editing services precise development process, including temperature control and timing. With practice and attention to detail, you can achieve vibrant, high-quality results and enhance your photographic skills.