My garage darkroom - printing black and white photographs for the first time in 25 years!
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- čas přidán 6. 09. 2024
- I thought a darkroom was out of my reach... but then I started looking at my garage. There was loads of light creeping in, but from a manageable number of sources.
So I set about plugging all the holes. One by one I cam up with a plan for covering each little leak of light coming in. I use expanding foam around the cracks in the garage door, damp proof coursing around the edges of the door, because it's flexible and should be able to withstand the weather pretty well. The I used duct tape on the remaining holes.
I then did a lap covering any remaining lights in the garage with more duct tape... I covered the light on chest freezer, the LEDs on the plug sockets etc. I also had to go around the eaves of the garage and stuff strips of rolled up black bed sheets into the small gaps there, to block the light coming through.
And finally, after a few weeks, the inside of my garage was totally light proof. So, then to start setting up a darkroom ready for printing.
Biggest test with any dark room is always running water right? Got a plan for that too!
When I'm using the garage as a darkroom I'll have the garden hose running underneath the door, with the standard hose attachment on the end to control flow rate, into a washing up bowl. I've cut a hole in the washing up bowl, and 3D printed a two piece drain thing, which has a hose attachment on it.
I've put a hose onto that and used a jubilee clip to secure, then run that hose out of the same hole as the garden hose under the door. That hose runs to the outside drain on my driveway.
I bought myself an Intrepid 4x5 enlarger kit last year some time, when it was on Kickstarter. You take the back off the Intrepid camera and replace with the light source. The negative holder (only for 4x5) then slides under that.
It's limiting because I can only do 4x5, but it was a cheap way in, and saves me having the huge space-killing full size enlargers.
I have so many 120 frames I'd like to print, I'll have to figure out a solution for that soon enough.
Anyway, but went well, everything worked, and I got some prints! I'm pretty happy with the prints. Definitely more happy than i thought I would be.
So I'm printing. How about that!
Some useful links to stuff from the vid (no affiliate stuff, I paid for everything myself):
intrepidcamera...
www.secondhand...
www.ilfordphot...
What a wonderful print of you children! I have the Intrepid enlarger & have amassed all the necessary components & have yet to made a darkroom print. I hope this pushes me in the right direction. I have a bit of photo block right now but for Thanksgiving, I'm a Southern Yank going to Savannah, Ga to meet up with my family & hope that will help. It is a very photogenic city & I have my family to inspire me also. Another very enjoyable video. Thanks
Thanks! I was happy with how the print turned out, for sure. Not bad for the first try. I would definitely recommend getting your darkroom set up and giving it a go. But I confess, it has taken me at least a year since getting the intrepid enlarger to get everything in place!
I'll talk more about my photo block in the next video, but I definitely think that a part of it is going stale on my immediate surroundings! The fields and the forests that I've photographed a hundred times just aren't making me excited at the moment.
I think I need to venture further afield, see some new places that I haven't been to before, try to regain that sense of wonder. So I hope Savannah does it for you. I haven't been there, but there are iconic images that just the name of the city conjures up!
Darkroom, seeing paper develop, white magic! After40~50 years in the black place, the luster wears off! Ya goota do it! I moved to Medium Format soon . 4x5 not for undiagnosed A.D.D! A jumpy, ill enjoying carrying weights, long procedure to expose a piece of very expensive sheet film.35mm for quick work, cutting few frames out of camera! The savings making possible trips to ends of Earth. No! It never happened. But the thought remained! ENJOY. Bravo.
Magic, for sure! I have done it before, but I forgot the true experience of the process. And 4x5, I'm not the quietest person, don't know about undiagnosed A.D.D., but I like how 4x5 slows me down. Maybe it's my weed!
I use to set up a darkroom in the bathroom in my apartment. I used a Besler 23C setting on the toilet seat with the trays in the tub. Worked great just cramped! So you can do it if you really want to. Really nice shot of the girls!
Totally agree, and my bathroom was my other option. I think you're message is correct - you can do it, just pick your space and get on with it!
On my first attempt at home I kept making the same mistake of leaving the aperture wide open. The 40mm (for half frame), schneider lens I got has a funky switch that flips between your set aperture and wide open, and somehow that makes it a lot easier to remember to shut the thing down. I ended up picking up a 50 of the same range, and if I can find an 75/80, I'll get that too!
If you're still printing, one tip, you've probably found already, is that 5s is quite short to really be making adjustments. Either shut down the aperture a bit, or reduce the brightness (it's in the settings in the intrepid timer), it gives you more time to dodge and burn.
Glad someone else has done that! It was just that first attempt, you've got so much going on in your head, and my brain just wouldn't remind me to close the damn iris! I've done it a few times since, but I'm getting better!
That switch on the schneider lenses sounds super handy. Might keep an eye out for those.
And really good tip ref dimming and closing iris, I haven't been brave enough to try any dodging and burning yet, but it's on my list, so that will be be invaluable advice when I get there. Thank you!
7:56 beautiful mate
Thank you!
Great to see you in the darkroom. The print is surely half the joy. Scanning doesn’t come close!
The last time I did any printing, scanning didn’t exist! Or rather digitising didn’t exist I guess. So I never got the comparison. But the results are just a country mile apart right? I’m blown away by what I managed just on my first try. Really looking forward to getting back in there!
That's the coolest garage - I love the self-made solutions more than anything. Thanks for the inspiring videos. Best regards and a nice pre-Christmas time from Switzerland - Andy
Thank you so much! The garage is really turning into quite the organic sprawl of stuff! I spend so much time in there trying to organise and tidy, and then I use it for something and it's a mess for a week again! I basically need three more garages, and a studio, and probably a second house!! But it keeps me busy and I love spending time out there. That's all that matter right!
Happy new year to you. Here's to an exciting 2023. all the best
Brilliant mate, love that shot of the kids, love the contrast. I've not done any darkroom work for 30 odd years, kept my durst enlarger and bits n bobs, just in case then about 6 ears ago after much bally aching and constant nagging from the missus sold it all, ffs had I known just 2 short years later she would become the ex I'd have got rid of it two years earlier and kept the durst. Might have to convince the current missus to let me light seal her garage just in case.....Photography inspiration mate I feel for ya I can't say it's ever been an issue for me working at the paper I have loads of varied assignments to keep things ticking along. All I could suggest is try different things, go shoot some local sports then turn the camera onto the spectators, they always get animated and make great shots. Having said that now you've fired up the darkroom I reckon you'll be bang up for getting more content to print. Looking forward to seeing more.
Thanks Paul! Appreciate that. Really interesting what you say about never lacking inspiration. I definitely have a sort of disconnect there. I actually like being given instructions in my day job, and being able to adapt those instructions, or add your own touch to what you're being asked for. But then when it comes to just doing things for myself, I find it harder to get the ball rolling. Actually, that's not entirely true - sometimes I find it harder to get going. Sometimes it comes easily, I know where I'm going and I know what I want to do. But other times, I step out of the front door and I stop dead. Need to do some digging around in my messed up brain, see where that's coming from!
Deffo excited to get into the darkroom again, for sure! And in fact, I am excited about the prospect of heading out to shoot with the darkroom in mind, knowing that I'm shooting to print. That changes things slightly, for sure!
@@the120ist Dragging a medium format kit around can be a tad cumbersome it really needs planning, so maybe for a change of pace grab a 35mm camera and just go with the flow, nip into town and shoot some random strangers......with camera.....the other way is dodgy, street photography is always a challenge and when you nail a shot it gives you a buzz, and more importantly you're documenting the place where you live as it is right now because in another 10, 15 years it will be completely different, so many changes taking place at such a fast pace and on 35mm it's easier to record, either that or dig out a 6x6 folder, small compact fun to use but keeps you in the 120ist frame of mind, just thinking its more liberating than hauling an RB67 around. I spent an hour looking at enlargers last night after watching your vid, bloody hell fire here we go hahaha.
@@the120ist mate literally this just popped up in my feed thing, might be worth a look see, czcams.com/video/ZXDJiV-XKcw/video.html
Nice one, I use the same set up, the only issue I have is making sure that the intrepid is all level and square. It's quite easy to knock it out of alignment.
Yeah, I had that problem as well. I was also using a slightly wobbly table to put the easel on. Some fine tuning to the set up required!
what would be life without a darkroom? Photographing is nothing without printing and having prints in a box for long and cold winter evenings....
Well, life seemed complete before. But, little did I know... It definitely completes the experience, and will change how I go about photographing. A different end point in mind. And that print in my hand vs. scan on a laptop screen = no comparison!
Hope the unclogging goes to plan 🙏
Ha ha!! I hope so too!! (thanks for watching til the end!)
Enjoyed the video. The first 10 yrs of my career I was in the darkroom at least half of my time. When we went digital, I honestly was glad to be out of it. Now that I’m shooting film cameras again I really do miss it. Maybe I’ll try something similar to what you’ve done here.
Also will be looking forward to the next one. I tend to struggle with “photographer’s block” as well. And I do think a lot of it comes from staying too close to home. But I also realized I was looking for the big scenes and ignoring the details. There’s an infinite amount of subject matter in the details. Learning to see those has really helped.
Thanks! I don't think I was really paying enough attention in my teens when I was printing last. Maybe I took it for granted, I don't know. I barely remember. But I'm so glad I went ahead and made the effort to get it set up. I was quite surprised at how simple it was to get the garage light tight. Took a little inventiveness, and as always, trying to use only the things I have lying around (like the damp proof membrane around the door!) to keep costs right down until I decide if I am genuinely going to use it! The next thing I need to fix in there is some sort of heating, it gets sooo cold in there late at night!
Focusing on the details is a great tip. I often look at and appreciate the smaller things i see around, but I rarely think to photograph those things. That's an interesting one for me to mull over... thank you!
Ah man! glad to see this! I just finally light sealed my bathroom in preparation to do the same! Need to order the intrepid enlarger eventually, but for now I'll print a few 35mm and 120 negs
Great stuff! At least you have running water in there. But maybe no permanent modifications like I got away with on the garage! Good luck with your printing, I genuinely more satisfaction from that print than I’ve had from photography for a while! Can’t believe I left it so long to start!
I’ve been suffering the same lack of inspiration recently, absolutely nothing is getting the creative juices flowing. It happens from time to time and then suddenly I’m off and away again. In the past I’ve used it to try films I’ve not used before on bland subjects.
Oh my god.... the shelf is empty.... where have all the good cameras gone.... I was once told that inspiration comes without a manual, or user guide, but it does often appear in the faintest of thoughts or ideas. I was mucking around with an idea myself, of doing some portraits and wanted to recreate the look of old silver plate photography on some medium format B&W film, but using nothing more than a set of 24" square glass panels (4 of them) placed in between the subject and the camera lens. And I would smear black paint on one, smear heavy cream on another, tape strands of thread on another and wet some strips if saran wrap on the last, and use a few different coloured gels. Obviously one would need to experiment to see how much smearing would be needed, and play about with the angles of the glass to tilt the panels away or toward the subject []< / / \\ {") . In the end, I suspect you'd need to dress the subject accordingly, and frame the whole thing in an old doorway of an old barn or some such set-up, I'm still working out the details....
Ha haaaa! You spotted the shelf! Yeah I've been cleaning up and moved all the cameras to the garage. Didn't have time to move them all back in again. But have no fear, I still have them all. I also have another camera on its way, which you'll approve of... I bought another SLX II. There are two cameras that I regret selling, the SLX and the GW690. I saw an SLX II on sale for a reasonable price, and decided I would bring that back into my collection, and I'll sell some of the others. I just hope that this one is in as good condition as the one that I let go. Fingers crossed.
I love that idea of recreating silver plate style portraits using glass plates. But wow, that's going to take some testing! Have you tried it yet? Or is it just a concept in your mind right now?
For me I think part of my problem is not going far enough away from where I live. Each time I've gone out recently I just look at the same old places and see the same old things. I look for nice compositions in the surrounding area, but when I find them I immediately realise I've shot this exact photo before... so I think a change of scenery, travel to some new places etc., is probably the first thing to try.
I also think that as blessed as I am to be able to travel the world with my job, it kinda ruins what's outside my front door! When you've stood on a high mountain pass in the Namibia desert, the rolling fields outside my front door just seem boring! Maybe that's a fact of life... maybe that's something I need to work on. Who knows!
@@the120ist Great to hear that you have placed another endangered camera, back into your exotic-paddock of desirable cameras. Right now its nothing more than an idea I have, to try and replicate the look of silver plate photos, I know many will say - just do the silver plate and be done with it. But then I'd lose the creative magic that might come from those attempts and mistakes to replicate the look, sure you could do it in post, but its not the same as trying to get it to work with film.
Inspiration is a tough nut to crack, there isn't a manual, or useful help guide available. Now I've said this a number of times, I'm not a photographer, merely a hobbyist and for the most part the photos I've taken are within 50 miles of my home, I've done a little traveling but I'm not what you'd call a seasoned traveler. I would maybe suggest you revisit the places near you, and really tighten up the framing of your photos, and there you just might find what you're looking for. Also have a peek at John Singer Sargent, a painter - and his painting - Staircase in Capri. Sargent loved to play with light and shadow, and this painting is a tightly framed perspective at an acute angle. It might shake something loose. As always, looking forward to whats coming next.
It's a good feeling, isn't it?
It really is! Shame I took so long to get there! But I'm all set up now, looking forward to finally getting the most out of some of my images!
Have you ever compared traditional prints to good inkjet prints?
I haven’t actually. I’ve got a crappy inkjet printer, which is obviously disappointing quality! But I haven’t tried sending scans or negs off for printing professionals on inkjet. Would be an interesting comparison!