Coming back to film

fdfjc · Jan 11, 2011

Hi, I did the digital thing for the last four years. After two laptop crashes I have very few photos left. I'm getting a clue and going back to film. The 35mm is no problem -- Walgreens still develops and prints it so far. But I've found that two of the 120 processors we had in the area have gone out of business. Of the two that are left, one has always been bad, and the other is changing ownership so I am facing the fact that I will have to mail off my 120 and 220 rolls. Can anyone recommend a really good service? I apologize if this post is in the wrong place, but I didn't see a processing section. I may have missed it. Thanks for any help you can give me.

hpulley · Jan 11, 2011

Your kitchen, bathroom or laundry sink with a changing bag and developing tank is really your best and cheapest bet. Though about trying to do it yourself?

Chazzy · Jan 11, 2011

Welcome to APUG, and good luck on finding a place to process your 120 and 220.

degruyl · Jan 11, 2011

I'd say A&I is very good at least for E-6 (I don't shoot color negatives at the moment), and I would concur with hpulley: do it yourself for black and white. If you can get color control, doing C-41 or E-6 at home is not out of reach either, although I would not go as far as recommending that.

Markster · Jan 11, 2011

That's one of the reasons I like film as well: We archive our digital pics but never do anything with them! I have an aunt that does print them out (kudos to her!) but most other people in my family and friends don't bother printing them. They get lost eventually. Either too-lazy-to-review syndrome kicks in, or apathy, or need for space, or vanity ("do I REALLY look like that? DELETE IT!!"), or just as in your case computer crashes, and the pictures are gone forever.

I can totally relate, and new here myself I still extend a warm welcome.

Mats_A · Jan 11, 2011

Welcome back to the light side. And there are many places to develope your film if you don't mind mailing it. B&W is really easiest to do your self. And it is fun too.

r

Mats

Christopher Walrath · Jan 11, 2011

Welcome to APUG. Processing MF B&W is relatively cheap. Color a little more. Good luck.

M.A.Longmore · Jan 11, 2011

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Welcome Home !

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Jeff Kubach · Jan 11, 2011

Hello and welcome to APUG. Have your own darkroom!

Jeff

cjbecker · Jan 11, 2011

welcome.

For B&W, do it your self

color, Richards photo lab. link

hpulley · Jan 11, 2011

Why does everyone thing C41 is so hard????

papagene · Jan 11, 2011

Hello and welcome back to the land of film... and APUG.

degruyl · Jan 11, 2011

I don't think it is hard, just more precise. Good temperature control is sort of required, as opposed to just adjusting to ambient temperature conditions.

kb3lms · Jan 11, 2011

Welcome back to film and to APUG. Great group here!

Moopheus · Jan 11, 2011

Plus, it doesn't seem worth bothering unless you're going to do it more than once in a while.

If I were in Texas and didn't want to spend a fortune on processing, I'd probably think about sending to Dwayne's in Kansas.

hpulley · Jan 11, 2011

The temperature control isn't hard with just a simple water bath.

You're right that it isn't recommended that you keep the 1L kit around for long though some people refrigerate or freeze it for long periods. The B&W stuff seems better for occasional development and simple storage and usage at room temperature. Color is fun though!

Wee Gillis · Jan 11, 2011

I'll add my welcome back as well. You are not the only one to have lost photos in cyberspace. Just wait!

I have a fix fo you if you don't want t do your own B&W. Photo-Synthesis in Fresno, Ca. will do a 120 or 135-24 Dev. and contact for twelve dollars including shipping back to you. Two to three day turn around. Custom prints on various papers too. They closed down a few years ago but I've heard they are opening again soon. They were the lab in Central California for B&W for a good number of years. E-mail me if you need more info. Good luck..you should do your own however!

Wee Gillis fulldome@SBCGlobal.net

Galah · Jan 11, 2011

fdfjc said:
Hi, ...I am facing the fact that I will have to mail off my 120 and 220 rolls. Can anyone recommend a really good service? ...

Well, once you post it may as well be global: if you like I can recommend my processor (in Oz), who does a very good job on 120 for me (using entirely the silver halide processes).

lorirfrommontana · Jan 12, 2011

Welcome! I too made the switch to film a couple of years ago. I haven't looked back! It's nice to have negatives for your images. I lost so many pictures over the years with digital. My youngest daughter hardly has any photos of her growing up as most were lost. I guess I could try going through all the old CD's I made with photos on them. I've found some of them have degraded though. I develop my own black and white and am going to try my hand at color next week. For 120 we only have one lab left in town. I have never tried sending out film so have no suggestions for you there. Again, Welcome to APUG!
-Lori

Black Dog · Jan 12, 2011

Welcome back-I second the DIY option though I do use One Vision Imaging in Coventry for C41 and E6 [not that I do much colour these days].

Sirius Glass · Jan 12, 2011

Welcome back from the darkside!

Antonov · Jan 12, 2011

Yeah, welcome back.

BTW, one thing I don't understand you guys here. First is, how big are your cities? I mean, my city has population of 35 000, and we still have three labs that can process film 135 and 120 ( OK, probably not for long, but that is not important, I live in Croatia, and most of you in USA ). And this is the second part that I don't understand - why in the world you couldn't process 120 if you can 135? In ALL labs I have been, they can develop both, 135 and 120.

MattKing · Jan 12, 2011

Antonov:

In a lot of locations in North America, all the full range labs have closed. The only ones left (if there are any) are a few small mini-labs - the sort who once offered one hour service for family snapshots. Those labs are/were rarely set up to do anything but 135 and, possibly, 126 and 110.

I live in a metropolitan area with a population of about 1.5 million. I would guess there are less than 6 labs left who can process 120 colour - and I think we are better served here than many, many others.

Here is a recent thread I started advising of the close down and bailiff's auction of G. King Photo - a local, large, pro lab:

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

You can get a sense of what has been lost by viewing G. King Photo's (now unattended)) website:

Dead Link Removed

hpulley · Jan 13, 2011

C41 is the last thing my local labs will do in 135 or 120, one will even do 126 though they broke 2/3 of the cartridges so I can't reload them. Now I do all these formats myself. Only thing I don't have is a reel for 110, I wonder if I could scrunch down a Paterson Super System 4 reel to do 110? Otherwise I could just dip and dunk 110 I guess.

michaelbsc · Jan 13, 2011

hpulley said:
I wonder if I could scrunch down a Paterson Super System 4 reel to do 110?

I've been looking at this myself. Haven't sacrificed a reel to try it yet, but taking them apart and looking at them it seems possible.

I'd probably make one that was stuck together rather than slipping apart like a regular Paterson reel.

Coming back to film

fdfjc

hpulley

Chazzy

degruyl

Markster

Mats_A

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M.A.Longmore

Jeff Kubach

cjbecker

hpulley

papagene

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kb3lms

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Galah

lorirfrommontana

Black Dog

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Coming back to film

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