Backlog of Film Developed!

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
Ever since I shut down my FL darkroom in 2007 I've had a huge backlog of B&W film to develop. I finished my new darkroom in Jan of 2016 fixing all the leaks that plagued it.

https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/at-last-building-out-my-darkroom.108767/

I've been on 3 major trips that added to the film backlog since then.

Since Oct 3rd I've developed 152 rolls of film - 35mm, 120, 127 and a found roll of 116 in my grandfather's camera that dates to around 1950's or so. Sadly, not much was on the Verichome film except a lot of fog.

I finished the last 10 rolls of 120 Friday night. and yesterday filed them in negative pages. I went through 2 gallons of fixer and 3 bottles of HC-110. Most of the film was Ilford HP5+ of course

That's the good news. The bad news is now I have around 190 rolls to make contact prints of. That starts tomorrow! I've mixed up the Dektol!



Sorted by year from 2007 to 2018.

Edit: Forgot the photo.
 
Last edited:

mshchem

Subscriber
Joined
Nov 26, 2007
Messages
15,328
Location
Iowa City, Iowa USA
Format
Medium Format
Good job. Get those contact sheets, no substitute for a good contact proof sheet.
That's quite an accomplishment!
 

Sirius Glass

Subscriber
Joined
Jan 18, 2007
Messages
50,588
Location
Southern California
Format
Multi Format
If you stood the whole time, I would bet that your legs are getting tired.
 
OP
OP

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
Sirius Glass said:
If you stood the whole time, I would bet that your legs are getting tired.
Click to expand...

They really are tired! From now on I will try to not let the film back up!
 

NB23

Member
Joined
Jul 26, 2009
Messages
4,307
Format
35mm
That’s good.

I developed 100 films last week.

My backlog of films to contact print is about 1000-1200. No jokes.

I’m still printing my films from 2014...
 
OP
OP

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
NB23 said:
That’s good.

I developed 100 films last week.

My backlog of films to contact print is about 1000-1200. No jokes.

I’m still printing my films from 2014...
Click to expand...

That's a lot of film for a week!!!! The last year that I've printed are 2006 images. I have fears of dying and like Garry Winogrand leaving tons of film un-processed, un-proofed, un-edited, and un-printed. "At the time of his death Winogrand's late work remained undeveloped, with about 2,500 rolls of undeveloped film, 6,500 rolls of developed but not proofed exposures, and about 3,000 rolls only realized as far as contact sheets being made."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garry_Winogrand

Here's his last Leica M4:

https://www.cameraquest.com/LeicaM4G.htm

Right now I have enough film in my freezer to last me 3 - 5 years. My plan is to shoot it up and once it's gone to focus on printing. And sell off a lot of my cameras.
 
OP
OP

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
jim appleyard said:
Take some tunes into the darkroom!
Click to expand...

Yep. I have an old Aiwa stereo that I play my iPod through. You can see it in the thread on my darkroom build.
 

MattKing

Moderator
Moderator
Joined
Apr 24, 2005
Messages
54,068
Location
Delta, BC Canada
Format
Medium Format
Just a suggestion - don't put off developing and contact proofing new films because you haven't proofed the old ones yet.
If all new photography remains current, there will be less of a problem catching up with the old.
 

Bill Burk

Subscriber
Joined
Feb 9, 2010
Messages
9,427
Format
4x5 Format
aoresteen said:
They really are tired! From now on I will try to not let the film back up!
Click to expand...
Bet your arms are tired too.

I recently caught up a similar backlog. I don’t plan to contact print, but I did “catalog” subject matter for ALL my negs. Then I made a single sheet list of shots I have been meaning to print, some for life memorials since it’s been so long (that part is a bit sad). But the list is my place to start, and as I remember shots to print, it’s pretty easy to find negs now.

Big step forward from having to look through everything to find one shot.

I have a small set of negs I want to print but can’t find. Think it’s down to three since I found the rest.
 

Vaughn

Subscriber
Joined
Dec 13, 2006
Messages
10,247
Location
Humboldt Co.
Format
Large Format
Impressive numbers! Great work.

On a whole different level...and not higher...I just developed 15 sheets of 8x10 that I exposed a month ago. Dried and in envelopes with their data (date, exposure, development, etc) written on them. I don't make proofs. Still have three sheets of 11x14 to develop...tomorrow night. My big backlog is in printing -- no hope in getting an upper hand on that until I can't carry a camera anymore.
 

ericdan

Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2014
Messages
1,359
Location
Tokyo
Format
35mm RF
Is a 152 rolls really that much? I shoot about 5 rolls per month at home. When I go on trips much more than that.
I had to prepare for an exam and had no time since August this year. I have 34 rolls waiting to be developed.
Usually I do 5 at a time in my 5-reel Paterson tank. It'll be a little more work this time.
 

Jerevan

Member
Joined
Nov 19, 2004
Messages
2,258
Location
Germany/Sweden
Format
Large Format
Well done!

And how much is much? I am still agonizing over my 40-50 rolls of film languishing in the drawers ... as noted above, it is what others can process in a week.
 

guangong

Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
Messages
3,589
Format
Medium Format
I’m jealous. I keep shooting, but family medical problems (now under control) and several large projects have caused undeveloped film to just keep piling up. Now the OP will have the pleasure of discovering pictures that he never remember taking. Have fun!
 

Kino

Subscriber
Joined
Jan 20, 2006
Messages
7,867
Location
Orange, Virginia
Format
Multi Format
I am jealous! I have a lot to process as well and no finished darkroom... yet...
 

Pentode

Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2017
Messages
957
Location
Brooklyn, NY
Format
Multi Format
Wow.... I get anxious when my undeveloped films number over a dozen! I’m at around 8 right now.

I’m still not set up to print at home and that’s still at least a couple of months out but as soon as I am I’ll have over 100 contact sheets to make as well. Little by little I’ll chip away at it.
 

Cholentpot

Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2015
Messages
6,817
Format
35mm
And I was feeling all puffed up because I did 17 rolls of C-41 from over the summer in the course of 3 evenings...

To be fair, every roll of C-41 is like 2 of b&w.
 
OP
OP

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
Cholentpot said:
And I was feeling all puffed up because I did 17 rolls of C-41 from over the summer in the course of 3 evenings...

To be fair, every roll of C-41 is like 2 of b&w.
Click to expand...

That's why I send my C-41 to the lab for developing & scans. Saves me lots of time that I'd rather use developing B&W.

Yesterday getting ready to print I found 5 more rolls of 120 that I missed. I developed them and now the backlog is really zero with a roll count of 157.

Today I put the negatives in order from newest to oldest (thanks for the tip MattKing!) and the contact printing begins !
 

Cholentpot

Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2015
Messages
6,817
Format
35mm

Oh I love scanning the negatives over a season. I go oldest to newest though as the newest become old by the time I get to them.
 

OptiKen

Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2013
Messages
1,055
Location
Orange County
Format
Medium Format
and I was feeling sorry for myself last weekend when I had 37 rolls to process.
HA!
Small time
 
OP
OP

aoresteen

Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
677
Location
Newnan, GA,
Format
Multi Format
Developed 2 rolls of 220 TXP that I shot today. The film expired Dec 1982.

As jim appleyard suggested, take some tunes into the darkroom!

I listened to Paul Potts while developing.



Made the evening very pleasant!

You can find these old stereos at Goodwill & thrift shops for $20. As long as they have an AUX input you are good to go. Just get a 1/8" (3.5mm) stereo cord and plug into the earphone jack. The iPod is a 5th GEN 30GB model. Works great!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…