Having finally got round to investing in home developing kit for black & white film I took a few cameras and different rolls out for a photowalk with some photography friends. Come join me for some London views in black & white and a bit of trial and error with developing!
Having enjoyed a recent workshop in black & white printing in the Darkroom London, I not only decided to become a member of the Darkroom, but also to invest in some black & white home development kit. I have developed black & white film before, but never at home. I suppose it makes sense, allowing me full control over all variables from shooting the film, to developing it, and then scanning and/or printing. It certainly adds more to my learning list, and that’s what photography is all about - trying, failing, trying again.
I went on a photowalk around London with Pete and Karl, two of the lads from the Darkroom. I knew I would end up home developing the film I shot so I opted for 1 roll of 35mm Kodak T-Max 400 and 1 roll of Ilford Delta 100 roll film (120 film). With great thanks to Karl for his patience in getting me through the exhaustive list of shopping items for home developing, I finally took the plunge and bought all the gear. It’s actually very straightforward to develop film at home and there are loads of youtube videos and other instruction material available online. It is also very easy to get really into the details with chemistry and dilution amounts and timings.
A bit more about home developing
There are an endless list of websites and youtube videos explaining home developing, so I am in no need to repeat what already exists out there in any kind of detail. A good reference point is Ilford’s site. Developing at home is actually really easy though and the process is straightforward enough. Obviously you need a light-free zone to remove the film from its canister (either a dark room or use a special photographic changing bag). Taking the film out of its canister and loading onto the film reels is not for the faint hearted though and takes some practice, but it’s the kind of thing that once you get it, you eventually never forget how to do it.
After the film is loaded into a development tank (light proof) you can turn the lights on and start putting the various chemicals through the tank to develop the film. Any simple internet search (or via the link above) will give you more information than you would ever want around developing, but very simply speaking the process is 1. develop the film (using developer) 2. stop the development (using a stop bath) 3. fix the image to the negative (using a fixer) and 4. wash all the chemicals off - and hey presto, you’re done!
There is even an app that tells you how to mix the chemicals (depending on how many rolls of film you develop or the type of film used) and how long each process takes. There is even ample debate and discussion around how to move around the development tank to ensure the chemicals are getting mixed, as well as what developer to use.
I suppose like anything else, it is like you’ve discovered a new world when you get into the details of it and realise how many different options there are. I’m just happy I was able to load the film onto the spools and see an image on the negatives after I went through the development process! Actually some of my images are quite dark so not sure if the development was done incorrectly or if the developer I used was not the ideal one for the film (in particular for the Kodak film). I will probably start shooting a lot of one type of film and getting used to the process for developing as I find tune my knowledge and skills.
Enough about chemistry and more about photos
I would tend to agree - so onto the photographs! I shot the 35mm roll with my Leica M2 and for the most part a 35mm lens. The 120 Ilford Delta film was shot with my Rolleiflex. Both rolls were shot during one long photowalk starting at Waterloo, ending up in Brick Lane and the Shoreditch area. No particular theme in mind just going out and looking for some interesting scenes and lighting. I also had two other photographers with me, although we fit in quite well with the hustle and bustle of Brick Lane.
All set to go with home developing.
The end result - looks like it worked!
Kodak TMax 400 film (35mm)
All these shots are shot on Kodak TMax 400 film. Actually this film was probably too fast (ISO 400) for how bright of a day it was and I would’ve been fine with the TMax 100 film.
I saw this scene out of the corner of my eye on Lower Marsh, behind Waterloo. The dark areas are completely blacked out, which I am sure has to do with how the film was developed. Either way I like the shot.
Shoreditch area, starting to get busy.
I’m a big fan of reflections.
I have a feeling I may have had a yellow filter on my camera at the time, which might have added to the high contrast. I really like the sharpness of this shot.
Photographers at work - Pete in the foreground and Karl in the background.
I had no idea but apparently this was one of the largest breweries in the world, founded in 1666! It is now an arts and media quarter, right in the middle of Brick Lane.
Always a big fan of looking up!
I really like this shot and wasn’t expecting the shadows to be so dark.
The two racing airplanes caught my eye.
Still not sure why these came out so dark, but I like the effect.
Completely blown out highlights but I like the overall composition and character of this shot - it is very bright indeed though!
A more cropped shot of one of the earlier scenes from Lower Marsh, I really liked the shadows and shapes.
Obligatory shadow of photographers shot.
Directions.
Pete, his Hasselblad and the Shard.
One of the better exposed shots I think.
Very dark graffiti artists - I can barely see the ones at the edge of the shot.
Love this shot.
Film shooter paparazzi.
Ilford Delta 100 (120 roll film)
These were all shot on my Rolleiflex camera and I think the overall exposure and development came out considerably better than the 35mm film. It might be because it was Ilford developing chemicals on Ilford film, or it might be a different reason.
Love the details and composition in this shot.
My cover photo and unsurprisingly one of my favourite of the photowalk. Super sharp and clear shot from the Illford Delta film and Rolleiflex combination.
Pete took this shot - I really like the composition and tunnel like view.
Easily the best shot of the post - great sharpness, tones, and detail in this shot. And what’s there not to like about a photo with a Hasselblad in it?!
Bright sun - ouch. That being said, I always try a shot direct into the sun to see how the camera reacts.
Really like this scene with water vapour mixed in with bright sun rays.
Some great sharpness and details in this shot (along with some fun shadows!).
That’s a wrap, folks!
Overall observations
I still need to print one (or a few) of the above shots in a Darkroom session and that way I could truly say I oversaw the entire photographic process. I had a great time on the photowalk and it was also very fun and quite challenging to get everything together for my first home development session. I am still not sure why the 35mm images are so dark but I am sure with a bit of research and future practice I will get better at developing and ensuring proper exposure of my images. The good news is that as I get better at doing it I will get full creative control over how I develop my shots, in particular thinking about pushing film. I will probably concentrate on one or two types of film to get better at the whole process.
That being said, I am still very happy with all the shots. In particular the ones from the Rolleiflex, which I think came out particularly well. I can’t recommend home developing enough, and if you haven't tried it (and you shoot film), you are really missing out! Granted you need a bit of investment upfront and a bit of a planning/obsessive personality - but then again I suspect most film shooters qualify for that type anyways!
It really is magic to see those developed negatives come out of the development tank, so extremely satisfying. I can also look forward to printing those images onto photographic paper with even more of a magical feeling!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed my experiences with home developing.
Cheers,
Neil
