F I L M
P HOT O G R A P H Y A Guide by Victoria Maggard
Introduction
Film photography is magical and amazing. It is such an exciting process, and it has such a beautiful outcome. I will now take you through the process of developing your film and printing the photos in the dark room. I will go through and teach you common mistakes that beginners make and show you personal examples. The prints used in these examples were created with Ilford equipment and materials. The informational steps that I go through, as well as the illustrations featured in the steps, are referenced from Ilford. Just a heads up, this is going to be a lot of hard work. You might stumble, cry, repeat the same mistake over and over (I sure did), but in the end you will be smiling from ear to ear when everyone is telling you how beautiful your photograph is! Hopefully this book will help you prevent most of the possible mistakes. Let’s begin!
FYI, these little squares with the numbers... they are filters. They will soon become your friend when printing. They help you control the contrast in your photos!
Table of Contents k& Blac g n i ess Proc Film e Whit uction ent quipm rod Int
tial E ls Essen Chemica ou Need g n s l i a Y Us emic imes h C e Th gT lopin Deve
les amp Problems x E g g n
i in Printential Print
s Pot Black ple 1 k a m e a x W E lem: Prob
ng Black Processi ilm White F
&
m Steps g the Fil Preparin ilm for Loading gF Preparin eloping v Start De
in
Probl g Examp em 1: le 2 W Probl em 2: eak Black Too M s uch C ontra st
4 xample cks E g n i t n i Pr Weak Bla
1: Problem Weak Blacks/ 2: Problem tain n Brow S opping : Poor Cr 3 m Proble Blacks 4: Weak Problem
M
In aki tro n Es duc g Y Us sen tion our Fi Th ing tial rs De e C Che Equ tP Co velo hem mic ipm rin nt pi ica als en t t ro ng ls lli ng Tim You Pr es N ee in tC d on tra st
Making You
r
First Print Steps Setting Up Y our Work Are a Test Printin g The Final P rint
3 le cks / p m la s xa ak B lack ing
E e B rn ingm 1: WWeak d Bu t rin ble 2: an
P Pro lem ging d ob Pr Do
Pri
nt
Pro ing E Pro blem 1 xam ble :W pl Pin m 2: T eak B e 5 k) S l i tain nted ( acks Pur s ple or
xample 6 Printing E inted (Purple or Pink) Problem: T Stains
Processing Black & White Film Intro Essential Equipment Film Developing Tank Spirals Film Cap Remover Film Leader Retriever Measuring Cylinder Beakers Storage Bottles Funnles Stirring Rod Thermometer Stop Clock/Watch Film Clips or Pegs Scissors Negative Storage Bags Squeegee or Chamois Cloth Additional Useful Items: • Dishes/Trays • Water Bath • Hair Dryer
Using Chemicals
Photographic chemicals are not hazardous when used correctly. It is recommended that gloves, eye protection and an apron or overall are worn when handling and mixing all chemicals. Keep all food items away from areas where photographic chemicals are being prepared and used. Do not use soft drink bottles to store chemicals. Always label containers clearly, and store them safely, out of reach of children. Do not allow children to use photo chemicals unsupervised. Instructors are responsible for handling and mixing of all chemicals. Students should not attempt this. If chemicals need to be replaced, notify an instructor.
The Chemicals You Need
Developer (ILFORD ILFOTEC DD-X)
• Makes the image appear on the film • Pour the used solution down the drain after processing film
Stop Bath (ILFORD ILFOSTOP)
• Brings development to an end and prolongs the life of the fixer • The amount of solution used must completely cover the processing spiral • It works quickly and after processing you can store it to use again
Fixer (ILFORD RAPID FIXER)
• Makes the developed image permanent • The amount of solution used must completely cover the processing spiral • Works quickly • After processing you can store it to use again
Photo Flow (ILFORD ILFOTOL)
• Adding a few drops of this to your final wash water ensures that the film dries quickly and evenly
Process Summary
The step-by-step instructions are for ILFORD 100 DELTA PROFESSIONAL film using ILFOTEC DD-X developer.
PROCESS TIMES Step
Time
Temperature
Development ILFORD ILFOTEC DD-X Developer diluted 1+4
12 minutes
68°F
Stop Bath ILFORD ILFOSTOP stop bath diluted 1+19
10 seconds
About 68°F - preferably no warmer than 79° and no cooler than 59°F
Fix ILFORD RAPID FIXER diluted 1+4
3 minutes
as above
Wash
In running water for 5-10 minutes or...
as above
In ten changes of water each lasting 1 minute
68°F
Varies
Room temperature or with a cool hair dryer
Dry
Development Times
During development, temperature control is important, and you must use an accurate photographic thermometer to make sure the developer is not too hot or too cold. Temperature is not as critical with the two remaining steps, or during washing, but should be within 9°F of the developer temperature. The step-by-step instructions are for a processing temperature of 68°F, and if you have never processed film before, it is best to follow them exactly.
00
Processing Black & White Film Steps Often the most difficult part of processing is getting the film into the spiral. For ease of loading, it is important to ensure that the spiral is completely dry.
The grooves of the spiral hold the different parts of the film away from one another, so that the developer can circulate freely. If the film is not loaded correctly, uneven development causes spoiled pictures. Start by practicing loading the spiral in daylight (using an old or wasted film) until you can thread it in easily. Then practice with your eyes closed, before finally attempting it in the dark with a real film.
Preparing the Film
1 Preparing the Dark Room
• The room needs to be completely blacked out
2 Preparing Your Equipment
Preparing the Film for Loading
3 Preparing the Film for Loading
• Hold the cassette and end cap remover, then turn out the light • Lever the cap off the cassette and slide the film spool part way out • Find the film’s shaped leader, slot this through the light-trap opening, then slide the spool back
4 Preparing the Film Leader
• Set out film and equipment in a logical order (you will need to be able to find them in the dark) • You will only need the equipment to get the film out of the cassette and into the light-tight developing tank • Note: if the film end has not been wound completely into the cassette, you can trim the end and start it in the spiral in daylight. Of course the exposed part of the film must be wound on in complete darkness
• Pull all the leader beyond the lips of the cassette • Cut the leader off
5 Loading the Spiral
• Pick up the spiral and find the projecting lugs which mark the film entry point • Have these lined up and pointing towards you • Grip the end of the film and pull about 2 inches into the first channel between the lugs • Pull about 1 foot of film out of the cassette • Rotate the sides of the reel back and forth to wind the film into the spiral
6 Loading the Development
Start Development
7 Development
• Start the development by pouring the develper solution smoothly (and as quickly as possible) into the tank • The developer should start at 70°F • Start your timer when you finish pouring
8 Agitation
Tank
• Continue step 5 until you reach the end of the film • Cut this away from the cassette spool • Give a few extra turns to wind the film all the way on • Put the spiral into the developing tank with its plastic sealing ring (if needed), and screw on the tank lid • The film is now sealed inside a light-tight container, so you can switch on the room lights
• Fit the sealing cap and turn the tank upside down four times during the first 10 seconds • Repeat for 10 seconds (that is, four inversions) at the start of every further minute to agitate the developer • Each time you turn the tank, tap it on the bench to disloadge any air bubbles which may have formed on the film
0
9 End Development
• 100 DELTA PROFESSIONAL film needs 12 minutes in ILFOTEC DD-X (1+4) (68°F) • Therefore, 15 seconds before the 12 minutes mark is reached, start to pour the developer out of the tank • After processing, pour straight down the sink • The time should come to 12 minutes just as you finish pouring
10 Stop Bath and Fixer
11 Wash
• You can remove the tank lid now that the film is fixed • If you have running water at about 68°F, use a piece of rubber tubing to feed this down the center of the spiral to the bottom of the tank • Wash film in running water (5 to 10 minutes) • Alternatively, fill the spiral tank with water at the same temperature (+/- 9°F) as the solution processes, and invert it five times. • Drain the water away and refill • Invert the tank ten times • Once more, drain the water away and refill • Finally, invert the tank twenty times and drain the water away
12 Rinse • Pour the stop bath solution into the tank • Agitate by turning the tank upside down twice • After 10 seconds, pour it out (the time in the stop bath is not critical - but it must be at least 10 seconds) • Zero the timer and pour in the fixer solution (68°F) • Start the clock as you finish pouring, then agitate, as during development, until fixation is complete • This will take 3 minutes (Time is not critical - but it must be at least 3 minutes) • Then pour the fixer into a storage bottle
• Add 5ml of photo flow to the final rinse water, stir briefly, then lift the film spiral out of the tank
13 Rinse and Prepare for Drying
• Add ILFOTOL wetting agent to the final rinse water, stir briefly, then lift the film spiral out of the tank • Pull the end of the film out of the spiral, and securely attach a wooden or plastic film clip to it • To get a tight grip you may have to double over the end of the film • If you have access to a film dryer, I suggest skipping that step and using that instead • In that case, you can skip steps 14-15
15 Drying
• Attach a weighted film clip to the bottom end of the film with a developing dish or tray under it for drips • Leave it to dry in a still, dust-free atmosphere • Drying can be sped up by using a hair-dryer on a low setting, kept moving and about 1 ft away from the shiny side of the film
16 Examining the Negative
14 Squeegee
• The film edges (rebates) should be clear, with legible frame numbers along the bottom • The negative should have a full range of tones • Handle your negatives by the edges only • Hang the film from a hook, nail or line, which must be about 6ft 6 in off the ground • Slowly unwind the film out of the grooves of the spiral • To remove any excess water, carefully run squeegee tongs or a clean piece of chamois cloth down the length of the film • Take care as any grit caught in here will scratch the whole film
17 Storage
• The best way to store them is in filing sheets, which takes six or seven strips of six negatives, so try to cut them up in this way • Date and label the filing sheet • They are now ready for making prints
0.5
Making Your First Black & White Print
Making a black and white print is a quick and simple three-step process. Once your print has been through the proper chemicals, which takes about two or three minutes, you will be able to turn on the lights and view it in the running water. Once it has been through the water for at least another two minutes, you can take your print out to dry. If you are taking this for a course, your instructor should have most of the equipment and chemicals set up for you. The instructor will provide you with a list of any extra materials you will need. ILFORD MULTIGRADE paper is the perfect choice if you are making your first print. The examples that I will be showing were printed on this paper. Controlling the print contrast is easy with using MULTIGRADE filters. 12 contrast grades can be achieved from 00 (very soft) to 5 (very hard), enabling a wide range of negative types to be printed. Once you have mastered the basics, then there are no limits on the creative options that you can try!
Essential Equipment
Enlarger Filters Paper Developed Negatives Clock Scissors Squeegee Focusing Aid Dedicated Darkroom Timer Puffer Brush (for removing dust from negatives) Safelights
Using Chemicals
Photographic chemicals are not hazardous when used correctly. It is recommended that gloves, eye protection and an apron or overall are worn when handling and mixing all chemicals. Instructors are responsible for the handling and mixing of all chemicals. Students should not attempt this. If chemicals need to be replaced, notify an instructor. Keep all food away from areas where photographic chemicals are being prepared and used. Always label containers clearly, and store them safely. You will be placing your prints into the chemicals, and it is important to be safe. It is also important not to cross contaminate the chemicals. This will result in a ruined print and it could affect other students’ prints.
The Chemicals You Need
Developer (ILFORD MULTIGRADE) • Makes the image appear on the paper • Pour the used solution down the drain after your processing session
Stop Bath (ILFORD ILFOSTOP)
• Brings development to an end and prolongs the life of the fixer
Fixer (ILFORD RAPID FIXER) • Makes the developed image permanent • Works quickly
Process Summary PROCESS TIMES
For MULTIPGRADE IV RC Deluxe paper Step
Time
Temperature
Development ILFORD MULTIGRADE developer diluted 1+9 or...
1 minute
68°F
ILFORD ILFOSTOP diluted 1+19
2 minutes
68°F
Stop Bath ILFORD ILFOSTOP stop bath diluted 1+19
10 seconds
About 68°F - preferably no warmer than 75°F and no cooler than 64°F
Fix ILFORD RAPID FIXER diluted 1+4
30 seconds
as above
Wash
In running water for 2 minutes
no cooler than 41°F
Dry
Varies
Room temperature or with a cool hair dryer
Controlling Print Contrast Multigrade Filter Set
To work with ILFORD MULTIPGRADE materials, you need to be able to control the color of the light from the enlarger. You do this by putting filters into the light path. White light produces a print of normal contrast, about grade 2; yellow (green) light reduces contrast, and magenta (blue) light increases it. MULTIGRADE filters are available in kits of 12 filters, covering in half grades the equivalent of paper grades 00 to 5.
• Even a correctly exposed and processed print may not have a full range of tones if the negative had too much or too little contrast • If your print looks too grey, and lacks either solid black shadows or clean white highlights (or both), use a MULTIGRADE filter 3 or higher at step six • Use a MULTIGRADE filter 1 if there is too much contrast, and your print is dominated by extreme black and white tones, with too few shades of grey in between
1
Setting Up Your Work Area
1 Preparing the Dark Room
• The room needs to be completely blacked out to stop light from entering • Absolute light-tightness is not required for black & white printing and processing, but there should be no visible cracks
2 Setting Up Safelights and
3 Mixing Your Chemicals
• The instructor will have this prepared • If any of the mixtures needs to be replaced the instructor should be notified • Do not attempt to mix this yourself
Test Printing
4 Choosing Your Negative
Equipment
• The safelights need to be at least 4 feet from the developing dish • Lay out three processing dishes; label them DEV, STOP and FIX • Each dish needs its own pair of tongs • If possible, there needs to be a water bath that follows that FIX • You will also need a clock near the developing area for timing development • The chemicals need to be mixed by the instructor as directed and poured into their proper trays
• Make sure the negative you choose is clean • Remove any dust with a puffer brush • Hold the negatives so you can read the edge numbers, then turn the negatives around (not over) so the numbers are furthest away from you • Place the negatives in the negative carrier on the enlarger • Slide the negative carrier into place • Switch on the safelight and switch off the roomlights • You can check if the negatives are the right way around by seeing if the edge numbers are projected onto the baseboard the right way around
5 Focusing Your Image
7 Exposing a Test Print
• Turn on the enlarger with the lens at full aperture • Place an easel loaded with a spare piece of paper on the baseboard • Move the enlarger head to frame and focus the image • You can use a special “focus finder” placed in the center of the image to focus on the negative grain for the sharpest possible image
• With the safelight on, and the room lights off, put a sheet of MULTIGRADE paper into the easel shiny side up • Reseal the packet carefully • You are now ready to make a test print • Switch on the enlarger lamp and expose the whole sheet for two seconds • Cover half of it, and expose the rest for another 4 seconds • Cover three-quarters, and expose the last part for another 8 seconds
6 Setting the Aperture (f stop)
8 Developing a Print
• Turn the lens’ aperture ring from full aperture to f8 to increase edge sharpness and to give it more even illumination • The actual aperture used can vary but should give an exposure time of about 10 seconds • Shorter times are hard to time accurately; longer ones are tedious
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22
• Slide the paper quickly and smoothly into the developer, making sure there are no air bubbles on the shiny surface • Start the timer • Rock the developer dish continuously backward and forward to send the solution gently over the print • After 50 seconds, use the developer tongs to lift the paper out and drain off the developer
1.5
9 Stop Bath
• As one minute shows on the timer, quickly and smoothly slide the developer paper into the stop bath • Take care not to contaminate the developer tongs with the stop bath • Rock the dish for about 30 seconds • Use the stop bath tongs to lift the print while solution drains from it, then transfer it to the dish of FIXER. (The timing of this step is not critical.)
10 Fixing a Print
11 Examining the Test Print
• Rinse the test print and examine it under a bright light • It shows four strips, each one darker than the one next to it • The lightest had only 2 seconds exposure; the next, 4 seconds exposure • The third strip received 8 seconds (2+2+4), and the darkest strip received 16 seconds (2+2+4+8) • Note these times and the aperture used on the test for reference, so that you can learn from your results • From the test, estimate the correct exposure for the final print • One strip should look about right, but if one strip is too dark and the next too light, the right exposure will be somewhere in-between • If all the strips are too light, open up the aperture by two stops and repeat the test • If they are all too dark, close it by one stop and repeat the test
The Final Print • Slide the paper into the dish of fixer, and rock the dish to get a good flow of chemicals over the surface of the print • Fixing takes only 30 seconds in fresh solution • It does not matter if this time is exceeded slightly, but prints should not be left in the fixer for minutes on end • The print should be placed in the water bath following this step
12 Making the Final Print
• Position the easel under the enlarger to frame the print as you want it • Take out a new sheet of paper and place this on the easel • Using the timer, give the paper the correct exposure worked out by examining the test print
13 Repeat the Process Steps
• Repeat the process steps (8-10) exactly as you did before
14 Washing the Final Print
16 Examining the Final Print
• Examine the final print by bright light • The picture should contain a full range of tones from, small areas of pure white (as white as the paper edges), to small areas of intense black, with all the grays in between • If it does not, check that you followed the instructions accurately (particularly step 8) • Although the image appears within seconds, the print needs a full 50 seconds to mature • Don’t be tempted to remove it too soon!
• Wash the print for 2 minutes in a good flow of water • Empty the wash tray a few times to ensure a complete change of wash water, or use rubber tubing to siphon water from the bottom of the tray
15 Drying
• After the wash, drain the print and use a squeegee or sponge to remove any excess water • Drying can be sped up by using a hairdryer on a low setting, kept moving and about 1 foot away from the print • MULTIGRADE prints dry naturally in a warm room in under 30 minutes
2
Printing Examples Printing your own film photography can be very challenging for beginners, but I promise you will love it once you find your groove! There are a few potential problems that I would like to make you aware of. Most of these things can be easily avoided if you take your time and do it right the first time. I watched many students in my class (sometimes myself included) make careless mistakes just because they would not slow down and think about what they were doing. Trust me, I konw from experience, and I learned the hard way. Although most of these printing problems can be prevented, there are some things that are just going to happen when working in a lab with multiple people.
POTENTIAL PRINTING PROBLEMS Problem
Reason
1
Mottled appearance - weak blacks in prints
Insufficient time and/or agitation in developer
2
Yellow or brown stains on prints
Fixer not completely washed out after processing
3
Tinted (purple or pink) stains on print
Fixer bad or not fixed long enough
4
Dark center in print, but negative OK
Condenser in enlarger not placed correctly for even illumnation
5
Print not sharp
If grain of negative is visbile, problem is with the negative If grain is not visible, enlarger needs focusing Use a grain magnifier
6
Print (and grain) sharp on one edge, not on another
Enlarger needs aligning, or negative not seated properly in holder Try stopping down the enlarger lens as a temporary fix
7
Black areas in print “smeared� out into lighter areas
Dirty enlarger lens and/or intrinsic enlarger lens flare
f/2.8
Print 1
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time This negative appeared to have more light values thank dark, so I started with F16, for 4 seconds, with a 2.5 filter. The print ended up not having enough contrast. I assumed it was because I did not expose it long enough.
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
Print 1
Problem Solved
f/16
With that in mind, I decided to use F16 and the 2.5 filter again. The only thing I changed was the time, and I increased it by 7 seconds. My (educated) guess was correct! My final print had the perfect range of values!
f/22
Choosing the Negative
The negative I choose has the most interesting composition and the best range in values (plus some of the other options were being a little silly).
2
1
2.5
Choosing the Negative
I chose this negative because it has the most interesting composition. It is the most interesting to me because it is almost abstracting the architecture. By looking at this negative you can see that it has primarily light values on the top portion, but there is enough to work with overall.
Print 1
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time For this image, I thought it would be wise to start with a smaller f-stop since it has a lot of light values in the image. By looking at the negative, I can see that the top portion of the image is very bright, or light in values. While the middle and bottom portion have a good range in values. In knowing that, I started with F11 and 5.5 seconds overall with an additional 3 second burn on the top portion of the image. This print came out decent, but there isn’t as much contrast as I would like it to have.
Print 2
Printing Problem: Too Much Contrast Reason For Problem: Exposed too long
f/2.8
f/4
My estimate was close, but not close enough. For my next , I started on F11 for 5.5 seconds and used a filter. I chose filter 3 because I felt like it was lacking contrast, but just slightly. Unfortunetly, either the the filter gave it too much constrast or it was exposed too long. It is too dark overall and some of the detail got lost in the elevator toward the bottom of the image.
f/5.6
Print 3
f/11
Problem Solved In the last print, I decided to try the filter again, but reduce the first exposure to 5.5 seconds. I did an additional 3 second burn to the bottom of the image. I have finally reached an image that has the perfect range of values.
f/8
f/16
f/22
1
2
3
3
Choosing the Negative
This negative caught my eye as being the most interesting composition. Since this composition is closer up than the other options, it makes it more personal and tells more of a story than the images that are farther away. It was a risky move taking a photo directly at the sky. It is very difficult to get the perfect values of a direct sky, not only in taking the photo correctly but even more so in printing. But that was a risk I was willing to take because I thought it would make for a really cool photograph!
Print 1
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time Since the values are overall light in the image, I started with the appareture of F16 and exposed it 5 seconds overall. I did an additional 3 second dodge on the middle swing. The image is severely lacking contrast.
Print 2
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time For the second print, I used F16 again but I increased the time by 1 second. I did an additional 10 second burn to the sky. This print is much darker than print 1, but it is still lacking the contrast it needs.
Print 3 Problem Solved In the last print, I knew that I would have to somehow dodge each swing. The image is lacking the contrast in the sky, but the figures in the swings are already appearing too dark. So, I created a dodge tool for this unique situation (this was the talk of the class)! The way I used the dodge tool is demonstrated on the next page. (It is important to never hold the dodge tool still while exposing, it will give you harsh lines. In order to avoid that, you want to hover over the paper and quickly move it back and forth. This will give you softer edges). I decided to add filter 2.5 to boost the contrast. I exposed the image for 4 seconds overall. Then with the dodge tool I created, I dodged the swing to the left for 2 seconds. Then, I dodged all three swings for 10 seconds. This allowed the figures from being exposed any longer than they already were, but allowed the sky to get darker by adding more exposure time.
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22
1
2
3
3.5
Choosing the Negative
These photos were all taken at night time. I knew the chance of any of these coming out were slim to none. But I thought I would take the chance and take them anyway! I am so glad that I did because I think this one photo is worth it! The other negatives are way too dark, there is not much that could be salvaged.
Print 1
that I could get it right by now. The contrast was still lacking in print 3. So in moving forward I did the exact same thing in print 3, but I increased the burn time to 5 seconds.
I was really unsure where to start with this negative. I knew that the overall image was very dark, so I decided to work lightly. My approach was to start with filter 1.5 because I knew it would be very black and white, with little to no gray tones. I exposed the image for 6 seconds.
Print 5
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time
Print 2
Problem Solved For the final print, I repeated the same thing but increased the burn time to 9 seconds. I have finally reached the contrast I was looking for!
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks, Brown Stain Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time, Tongs Were Cross Contaminated Since the first print came out with very weak blacks, I knew that I had to add more time to this print. Since the image is so dark already, I was scared to add too much time. So I decided to take it a little at a time.
Print 3
Printing Problem: Poor Cropping Decision Reason For Problem: Rushing The contrast is better in this print, but not good enough. Because of that, I increased the exposure time to 10 seconds. I did an additional 2 second burn to the top portion of the image. The cropping I did in this print was terrible. This happened because I was rushing and didnt notice the negative was not positioned correctly.
Print 4
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time I really dont know what I was thinking this day. This is a perfect example of not thinking clearly... You would think
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22
1
2
3
4
5
4
Choosing the Negative
Most of these negatives have similar compositions. I decided to go with this one because I enjoyed the angle of her face the most. Plus, the values seemed interesting in this one.
Print 1
Printing Problem: Weak Blacks Reason For Problem: Insuffient Time The negative appeared to have a lot of dark areas in it. In knowing that, I decided to use filter 2.5 at F16 for 3.5 seconds. In my opinion, this image actually looks pretty cool the way it is. It has an aged look to it but it isnt quite was I was going for.
Print 2
Printing Problem: Tinted (Purple or Pink) Stains on Print Reason For Problem: Fixer Bad or Not Fixed Long Enough Since the first print came out too light in values, I bumped up the time. I felt that I had reached the perfect range in values. BUT the fixer ruined my print! This is a situation that was out of my control. The problem was that the entire class was using the same chemicals. This causes the fixer to go bad more quickly than if you were to print alone.
Print 3
f/2.8
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
Problem Solved I made the instructor aware that the fixer was bad. She replace the fixer and then I started the second print. Since the second print was perfect, besides the fixer problem, I repeated the same steps.
f/22
1
2
3
4.5
Choosing the Negative
I took these photos in a very low light situation. I have very scared that none of these would come out with a strong range in values. With a little help, I kept adjusting the lighting in each image. I was blindly shooting this image because my hand is featured in it. It is a little difficult to take a photo without seeing what is in the frame! This negative showed the best range in value and the best composition.
f/2.8
Print 1
Printing Problem: Tinted (Purple or Pink) Stains on Print Reason For Problem: Fixer Bad or Not Fixed Long Enough This is the ideal negative. Since the range in values are pretty much perfect, I started with F16 for 8 seconds. Finally, I was able to print a photo on the first try with the perfect range of values! BUT the fixer ruined my print again! This time it was because I did not leave it in the fixer long enough.
Print 2
f/4
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
Problem Solved I SLOWED down and made sure to pay attention better on the second print. I did literally the exact same thing for this print since the only problem was the fixer the first time
f/22
1
2
5
Summary I told you, film photography is not a joke. It is a lot of hard work and it is a very detailed process. But it isn’t anything you can’t handle. The biggest lesson I learned from it all is to slow down. You’re going to win some, and you’re going to lose some. But those wins will be totally worth all the blood (hopefully not blood), sweat and tears that go into it. I hope this guide was helpful!