PRINTDark ages of film
Some Columbians stick to darkrooms in the wake of the digital revolution
COURTESY OF STOCK.XCHNG
April 23, 2009 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Fumbling in a darkened room and staring at dim lights while taking breaks to play with chemicals might seem like the labor of a mad scientist. For some local photographers, it’s the perfect way to make the perfect picture. Many shooters still stick to the tried-and-true method of a darkroom and patience, even after digital has taken over the mainstream. The mystique and quality of a darkroom print is worth the effort.
IN WITH THE OLD
Step 1: Put the roll into a solution of chemicals with impossible-to-pronounce names that photographers call developer. This process creates a negative and must be done in total darkness.
Step 2: Rinse the film with water, and place it into a chemical called a stop bath. This chemical stops the developer from working. In this step, the film can’t be exposed to light.
Step 3: Put the developed film into yet another chemical, called fixer, to make it safe to light.
Step 4: Wash off the chemicals in a water bath, and dry the image.
Now that the negative is developed, it is time to print the picture in the darkroom. These steps can be done with a safe light on. These lights give darkrooms their classic red glow.
Step 5: Put the negative into a contraption called an enlarger. This shines light through the negative, thus projecting a positive image.
Step 6: Place photo paper, a larger and thicker version of film with an opaque back, under the lens of the enlarger, and turn on the enlarger’s light. Here, the image can be toyed with using different exposure times and lens focus.
Step 7: Place the paper in photo paper developer (a different chemical set than film developer).
Step 8: Place the exposed paper in a stop bath.
Step 9: Put the print in fixer.
Step 10: Just like film, the chemicals need to be washed off of the print in a water bath.
“Absolutely magical” is how Kelsey Hammond, MU’s Craft Studio coordinator, describes the feeling of seeing an image she has taken develop in a darkroom. To many photographers, film delivers something that digital cannot. “When I want some really incredible detail, I stick with medium-format film,” says Deanna Dikeman, a local art photographer. Surprisingly, the color of a black-and-white darkroom print is just as important. “Because of the silver base on it, you get a much richer black; the midtones are more of a true gray,” says Matthew Bryson, lab productions manager at Columbia Photo Supply. “Once you see the comparison, it’s pretty stark.” Most photographers stick to black-and-white over color developing and printing in their darkrooms.
ADVANTAGES OF FILM
Despite the ease of digital photography, there are advantages to film. For one, film offers a higher resolution than most digital prints. Resolution is the quality of an image at a given size. Another is cost. A medium- to large-format digital camera can cost upward of $20,000 whereas a film camera of the same format can be a fraction of the cost. In the darkroom itself, the final print can be manipulated too. If the image is a bit over or underexposed in a section, there are techniques for remedying this in the darkroom. Finally, the body of a film camera is much more durable. Where a digital camera has many internal computer components and screens that can be broken if dropped, the film body has fewer parts, which means fewer opportunities for malfunctions.
IS FILM ON ITS LAST GASP?
Most photographers don’t think the plastic rolls will disappear. “I think digital photography has really helped true black-and-white photos to be considered more of an art form,” Bryson says. “Like anything, the less of it there is the more valuable it becomes.” Many photographers believe that even if film stops being sold commercially, there will still be a niche. “There are still people who make tintypes (a method of photography used in the 1800s),” Dikeman says. “So I think film will always be around in some form.”
WHERE TO GO
In Columbia, the Craft Studio in MU’s Memorial Union is the only working darkroom open to the public. The Craft Studio also offers classes in darkroom skills and black-and-white photography. One difference in developing in a darkroom is the type of process. When shooting a roll of film bought at a regular drugstore, that film uses a process that can be developed using automated machines. In a darkroom, developing the film goes through a different process that takes much more time and can’t be automated. This film is usually bought at a camera store such as Columbia Photo Supply Inc. For simple machine developing, most drugstores and most grocery stores offer the service. If the Craft Studio is out of the question, creating a home darkroom is simple. The only requirements are a room that can be made light-tight (think bathroom with no windows), a darkroom-safe light bulb, an enlarger and the necessary chemicals. “Right now, equipment is cheap,” Dikeman says. Some of the supplies such as film and chemicals can be bought at local camera stores; however, enlargers and other equipment are easier to find online, Bryson says.
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