How to Process Film
Contrary to what many believe, you can process film inside your own home, and you do not need a professional lab or a darkroom to do it. It can be a fulfilling endeavor once you learn how to do it, and all you need are just three types of chemicals, a developing tank that you can buy from a specialty store and a few household items. By following specific instructions, processing black-and-white film can be fairly simple to accomplish.
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Things You'll Need
- Film loading bag
- Bottle cap opener or a film canister opener
- Scissors
- Processing tank with lid and spiral reel
- Chemicals (developer, fixer, and photo flo)
- Thermometer
- Stopwatch
- Clothespins
Instructions
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Lay your film loading bag on a work table, and place your processing tank, lid, spiral reel, film, film canister opener and scissors inside before closing it up. Remember where all your equipment is, because you will have to work by feel inside the bag. Put your arms inside the sleeves of the bag. This is best done in a dark room if you have access to one, but it is not necessary if the film loading bag is light-proof.
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Pop the top end off your film with the film canister opener, and pull out the film inside. Cut off the tapered end of the film (called the leader). Find your spiral reel, and locate the bumps on the inner side of it. Feed the film into the reel by twisting the top of the reel while holding the bottom steady, aligning the holes along the edge of the film strip with the reel's bumps. Keep twisting until the film is completely loaded into the reel.
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Place the loaded reel into the processing tank, and twist the lid closed. Notice how the lid fits into the center of the tank. Secure it before you bring the tank out of the loading bag.
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Mix your developer with warm water according to the instructions on the developer bottle. Take the temperature of the developer. The recommended temp is 68 F, but some like it warmer than that (around 75 F).
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Pour the developer into the top of the lid on the film tank, and screw the small cap back on. Tap the tank on a table to remove any air bubbles. Time your developing duration according to the instructions on the box of your film. Start your stopwatch as soon as you pour the developer in the tank.
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Agitate your tank for about 10 seconds, then let it rest for 30 seconds. Repeat the process until you reach the designated developing duration. Do not forget to tap the tank on the table after every agitation to remove all the air bubbles.
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Pour the developer into a bottle for future use. When you have poured out all the developer, "stop" the developing process by filling up the film tank with tap water, preferably at the same temperature as your developer. Replace the cap, and agitate for 30 seconds. Pour out the water.
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Fill the tank with the fixer. Tap the tank to let the trapped air out, and agitate every 30 seconds for 10 minutes. Pour the fixer out in a container for future use.
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Wash your film reel by filling up the tank with tap water and shaking it to rinse all the chemicals out. Remove the lid from the tank, and wash the film under running water for 10 minutes.
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Dip the film reel into the photo flo solution, and pull the film out of the reel. Photo flo solution makes water run off the film. Squeeze off excess liquid with your clean fingers. Use a clothespin to hang your negatives, and weigh the strip down at the bottom with another clothespin to keep the negatives straight. The film will take about an hour to dry.
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Tips & Warnings
Many methods for developing film are available, and you will find your own preferred style with experimentation.
Agitate the tank as directed. Failure to do so will cause your film to not develop properly or to have low contrast. Test the developing process on dummy film first so you do not ruin any precious pictures.
