Cheapest way to develop 50 rolls of 35mm negative film?

dnjl · Sep 26, 2010

Hello,

As you might be able to tell by the contents of this topic, I'm fairly new to the analog side of photography. I feel like a cloned sheep talking to a herd of dinosaurs here
I recently bought a batch of 50 Ferrania Solaris (ISO 200, 12 exp.) 35mm rolls. They were ridiculously cheap (that may have had something to do with the expiration date, too) and I figured they'd make good learning equipment. However, I didn't take into account the developing costs: In my area, you can have a colour film developed for 3,00 eur., which is quite okay if your roll has 36 exposures. If you only have 12 per roll, like me, it's 3x as expensive. Stupid me.
Now I was wondering: would it be worth the effort and costs to develop these rolls myself? I'm asking this because I really have no clue about how much liters of chemicals would be required to develop 50 12 exp. rolls. Expressed in value, would the entire process (basic darkroom equipment + chemicals) cost less than 150,00 eur.? I'm not greedy, just a student with a restricted financial range.

Notes:
I) I won't be needing any prints from the negatives, as I'm planning on scanning them.
II) I tried to get a batch discount at my local store, but they rely on external services to develop their films and therefore cannot give me a rebate. No option there.
III) I'm obviously not looking for top quality here. Besides, the rolls expired two years ago anyway.
IIII) One way or another, I will have these rolls developed. I'm not complaining about the costs of analog photography, just trying to find the cheaper way.

Thanks all

perkeleellinen · Sep 26, 2010

I made this mistake once also - 12exp = cheap, but no lab offers 12exp prices anymore!

You could experiment with loading 2 rolls onto one developing spool which would then mean you've got 25 24exp films to develop. Then you could buy the Rollei kit for €30:
http://www.macodirect.de/digibase©-midi-literbrfor-2024-films-p-2010.html

David William White · Sep 26, 2010

Well, as you are learning, you will need to shoot a little, develop a little, review, then repeat. Just onesies and twosies at a time, so economies of scale might not enter into it.

hrst · Sep 26, 2010

FujiHunt C-41 kit at AG-Photographic, UK, is priced quite affordably, but shipping costs depend on your exact location. I've been happy to order those products up to 30 kg to Finland at a fixed cost.

You may be able to load three 12 exp rolls on one standard spiral if you cut the extra leader out. This may need a bit practicing first. But, when you do it by yourself, there's no reason you couldn't do just one roll at a time if you want.

When you reuse the chemistry as instructed, you run much below 1€ / roll of 135-36, or 0.33 € / roll of 135-12.

You can do C-41 in normal tanks by tempering it with water bath. Tanks and spirals are cheaply available at second-hand markets or Internet auction sites, but even the new ones won't cost that much, see e.g. http://www.ag-photographic.co.uk/paterson-universal-processing-tank--reel-784-p.asp .

So YES, you can get everything under 150 €.

Sirius Glass · Sep 26, 2010

Buy a changing bag, a metal tank, Hewes 35mm reals, a piece of fishing line, wooden clip close pins, XTOL developer, stop bath with indicator, hypo and PhotoFlo. After the first six rolls, you will be way ahead money wise. Follow the instructions, ask us any questions and well will help you through it.

Tell us where you are, and we can probably find someone near you to help you get started and through any problems.

Steve

removed account4 · Sep 26, 2010

steve

it is C41 film, not black + white ...

- john

hrst · Sep 26, 2010

As I reread the question, you are saying that you don't strive for top quality. Then, you can reuse the chemistry even more than stated in the directions. This way, you can develop probably up to 100 rolls of 135-36 or 300 rolls of 135-12 with that 5 liter kit. Quality may still be uncompromised, but it just cannot be guaranteed to be perfect.

But another side note, if you cannot use up the 5 liter kit in a year or so, it will go bad after opening. I highly recommend keeping the small developer concentrate parts in a fridge. So, if you shoot less, the price goes up this way. Anyway, it's still much cheaper than lab, unless you shoot only few rolls per year.

And, as you might already have noted, Steve's instructions are for B&W film. XTOL, stop bath, "hypo" (whatever he meant with it; I'd rather suggest a commercial B&W fixer for B&W film), and PhotoFlo are all irrelevant for C-41 processing, luckily!

Sirius Glass · Sep 26, 2010

I missed the C-41 basis. For C-41 I found, for me, Costco was the cheapest high quality route. Recently, I bought a Jobo processor and two packages of C-41 chemicals. When I have enough film I will start processing the C-41 film.

Use my comments for black & white film. You would not like the results with color C-41 film.

Steve

nickandre · Sep 26, 2010

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

might be of some assistance. Good luck.

dnjl · Sep 27, 2010

Thank you for your suggestions, everyone. The film is indeed C-41, my HP5+ rolls are going straight to the fotolab so there's no need to do those as well. Based on your insight, I have decided to develop myself. I'll buy the tank, changing bag and other hardware locally (btw, do I need an opening device to pop the rolls?). If anyone knows where to buy chemicals in Belgium, EU, please let me know.
Thanks again for your detailed responses.

David William White · Sep 27, 2010

In that case, you should start with your B/W HP5+, just to get the hang of things. And the official extraction device is a bottle opener.

AgX · Sep 27, 2010

waltereegho said:
If anyone knows where to buy chemicals in Belgium, EU, please let me know.

Foto Guy te Brussel heeft C-41 op de lijst.
Grobet te Antwerpen heeft het tenminste in de webshop.
Misschien ook bij Meurs in Diest.

Aurum · Sep 27, 2010

If you don't mind developing your C41 film as black and white (To give the same effect as Kodak BW400) you could always stand develop in Rodinal 1:100 for an hour.

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

This thread will give you a background, and associated links.

I've tried this with a no-name C41 colour from a disposible camera. It worked very well indeed. Only downside is printing an orange based "Colour" negative with a normal enlarger onto standard B&W paper. (I cheated and scanned as I wanted a quick result)

wclark5179 · Sep 27, 2010

What are the photographs/negatives worth to you?

Or to the people in the negatives?

How long will the negatives last? What is the cost per day?

Just ideas to help!

Sometimes the cheapest can be the most expensive.

hrst · Sep 27, 2010

wclark5179, I don't find those questions very helpful...

If your photographs are really important to you and you want the negatives to last as long as possible, there are actually two options;

1) Do it yourself, preferably using fresh and proper chemicals from Kodak or Fuji, or,
2) Find a real, proper professional lab.

So, DIY is usually very good way for both cost savings, and for reliability and quality. But this, of course, depends on person. Even when you push the chemicals over their limits, you are just doing the same that minilabs do, but you can monitor your results without surprises.

The reason you can actually save costs and still have the same or better quality, is that the price at prolabs (as well as minilabs) is actually mostly for labor, premises etc. When you DIY, you are only paying for chemicals.

The key to make negatives last is proper final wash and usage of final rinse (supplied in the kit), and not washing after it, so just follow the instructions, and then keep negatives in a cool, dry and dark place.

Actually how well do the negatives keep if they come from a washless minilab machine, is a mystery to me.

wclark5179 · Sep 27, 2010

"wclark5179, I don't find those questions very helpful..."

Humm. Are you the author of the thread? Thanks for your opinion.

I based my response on the question posed by the OP.

"As you might be able to tell by the contents of this topic, I'm fairly new to the analog side of photography."

Does the OP show the same level of experience as you portray?

I've been involved with analog photography for 50 plus years, does that mean the OP has the same experiences?

I was suggesting that perhaps s(he) may want to evaluate the benefits of cost versus the worth of the negatives. Sometimes the initial costs can be amortized over a lifetime or several lifetimes and then what is the cost?

It depends on what's on the negatives. I don't want a neophyte working in my business.

I was suggesting, that, depending on the contents of the negs, that consideration may be given to find a lab or someone who can help this person.

And what is the cost if the results is not what the OP expected.

Thanks for your comments.

dnjl · Sep 28, 2010

Thank you for your insight, wclark5179.

I) What are the photographs/negatives worth to you?
As I mentioned in my first post, these rolls were bought to experiment. Mind you, I very well know how to expose a photograph correctly, by "experimenting" I mean "doing stuff you wouldn't do with more expensive film". Things like quadruple exposure, shaken and blurred pictures, over- and underexposure,... As such, it wouldn't be the end of the world if the negatives don't last indefinitely.

II) Or to the people in the negatives?
I generally avoid shooting people with expired film.

III) How long will the negatives last? What is the cost per day?
That would be interesting to know. Do you have an estimation?
Like hrst, I doubt that an industrial photolab will have great quality improvements over a properly DIY developed film, but a professional photolab is cost-wise no option for me. I have to find a balance between price and quality, can't afford to go perfectionist.

AgX, I had a look at Grobet and they look lovely. Thank you.
Aurum, that looks very promising. I might try that in the future. Thanks.

wclark5179 · Sep 28, 2010

Thanks for your thoughts.

I've felt the same as you, thinking at the time I made the photographs, I wasn't really concerned how long they would last; however, some negatives I have that were made in the 1960's I'm happy they are still around. While others that I threw away, I wish I had them now.

Most of the B&W film I use has expired and I've had pretty good results.

Negatives will last longer than I'm around. I've got negatives made by my grand parents that I have on file! Of course, if a fire, flood or they are stolen then what? They are gone.

What is the cost per day/week/month/year? I do develop my own film and it's inexpensive. The cost/loss to me is what's on the negatives not just the processing and printing.

Hope this helps you.

patois · Sep 28, 2010

Take them to your local minilab and then ask for "develop only," and of course scan them yourself.

Cheapest way to develop 50 rolls of 35mm negative film?

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