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Canadian / BC -based darkroom users - where...?

Sixbysixjan

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Vancouver, Canada
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Good day gents

I just had a lesson in humility / Humble Pie eating. For weeks now I have been digging around for photographic equipment etc - and now I am ready to get going, and need to buy B&W processing chemicals (and MUCH MORE film for that matter)... I was expecting to be doing online shopping from places like Adorama, B&H etc (south of the border) seeing as prices in the US are way more reasonable than locally (f.i. $5 / roll of Delta100 vs almost $10 / roll locally). However, by the time shipping (and some dealers will only ship through UPS or Fedex) etc is factored in the cost escalates to the point where it is hardly worth it. Ordering "Wet" chemicals online seem like a complete impossibility - the term "ILSB" comes up pretty regularly when trying to do so.

So.... where and how do you shop? Advice would be VERY welcome - this is a bit of a shocker for me, I realize that it's not 1985 anymore but holy moly - Actually, this is a HECK of a shocker for me. No wonder kids nowadays only play computer games!

I guess I should have done this research BEFORE I started investing in camera and darkroom equipment... (albeit I somehow suspect I would have gone ahead anyway).

As I say, advice would be very welcome - no, change that to "eagerly awaited"!
 
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I do not know if it is of any help, but you could try ordering from some UK suppliers, film paper chemicals Etc are certainly cheaper, and shipping is from around £45UKP, people to google are Silverprint, Firstcall Photographic and AG photographic, they all ship to the USA and Canada
 
I'm just north of you in Yukon. I buy almost of my materials in Canada. Beau Photo in Vancouver is my go-to I find their prices to be reasonable compared to ordering from the USA with shipping, duty and currency exchange. Have you been in there yet?

I also would enthusiastically recommend Argentix. Just ordered from them and will do so again.
 
Here is a slightly dated shot of Beau Photo's film and darkroom section:



Here is their website - at least the film part: http://www.beauphoto.com/frames/filmfrm.html

Nicole is great, and the others fill in well for her when she isn't there.

But you will need to get used to either visiting them (their hours are not convenient, but note the Thursday evenings) or dealing with them by phone or email. They do not have a web store.

They have recently gone heavily into consignment sales of used cameras - primarily film cameras.

They also have a really good rental department and lots of pro level lighting stuff.
 
Matt, the film has been moved off of the floor at Beau and stuck in the fridge behind the counter. I think it's all used gear on those shelves now. Still a great place to pick up film and chems. I almost had a stroke though when I was told that an 8x10 box of HP5 would cost me $170.
 
BainDarret said:
I just checked the Beau Photo website and I don't seem to be able to access their price list pdfs other than ULF.
http://www.beauphoto.com/frames/filmfrm.html
I must be missing something.
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You are not missing anything. You have to email or phone. They will tell you what the current price is, or email the current price list.
They source a lot from the US, and their prices fluctuate with the currency.
 

I see some Foma paper on the shelf in the bottom left of the 3rd image. Do they still sell this stuff? I've emailed them for a price list not too long ago and they don't list it.
 
mehguy said:
I see some Foma paper on the shelf in the bottom left of the 3rd image. Do they still sell this stuff? I've emailed them for a price list not too long ago and they don't list it.
Click to expand...

I recently bought Foma paper from Jacques at Argentix. He had to bring what I wanted in but it didn't take long and the price was excellent. In fact, I just checked and his price was much better than B&H or Freestyle.
 
I shop B&H or Freestyle exclusively. I ship to a parcel service on the US side of the border. This saves on shipping, and generally no sales tax. Not sure if this is practical for you.
 
Another good supplier is amplis.com . They have kentmere and ilford products.

Dead Link Removed
 
MattKing said:
You are not missing anything. You have to email or phone. They will tell you what the current price is, or email the current price list.
They source a lot from the US, and their prices fluctuate with the currency.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the clarification.
 
Thank you VERY much gentlemen! I was worried there (I still work for a living & is "supposed" to be saving for retirement) - seeing a future for myself with my personal finances in a shambles, committing HOUSEHOLD FRAUD on a regular basis in order to feed my hobby

So, I have (in no particular order):

* Beau Photo
* Argentix
* Amplis
* Quicksilver in Bellingham, WA (I live in a "suburb" about 30 minutes out of Vancouver - depending on border traffic I can get to Bellingham and back in probably just over an hour) - they do have a good amount of B&W 120 on the shelf by the looks of it: http://quicksilverphotolab.com/prod...uids][0]=160830cc-7790-4399-9330-586545ab3e9b
* If I get desperate, B&H will ship for free to Canada as long as I buy spend $100 or more - which sweetens the deal somewhat

Henry's (Canada) do have a lot of stock but price-wise does not seem all that attractive. The above dealers will definitely do for now - and thank you again for your kind advice.

-- 6X6
 
argentix.ca is wonderful! Jacques is also willing to order in items that aren't listed on the site. Highly recommend it.
 
I also have good experience with argentix.ca

You can also have things shipped to a UPS store (or similar) near the border. There's a UPS store in Blaine WA. You have your parcel delivered there, doesn't have to by shipped by UPS, pick it up and bring it across the border yourself. A lot of Canadians do this. Freestyle for example charges a lot more to ship to Canada. You'll have to do the math to see if it's advantages wrt currency exchange, receiver fee, GST & PST (although often not enforced by customs) versus the savings. Sometimes there's no choice as a lot of things are simply not available in Canada and US stores don't want to bother with shipping across the border.
 
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spijker said:
You can also have things shipped to a UPS store (or similar) near the border.
Click to expand...

On the subject of buying in the US, Glazer's in Seattle is a reasonable option. When I was there in September (their brand new store) the film and darkroom section was a lot smaller than it used to be, but they indicated to me that their volumes were up and they planned on expanding it.

The border towns - Point Roberts, Blaine, Lynden, Sumas - all have shipping services that will receive a parcel for you and notify you by email. They have a small per parcel charge. I use them regularly. Be warned though that one of the biggest sources in the US, B & H, has just stopped shipping all chemicals: (there was a url link here which no longer exists)
 
adelorenzo said:
I just checked B&H and the same box in my shopping cart would be $181 CAD even with the free shipping. Where do you find it cheaper?
Click to expand...

I don't bother putting much effort in buying from the States anymore. I used to buy from Rob Skeoch in Ontario, but he closed up his online shop. Now, it's Beau Photo or Argentix.
 
Another supplier I forgot to mention is KHB photografix based out of Mississauga, Ontario.

They sell Ilford paper and chemicals and prices are quite reasonable. They also sell lots of darkroom equipment, and quite frankly, I find that the equipment is overpriced.

I don't know if they have a physical store front I can shop at, but it would be pretty neat to go there just to see all the enlargers and to pick up a few chemicals.

http://store.khbphotografix.com/Paper-and-Chemistry/
 
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adelorenzo said:
I just checked B&H and the same box in my shopping cart would be $181 CAD even with the free shipping. Where do you find it cheaper?
Click to expand...

Sorry, I didn't clearly answer your question in my last post. I got the HP5 at Beau Photo. I took the 3 boxes she had on hand but asked if she could give me a deal...She knocked the price down to $160 a box. I guess I shouldn't complain about the price. If I still lived in Japan I'd be paying about $250CDN.
 
Trying to find some Kentmere film here in Canada. Amplis would not be able to send it to me until end of January 2017. Kept looking and was very surprised on this price:
https://www.amazon.ca/Kentmere-400-...=1480108642&sr=1-1&keywords=Kentmere+400+film

I will be searching elsewhere. For a 36 roll would have to mortgage the house. But it was free shipping for me! You really have to do your shopping to find prices that are reasonable and/or available here in Canada.
 
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